{"id":272294,"date":"2025-07-18T14:52:12","date_gmt":"2025-07-18T14:52:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/272294\/"},"modified":"2025-07-18T14:52:12","modified_gmt":"2025-07-18T14:52:12","slug":"gregor-townsend-ready-to-start-contract-talks-now-that-summer-tour-is-over","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/272294\/","title":{"rendered":"Gregor Townsend ready to start contract talks now that summer tour is over"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"TheThe Scotland squad debrief on the pitch after their victory over Samoa at Eden Park. Image: SNS \/ Scottish Rugby <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a> <\/a><\/p>\n

SCOTLAND head coach Gregor Townsend says discussions about his future with Scottish Rugby beyond the end of his current deal which runs out in April 2026 will start now that this summer\u2019s Skyscanner Pacific Tour is over.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Scottish Rugby CEO Alex Williamson<\/strong> previously indicated that he planned to use his presence in New Zealand and Samoa with the national squad over the last three weeks as an opportunity to start contract negotiations with Townsend, but that doesn\u2019t appear to have been the case.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d imagine they [contract discussions] will start to happen but the focus has been on this week, the short turnaround, the Test matches we\u2019ve had,\u201d said Townsend after his team\u2019s 41-12 victory over Samoa earlier today.<\/a> \u201cAlex has been with us for the last three games now so he\u2019s seen how our environment works, how a Test week looks and the players we have and the culture we have. After the summer, we\u2019ll look into that again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Samoa v Scotland: Scotland player ratings<\/a><\/p>\n

Scotland end summer tour with a comfortable win over Samoa<\/a><\/p>\n

Finn Russell, Sione Tuipulotu and Huw Jones form Lions midfield for first Test versus Australia<\/a><\/p>\n

Asked if he wants to stay beyond the end of next season\u2019s Six Nations, Townsend demurred. \u201cI\u2019m not going to answer that just now. Let\u2019s just focus on tonight\u2019s game,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ll reflect on not just this tour but this season and the chance to do that is in the next few weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also speculated that further call-ups for Scotland players to the Lions tour could be possible in the coming days.\u00a0 The Lions kick-off their three Test series against Australia in Brisbane tomorrow [Saturday] morning ,and with Scotland not flying home until Sunday, it would be only a short(ish) hop across the Tasman for any individuals who may be required.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey [the Lions] have obviously got a Test match to play and they\u2019re putting a squad together for their midweek game next week, so we\u2019ll wait and see,\u201d said Townsend. \u201cIt might be that there\u2019s nobody else gets added to the squad, it might be one or two, and whether they come from our tour or elsewhere, we know that could be a possibility.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut just now we\u2019re delighted that Rory Sutherland<\/strong> and Ewan Ashman<\/strong> got through the game tonight and they can join the Lions on Sunday.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Kyle Steyn was the most significant injury concern after the Samoa win.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe had a hand injury, which we fear might be a broken bone, but he just lost his power in that hand,\u201d explained Townsend. \u201cIt wasn\u2019t going to be as effective, but we don\u2019t know the extent of it yet.<\/p>\n

\u201cFergus Burke failed his HIA \u2013 that\u2019s why he didn\u2019t come back on \u2013 but he\u2019s fine in the changing room.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe decided to take Rory [Sutherland] and Ewan [Ashman] off at half-time but they\u2019re fine. I thought they played really well. That\u2019s a real testament to what playing for Scotland means to them.They knew that we were going to be involved with the Lions in a couple of days\u2019 time, but they fronted up and they were excellent in the first half.<\/p>\n

\u201cBoth Matt Fagerson<\/strong> and Gregor Brown<\/strong> [who are on the comeback trail after lengthy injury lay-offs] got through the game well. I thought Gregor was excellent after having not played for a couple of months. It just shows you what a tough customer he is. The performance tonight, backing up how he played in Paris in the second half, shows that he\u2019s a quality player too.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

While scrum-half Jamie Dobie<\/strong> was player-of-the-match against Samoa, Townsend stressed that he was one of several performers on this tour he has been particularly impressed with.<\/p>\n

\u201cJamie has had a really strong tour, a strong end to the season with this club. The ability to play both positions [scrum-half and winger] just shows you what a great rugby player he is. He\u2019s a very good defender. There were a couple of occasions when Samoa made breaks and Jamie was involved in the hustle-back to stop those from turning into tries.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really want to compliment Arron Reed.<\/strong> He was excellent tonight and was excellent against the Maori All Blacks. He\u2019s shown that he can be a real quality Test player. He\u2019s got strength with his speed and his finishing, but he\u2019s developing more and more past his game. He\u2019s been a big plus from this tour. Losing Darcy to the Lions was a good opportunity for Aaron and he took that tonight.<\/p>\n

\u201cI also want to mention Grant Gilchrist,<\/strong> who has had to play 80 minutes a game tonight. He has really been an influential player on tour.
He\u2019s worked with Fergus Pringle<\/strong> in a semi-coaching role. Both of them have worked really well together. You can see that tonight.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think we won 18 out of 18 line-outs. We scored a couple of maul tries. Real credit goes to Fergus Pringle and the work he\u2019s done with the forwards, but also how Grant has played that role as a senior player and one of the coaching team on this tour.\u201d<\/p>\n

Townsend added: \u201cThe next two days we\u2019ll be enjoying each other\u2019s company\u00a0because we don\u2019t fly until Sunday, so we\u2019ll have good fun together.
We\u2019ll have two players, maybe more, going to the Lions on Sunday so we\u2019ll be watching them next week and we\u2019ll be watching our guys, obviously the Scottish midfield, that are playing tomorrow night.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen after that, it\u2019s really just how we normally work between campaigns: reviewing and learning.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m going to spend some time next week with Collingwood [Aussie Rules team] in Melbourne. Peter Horne<\/strong> had been out in New Zealand so we\u2019re always looking for ways to get better. I think we\u2019ll take a lot of confidence into next season on the players we have in our squad, but also how the team played this year.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

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Scotland end summer tour with a comfortable win over Samoa<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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