Finn Russell injury update as Scotland move training due to heatwave

The pair have now linked up in the blistering heat of Madrid to prepare for next month’s opening chapter of the Nations Championship.

The good news for Scotland is that Russell is on the mend after an ankle issue ruled him out of Bath’s semi-final against the Exeter Chiefs. The imperious stand-off was clearly missed as last year’s champions suffered a shock 27-26 defeat at the Rec.

Exeter went on to lose to Northampton in the final, making it a second Prem crown in three seasons for Radford who was the Saints’ defence coach until stepping away after the Twickenham showpiece. The former rugby league man has been juggling club and Scotland duties since the autumn but is now all-in with the national team and was able to deliver an upbeat medical bulletin on Russell.

Unfortunately for him, they never got there

“Yeah, he’s good,” said Radford. “I think he's on the mend. I actually spoke to him today and he gave me the full lowdown. He would have played against us [Saints] if they'd got to the final. Unfortunately for him, they never got there. They're just managing him and boxing clever.

“Obviously, some big games are coming up. We'll have him on the field sooner rather than later, I think.”

He expects Russell to train on Wednesday.

“Yeah, look, he's going to be in and about it tomorrow,” said Radford. “The actual calf itself, he tweaked it slightly a couple of weeks after [the original injury]. He was due to play in the semi against Exeter. Unfortunately, he just tweaked it slightly in the build-up to that. But he’s on the mend today.”

Scotland open their Nations Championship campaign against Argentina in Cordoba on July 4 then fly to South Africa to take on the Springboks a week later before returning home to host Fiji at Murrayfield on July 18. It’s a tough schedule but Radford believes it will serve Scotland well.

“I think fundamentally it's probably a stepping stone for [next year’s] World Cup,” he said. “The opportunity is now to give young blokes game time, see what they're like under the spotlight, see whether they're going to be ready for the World Cup. I think we're going to see a little bit of that. An opportunity to have a good look at the squad and see where the squad is at.

Three different brands of rugby

“In the meantime, you want to be winning games as well. You're up against some really good opposition and all three play a completely different brand of rugby. So that adaptation is going to be important for us.”

Radford is also adapting. Having been shuttling back and forth between Northampton and Edinburgh, he can now devote all his energies to Scotland.

“I haven't had time to think about it, to be honest. It's just bouncing from one competition straight into the other,” he said.

“It's been a pretty full-on season. We've [Northampton] done well throughout the year, obviously in Europe as well, managed to get to the quarters in that. There's been plenty of rugby played, but it'll be interesting to see what differences there are between the two.”

The games against the Pumas and Boks are taking place in winter in the southern hemisphere which makes Scotland’s decision to prepare in Madrid slightly strange. The heatwave has hit hard in southern Europe and Gregor Townsend’s squad have had to adjust accordingly. They are due to play Spain on Thursday in a practice match.

Mental scarring

“It's been 40 degrees here,” added Radford. “We've had to tweak our training times a little bit, get on the field a little bit earlier. That'll be a challenge, I'm sure, and a good challenge as well for us.”

Scotland’s last skirmish with Argentina ended with the home team being booed off the field at Murrayfield, an unusual occurrence to say the least. The home supporters had just watched their team blow a 21-0 lead to lose 33-24 and made their feelings known. Radford, in his first campaign as Scotland defence chief, watched his new charges concede five tries in the final 24 minutes.

“I've still got mental scarring from that!” he grimaced. “It's something we've spoken about today. The last time they played over in Argentina, they had a 20-minute hot streak where everything just fell into place.

“Managing that is something we've got to speak about and deal with. Breaking that momentum is important for us.”