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Gregor Townsend, the head coach of Scotland’s rugby team, remains steadfast in his position despite a rising chorus of fans calling for his departure. He has made it clear he has no plans to resign.
The growing dissatisfaction among supporters came to a head last weekend at Murrayfield, where Townsend’s squad suffered a 33-24 defeat to Argentina. The match ended with a chorus of boos from the stands, as the team squandered a 21-point advantage by allowing five tries in just over 20 minutes during the second half.
This rare display of frustration from the crowd at the national stadium has intensified the scrutiny on Townsend’s leadership. The loss exacerbated the pressure on him, as fans express their discontent with the team’s performance.
Although Townsend recently extended his contract, committing to lead the team until the next World Cup in 2027, there is a growing sentiment among the fanbase that his eight-year leadership might have reached its natural conclusion.
Nevertheless, Townsend remains resolute. Ahead of Sunday’s concluding autumn match against Tonga, he dismissed any notion of stepping down, maintaining a determined stance when questioned about his future.
‘No, I’ve got a job to do,’ replied Townsend. ‘People are entitled to their opinion. My job is to do the best I can for the team and to work with the team in producing performances our supporters are proud of.
Townsend’s side were booed at end of Argentina game but the head coach fights on
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‘If you’ve got a job to do, you do it, and that’s what I’m here to do. If someone wants to not give me that job any more, then that will be up to them.
‘But I’m totally committed in getting the best of the team, the best of myself, and that sometimes means working harder, sometimes means working smarter.
‘I know they [the supporters] were very proud of the performance against New Zealand [despite Scotland losing 25-17] and have been for a number of matches and seasons, because we’re getting record crowds coming along.
‘We’re getting crowds that support our team. But the end of the game was disappointing for them, disappointing for us, and we have to be better.
‘I would expect there’s been criticism, but if you get caught up in any of that, or read it, it’s going to distract you from what is important.’
Pressed on whether he expects his position to be under review at the end of the autumn, Townsend replied: ‘I don’t know. We review every campaign, but you’d have to ask someone else on that.
‘My focus is on how we can review each game, how we can review each campaign, and how we can get better and deliver performances our supporters are going to be proud of.’
Townsend has presided over two failed World Cup campaigns which saw Scotland knocked out of the pool stage on both occasions in 2019 and 2023.
The Scotland players are in disbelief after Argentina turned around huge deficit to win
Townsend insists he has never thought about quitting his job as Scotland head coach
Scotland have also won only two matches in each of the past two Six Nations campaigns, as well as sliding down the world rankings to ninth despite being fifth just over two years ago.
Pressed on whether he has reached the end of the road, he replied: ‘No, I disagree. I’ve seen the team play the best rugby it’s played in the eight years [I’ve been in charge] over the last two or three weeks.
‘We’re very disappointed we didn’t get a win against New Zealand and didn’t get a win against Argentina. We created enough against New Zealand [to win] and we were 21-0 up against Argentina.
‘But to get in those positions, to be 21-0 up, the team is delivering up to that point. Yeah, we sensed the disappointment in the crowd. The crowd, it was like an exhale of disappointment [booing at the end].
‘We all felt it – what a flat end to the game. And nobody’s hurting as much as us as a group. But sometimes those real painful moments as a group that you live through, you come through stronger.
‘Actually, the process this week and how we’ve met, what we’ve resolved, have to be non-negotiables. I know it’ll make us a stronger team. We probably won’t get that opportunity to really test it out.
‘Of course we will this weekend against Tonga, but we won’t get it tested out until the Six Nations.’