Gregor Townsend has criticised Premiership Rugby for its decision to block Scotland’s English-based players from training with the national team during Six Nations fallow weeks.
The likes of Finn Russell, Cameron Redpath, Andy Christie, Alec Hepburn and Elliot Millar-Mills — all of whom featured in Saturday’s 30-21 Calcutta Cup win — have been required to return south to their clubs this week, even though there are no Gallagher Premiership fixtures and some clubs have given their squads time off.
Scotland’s home-based contingent have remained in camp in Edinburgh to begin preparations for their next match away to Italy on March 9, but as was the case a fortnight out from the England match, Townsend will be without a number of key players for this week’s sessions.
The Scotland head coach has made representations to Premiership Rugby Limited (PRL), the English clubs’ umbrella body, but his pleas for the type of agreement which allows England to retain their players during rest weeks have so far fallen on deaf ears.
“Going into the Calcutta Cup game, England had double the preparation because our English-based players aren’t allowed to train with us even though there are no Premiership games; even though in this coming week clubs are off for a week,” Townsend said.
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“We’re still not allowed to have the likes of Finn Russell training with us this week. Two training sessions was all we had as a team going into the England game, where it would have been four if we’d had them in the week before.”
PRL’s stance is justified under World Rugby regulation 9.7, which states that clubs are only obliged to release players for five of the seven weeks of the Six Nations period. The Scottish Rugby Union would have to agree financial compensation with PRL for a separate deal to be struck.
Such frustrations should become a thing of the past in 2026 when a new seven-week window will come into force as part of the new global calendar, but for now Townsend believes that the integrity of the Six Nations is being harmed.
“I’d imagine it’s going to be the same situation this time, which is a real disadvantage that we have,” he said. “We have been [pushing for PRL to release the players], but we’ve had no success over the last two weeks to get our players. There is apparently a bigger picture of player release, but the clubs have indicated to us that they want their players training with us, because there are no training sessions for them, or they are in the middle of a pre-season period.
“There is no game in the Premiership for seven or eight weeks but we still can’t have our co-captain [Russell] who has been lighting up the Premiership [with Bath] even come into camp for two days’ training.
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“It’s a credit to the players that they went into the England game after two sessions as a whole squad and delivered that performance. When there is no club competition, it doesn’t make any sense that you’re still not allowing a player to travel up from Bath or wherever.
“They could be spending time with their families and helping our preparation. But we had to run with Richie Simpson [Glasgow Warriors’ 21-year-old fly half] at ten for two sessions prior to the England game. He hasn’t played a game of pro rugby and he was playing inside Sione [Tuipulotu] and Huw Jones, outside George Horne. It’s not right and I really wish this situation was better because it’s not fair for our players.
“It comes from PRL, so you can ask PRL. When we’re playing England and they don’t allow our English-based players to come up, I don’t think they will change [this week] for Italy.”
Premiership Rugby has been left perplexed by this attack from Townsend, as it maintains it is simply following regulations that have been set for years by World Rugby — on Sunday night it released a statement to that effect. All the unions, players and coaches know these rules are in place each season, and they will be next year too unless there is a new agreement.
“While a review of World Rugby Regulation 9 compensation is undertaken ahead of a new global calendar from 2026, Premiership Rugby will continue to adhere to the regulation as it stands.”
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Wales are in the same boat. Their English-based players such as Dafydd Jenkins, the captain from Exeter Chiefs, Tommy Reffell, the Leicester Tigers flanker, and the Saracens centre Nick Tompkins, will return home this week and miss Welsh training.
There is precedent for unions receiving a fine for breaking these release regulations. In 2013 Northampton Saints had to pay £60,000 for allowing Wales to pick George North for an out-of-window November Test against Australia.
