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Why Dave Rennie picked Beauden Barrett over Scott for All Blacks captaincy
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Kinghorn and Graham return as Scotland drop star for Wallabies
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Scotland have recalled Blair Kinghorn and Darcy Graham to their starting XV for Sunday’s Nations Championship clash with Australia at Scottish Gas Murrayfield, with wing Kyle Rowe the man to make way as Gregor Townsend reshuffles his back three.
Kinghorn returns at full-back and Graham is restored on the left wing after Scotland’s 43-21 loss to New Zealand last weekend, while vice-captain Kyle Steyn continues on the opposite flank.
The selection means Rowe drops out of the matchday 23 altogether, with Jamie Dobie instead coming onto the bench as one of two back replacements in a 6-2 split that also includes a potential debut for Newcastle Red Bulls back-row forward Ollie Leatherbarrow.
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Elsewhere, Townsend has resisted the temptation to alter the pack that featured against the All Blacks, naming an unchanged starting eight for the showdown with the Les Kiss led Wallabies.
That continuity sees hat-trick hero Ewan Ashman continue at hooker between Rory Sutherland and Zander Fagerson, while Gregor Brown and Scott Cummings remain paired in the second row.
The back-row combination of Matt Fagerson, Rory Darge and Jack Dempsey is also retained as Scotland look to build on the momentum generated by last weekend’s statement result.
Behind the scrum, captain Sione Tuipulotu once again partners Huw Jones in midfield, while Ben White and Finn Russell reunite in the half-backs for what will be their 28th Test start together. That matches the tally achieved by current Scotland head coach Townsend and former scrum-half Bryan Redpath during their international careers.
The inclusion of Leatherbarrow is the most notworthy thing about the bench. The 22-year-old qualifies for Scotland through his Perth-born grandmother and previously represented the country at Under-16 and Under-20 level.
Leatherbarrow (6ft, 106kg) joins Josh Bayliss as the loose-forward options off the pine, while Max Williamson provides second-row cover. Gregor Hiddleston, Pierre Schoeman and Will Hurd complete the front-row contingent in Scotland’s six-forward bench.
Scotland team: 15. Blair Kinghorn, 14. Kyle Steyn, 13. Huw Jones, 12. Sione Tuipulotu (captain), 11. Darcy Graham; 10. Finn Russell, 9. Ben White, 1. Rory Sutherland, 2. Ewan Ashman, 3. Zander Fagerson, 4. Gregor Brown, 5. Scott Cummings, 6. Matt Fagerson, 7. Rory Darge, 8. Jack Dempsey
Replacements: 16. Gregor Hiddleston, 17. Pierre Schoeman, 18. Will Hurd, 19. Max Williamson, 20. Josh Bayliss, 21. Ollie Leatherbarrow, 22. Jamie Dobie, 23. Tom Jordan.
Nations Championship
North
P
W
L
D
PF
PA
PD
BP T
BP-7
BP
Total
1
France
4
3
1
0
17
2
England
4
3
1
0
15
3
Ireland
4
3
1
0
15
4
Scotland
4
2
2
0
11
5
Wales
4
2
2
0
10
6
Italy
4
0
4
0
0
South
P
W
L
D
PF
PA
PD
BP T
BP-7
BP
Total
1
South Africa
4
4
0
0
20
2
New Zealand
4
4
0
0
20
3
Australia
4
1
3
0
8
4
Argentina
4
1
3
0
7
5
Japan
4
1
3
0
5
6
Fiji
4
0
4
0
0
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