‘Scotland back themselves against Australia’ – Matt Taylor

Having represented Edinburgh, Border Reivers – where he played alongside current Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend – and Scotland A in his playing days, Taylor joined Glasgow Warriors as defence coach in 2012 and was assistant to Townsend when the club won the Pro12 title in 2015.

He combined that job with a similar role in the Scotland set-up, assisting Vern Cotter before linking up with Townsend again when he took over the national job in 2017.

Taylor says Townsend has “taken Scotland to another level” since he departed to join Dave Rennie’s Australia backroom staff in 2019, but feels the Scots need to end their 25-year wait for a Six Nations title while some of their key players are still in their prime.

“Maybe in another two or three years’ time it’ll be interesting to see where Scotland is in terms of that cycle, so I think they’ve got to take the opportunity in the next year or two,” said Taylor, who now coaches at Japanese top-flight side Ricoh Black Rams.

“I really believe that they shouldn’t be too far away. In international rugby you’ve got to take your moments.”

Townsend is contracted to Scotland until 2026 and while Taylor believes winning that elusive Six Nations title is the only thing on his mind, he believes his old boss would be a man in demand whenever he choose to pursue a fresh challenge.

“He’s very focused on doing well in the next Six Nations,” he said.

“I know he’s got a real drive and determination to win a title with Scotland. He puts everything into the job and I’m just hoping that for him and for the nation and for the players that Scotland can do that.

“He’s got that history playing in France and he can speak French, so I’d imagine there would be teams out there that would be pretty keen to have him as the head coach. I think he wouldn’t mind having a go in Japan at some stage as well.

“He’s a very good coach, he’s done some really good things with Scotland. So when his time comes to an end, whenever that is, I’m sure he’s going to have a lot of options.”