Scotland, as the saying goes, are always going to Scotland. Everyone was surprised to see Finn Russell's name among the subs when Gregor Townsend listed his 23 man squad for tomorrow's Six Nations game against Ireland in Dublin.
It seemed like a strange decision given Russell's occasional brilliance and Blair Kinghorn's lack of experience starting at outhalf in Test matches.
But now it all makes a bit more sense.
The BBC are this afternoon reporting that Russell was one of six Scotland players who allegedly broke team protocols last week after Scotland beat Italy at Murrayfield.
Russell along with captain Stuart Hogg, Ali Price, Darcy Graham, Sam Johnson and Sione Tuipulotu reportedly left the team hotel to go drinking in Edinburgh after flying back from Rome last Saturday.
The SRU released a statement that said the following
"The Scotland management team have this week dealt with a post-match matter involving six players following the game against Italy last weekend.
"The players involved have been spoken to individually and those conversations and outcomes will remain private.
"Preparations for the match against Ireland this week have been good and the whole squad is fully focused on achieving a positive result on Saturday."
Speaking at a press conference yesterday, Townsend said Russell took the news that he was being dropped well.
"Like any conversation when you give someone news that they’re not starting, they’re initially disappointed but they support the team. Finn will support Blair, as he has done this week.”
Finn Russell was famously dropped by Townsend for Scotland's game against Ireland in Dublin two years ago after breaching team protocol.
Russell missed training at the start of the 2020 Six Nations after a late-night drinking session that followed a huge Champions Cup win for Racing 92.
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