1
'Fearless mindset': The reason why Scotland have picked Cameron Redpath for his Test debut
Gregor Townsend had no hesitation about selecting 21-year-old Cameron Redpath for his Test debut when Scotland take on England at Twickenham in this Saturday’s Guinness Six Nations opener, claiming he has taken a shine to the youngster’s fearlessness no matter what situation he finds himself in.
ADVERTISEMENT
Although a son of former Scotland skipper Bryan, Cameron had recently played for England at U20s level and was involved in training with Eddie Jones’ senior squad during last year’s Six Nations.
Redpath, though, has come into his own in recent months with Bath and despite knocking back an invitation to join up with Scotland during the Nations Cup in November, he has since declared for the Scots at Test level and will now be thrust into the heart of the latest Calcutta Cup clash for his debut.
That first cap will arrive eight days after his fearlessness was highlighted in adversity last week, stepping off the bench at Ashton Gate after Bath had just conceded their seventh try. Having been at Scotland camp earlier that week, it would have been excusable if Redpath didn’t feel up to getting flung into a crisis.
However, he entered the fray on 53 minutes with the lopsided score standing at 48-3 and his determination helped to ensure Bath didn’t concede any further, a resilience that Townsend will now be hoping to see much more with Scotland this spring.
BREAKING: Cam Redpath gets his debuthttps://t.co/PTcBhtMy83
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) February 4, 2021
“He is good enough to play,” insisted Townsend after unveiling an XV showing five changes from the defeat to Ireland last time out, Redpath, Sean Maitland, Finn Russell, George Turner and Hamish Watson respectively replacing Duncan Taylor, Darcy Graham, Jaco van der Velt, Fraser Brown and Blade Thomson.
“He has played really well for his club this season. I have been really impressed in games away from home or maybe up against it. He has that fearless mindset of wanting to take on the opposition.
ADVERTISEMENT
“He’s a fierce competitor and he will have a big role to play in defence, but we also see his skills in attack. We think it is the right time for him and he will learn in each Test match he plays. He will learn from those guys inside and outside him and we’re looking forward to seeing how he goes.
“We have got a few fearless guys in our backline anyway. That’s the mindset you want. Whenever you are going away from home you want people that are confident to show their strengths, express themselves and when things aren’t going your way, to have a go at the opposition.
“We have seen that from Cam and he seems really happy with where he is in terms of building relationships with Chris (Harris) outside him and inside him. We have seen his skills all week at training… we believe his skill set and his mindset are great attributes to succeed at the highest stage.”
Redpath’s direct opponent at Twickenham will be Ollie Lawrence, the three-cap player who had previously been picked at outside centre. Lawrence steps in at No12 with Owen Farrell shifting to out-half and George Ford dropping to the bench.
ADVERTISEMENT
“It was an interesting one,” said Townsend about the England rejig. “They have brought Ollie Lawrence in for a couple of games in autumn but the combination they have used over the last few years has been Ford and Farrell.
“It might mean a change in style with one less kicker there but I’m sure they will get Ollie on the ball a lot. With Manu Tuilagi they certainly had a power-based game plan around first phase and aiming to get quick ball through that, so we have got to make sure we don’t let that happen.”
"I have been trying to sell Scotland to him for the last couple of years"#GuinnessSixNationshttps://t.co/sSBXPnyi1O
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) January 20, 2021
Comments on RugbyPass
Lets compare apples with apples. Lyon sent weak team the week before, but nobody raised an eyebrow. Give the South African teams a few years to build their depth, then you will be moaning that the teams are too strong.
41 Go to commentsDid footballs agents also perform the scout role at some time? I’m surprised more high profile players haven’t taken up the occupation, great way to remain in the game and use all that experience without really requiring a lot of specific expertise?
1 Go to commentsSuper rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
10 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
9 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
10 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
4 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
22 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
4 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
9 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
35 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
35 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
14 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
4 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to commentsWhat a player! Not long until he’s in the England side, surely?
5 Go to commentsHe seems to have the same aura as Marcus Smith - by which I mean he’s consistently judged as if he’s several years younger than he actually is. Mngomezulu has played 24 times for the Stormers. When Pollard was his age he had played 24 times for South Africa! He has more time to develop, but he has also had time to do some developing already, and he hasn’t demonstrated nearly as much talent in that time as one would expect. If he is a generational talent, then it must be a pretty poor generation.
6 Go to commentsThe greatest Springbok coach of all time is entirely on the money. Rassie and Jacques have given the south african public a great few years, but the success of the springbok selection policy will need to be judged in light of what comes next. The poor condition that the provincial system is currently in doesn’t bode well for the next few years of international rugby, and the insane 2026 schedule that the Boks have lined up could also really harm both provincial and international consistency.
22 Go to comments