Scotland Rest Hogg And Russell From South America Tour

Scotland captain Stuart Hogg and key playmaker Finn Russell have been rested from the upcoming tour of South America in a bid to keep them fresh for next year's World Cup

London, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 8th Jun, 2022 ) :Scotland captain Stuart Hogg and key playmaker Finn Russell have been rested from the upcoming tour of South America in a bid to keep them fresh for next year's World Cup.

Full-back Hogg and fly-half Russell have had a heavy playing schedule since they were each involved in last year's British and Irish Lions series in South Africa.

Scotland coach Gregor Townsend was adamant Wednesday the duo's omission from a 40-man squad had nothing to do with the fact they were also among a group of six players involved in an unauthorised night out in Edinburgh in March following a Six Nations win away to Italy.

Chris Harris, who was also involved in the Lions squad, is not included, but Hamish Watson, Ali price, Duhan van der Merwe and Zander Fagerson, who all appeared for the combined side, have been selected by Townsend.

Edinburgh lock Grant Gilchrist has been named as captain for the tour, which will include an 'A' match against Chile later this month and three Tests against Argentina in July.

"Once we set out that we believe the best thing for Stuart, Finn and Chris is not touring, they accepted that," said Townsend, whose side finished fourth in the Six Nations.

"They've played the most minutes of all our players this year. When you put that on the back of them having the longest seasons last year it became more clear to us that a summer off would be the best thing for them.

"This time next year we'll be in a World Cup camp playing three or four warm-up games before we go on to the World Cup so it's going to be a demanding period for them all next year.

"On the back of the last 12-18 months, we feel it's right for them not to tour."Townsend, asked if the March incident played any part in the non-selection of Hogg and Russell, replied: "No, no. To be honest, a lot of what needed to be sorted out and discussed had already happened that week behind closed doors before the public found out on the Friday. We moved on fairly quickly from that."