Superpower Tests mean Gregor Townsend will want full throttle Scotland squad

There is an added competitive edge this time as next month’s fixtures against Argentina and South Africa away and Fiji at Murrayfield are part of the Nations Championship, an attempt to turn the traditional north v south Test matches of summer and autumn into a cohesive tournament.

It’s an extremely exacting schedule for Scotland, both in terms of the travel and the opposition. They begin their campaign against the Pumas in Cordoba on July 4 then head to South Africa to take on the world champions at Loftus Versfeld a week later. The summer programme ends back in Edinburgh against the Fijians who have chosen to play their Nations Championship games in Europe where most of their players are based.

Townsend used the summer trips of 2024 and 2025 to blood young talent. The tour to the Americans two years ago saw Scotland take on four so-called second-tier nations in Canada, USA, Chile and Uruguay and there were 10 uncapped players in the squad while the likes of Finn Russell, Ben White, Jack Dempsey, Zander Fagerson and Grant Gilchrist stayed at home.

Big demands placed on senior players

Last year, the Scots head south to play the Maori All Blacks, Fiji and Samoa. A tougher schedule for sure and the match against Fiji in Suva ended in defeat for Townsend’s side. The tour coincided with the British and Irish Lions’ series in Australia where Scotland were well represented, denying Townsend the services of Russell, Blair Kinghorn, Sione Tuipulotu, Huw Jones, Scott Cummings, Duhan van der Merwe and Pierre Schoeman. Zander Fagerson was also part of Andy Farrell’s original squad but had to withdraw through injury, and further Scotland players joined the Lions as the tour progressed.

It meant Scotland were underpowered to an extent, not something they can afford to be next month, particularly in the opening two games against sides ranked fifth and first in the world. Townsend will look to have most if not all of his big guns available although the coach will also be mindful of the demands placed on his senior players with the next Rugby World Cup just over a year away.

The likes of Russell, Kinghorn and Tuipulotu went straight onto the Lions tour at the end of long domestic campaigns, then returned to play another full season for their clubs. And while Scotland captain Tuipulotu’s campaign with Glasgow Warriors came to an end on Saturday, Russell and Kinghorn are still playing for Bath and Toulouse, respectively, with both clubs through to the play-off semi-finals of their national leagues.

At 33, Russell would probably benefit most from a rest but can Scotland realistically take on the Springboks without their creative pivot?

Russell has benefited from previous summers off

After a strong Six Nations which saw Scotland beat England, Wales and France, Townsend will be hoping to take some momentum into the Nations Championship, the second phase of which will be played in the autumn when New Zealand, Australia and Japan come to Murrayfield. But it’s a juggling act for the coach, with the World Cup kicking off on October 1 next year.

Russell has benefited from having previous summers off and has not toured with Scotland in a non-World Cup year since 2017. Townsend has other options at stand-off, with Fergus Burke, Adam Hastings and Tom Jordan all having played there, but Russell remains on a different plane.

Just as they did in the Six Nations, Glasgow Warriors will likely supply the bulk of the players in Townsend’s squad. They comprehensively outperformed Edinburgh once again this season but ended up empty-handed, losing to the Bulls at the weekend in the semi-finals of the United Rugby Championship at the weekend.

The result will at least give Warriors’ Scotland players an extra couple of weeks to rest ahead of the tour. Edinburgh, who failed to make the URC play-offs for the third time in four years, finished up on May 15 so have had a decent break. Darcy Graham was pressed into action at the weekend for the Great Britain Sevens side and will likely join the in-form Kyle Steyn as Scotland’s frontline wingers on tour.

Fewer uncapped players

Edinburgh were blighted by injury, particularly in the second half of the season with potential Scotland tourists Luke Crosbie (hamstring), Sam Skinner (hamstring), Paddy Harrison (back), Matt Currie (hamstring), Ben Muncaster (ankle) and D’arcy Rae (calf) all missing the run-in. Glasgow, too, have had their share of casualties with the likes of Gregor Brown (calf), Alex Craig (foot) and Huw Jones (foot) sidelined. It remains to be seen how many will recover in time.

There are likely to be fewer uncapped players in this squad than previous summer tours but we can expect to see the inclusion of Glasgow hooker Gregor Hiddleston, who was called up for the Six Nations but didn’t play, and perhaps also his team-mate Euan Ferrie who has featured regularly for the Warriors this season. Ollie Blyth-Lafferty is another who will come into contention, although the Edinburgh tighthead is also eligible for the Under-20s and may go to the Junior World Championships in Georgia instead.

Liam McConnell, who made his Scotland debut in the autumn but had to withdraw from the Six Nations squad through injury, is deserving of a call-up after a breakthrough campaign with Edinburgh. And it will be fascinating to see if Duhan van der Merwe is included after an injury-interrupted season in the capital.

The winger lost his Scotland place in the autumn and admitted recently he was “not the go-to guy anymore” for Townsend.

Jack Dempsey’s imminent move to Japan has placed his international future in doubt but the hope is that he will be available. The hard-carrying No 8 would be a real asset against Argentina and South Africa as Townsend embarks on the toughest summer tour of his tenure.