Scotland player ratings v France: Finn Russell’s ‘rookie errors’ leave Gregor Townsend pondering what could have been
Blair Kinghorn with an inset of Darcy Graham
Following Scotland’s 35-16 defeat to France in the final round of the Six Nations, here is how we rated Gregor Townsend’s men in Paris.
Scotland player ratings v France
15 Blair Kinghorn: The Toulouse full-back played like a man possessed tonight. Just consistently found holes in the seemingly impenetrable French defence and looked a major threat whenever he touched the ball. This performance caps off a great Six Nations too. 9
14 Darcy Graham: A lot of the winger focus ahead of the game was on the French duo Damian Penaud and Louis Bielle-Biarrey, but Darcy Graham was the show stealer tonight with a breathtaking display. The wily wide man constantly popped up in different spaces in attack and as a result became Scotland’s chief weapon. He also took his try wonderfully. Lions material. 8
13 Huw Jones: Involved in a really interesting head-to-head with Gael Fickou, and gave just as good as he got against the classy Frenchman. He’s had a very strong Six Nations, proving to a lot of people he is more than just one part of ‘Huwipulotu’, and that might just get him into the Lions Test side. 7
Le Bomb Squad fires France to Six Nations title as Scotland threat disarmed in Paris
12 Tom Jordan: Very cruelly robbed of a try on the stroke of half-time, but otherwise another decent showing in this new position. Connected well with those around him and crucially played a key role in getting their attack going. 6
11 Duhan van der Merwe: Grew into the game as it went on and had a few big interventions. Crucially found a really good connection with Kinghorn towards the end of the match, which helped the pair really flourish. 7
10 Finn Russell: Yet again this Six Nations, he blew incredibly hot and cold. Came up with some truly spectacular flashes, but compounded that with some rookie errors at pivotal times in the match. Frustrating is probably the best way to describe it, and it’s left the head coach wondering what might have been. 4
9 Ben White: The biggest compliment I can probably offer him is the attack dipped off a touch after he went off. The Toulon ace injected some nice pace around the ruck, combining well with those around him and helped them get on the front-foot. 6
Back-row
8 Matt Fagerson: Thrown back into the starting XV, and made his presence known with a barnstorming performance. He more than fronted up against that almighty French pack with some huge efforts on both sides of the ball, and gave his side some much-needed ballast too. 7
7 Rory Darge: By far his best showing of the Championship, and it’s this sort of performance that will get him into the Lions. Gave Francois Cros and Paul Boudehent a run for their money with some serious defensive work and made himself known in the breakdown. 7
6 Jamie Ritchie: His stock has absolutely skyrocketed this Six Nations, and again he has done his Lions chances no harm at all. Just consistently popped up in the breakdown to great effect, and also fronted up against a serious onslaught. Gone from an outsider to a serious contender for this Lions Test team now. 8
Tight five
5 Grant Gilchrist: Typically industrious shift, and proved just how important he is to this Scottish pack. 6
4 Gregor Brown: Thrown in the deep end with a start tonight, but gave a good account of himself. Was solid in most areas of the pitch and really rolled his sleeves up and got stuck in. 6
3 Zander Fagerson: Remarkable 80-minute shift from the tighthead, who looked back to his very best tonight. Considering he went toe-to-toe with two of the best looseheads in the Test game in Jean-Baptiste Gros and Cyrill Baille, his desire to carry and get involved in the defence until the very end of the game deserves some serious flowers. 9
2 Dave Cherry: Pretty steady yet again without setting the pitch alight. Did his job well, and stuck in the crucial battle with both Peato Mauvaka and Julien Marchand. 6
1 Pierre Schoeman: A much-improved performance from the prop, who looked back to the levels we know he can hit. Scrummaged well against the imposing tighthead Uini Atonio, and looked completely changed from what we’d seen earlier on in the Championship. 7
Replacements: While the bench didn’t do much wrong, they were just well-beaten by Le Bomb Squad in the end. If it was anyone else that they’d come up against, even if it was against a 6/2 split, they just couldn’t halt the momentum that Galthie’s monsters had generated for their side. 5
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