2020 Six Nations Championship – Scotland vs England Preview & Prediction
THE FACTS
When is Scotland vs England taking place? Saturday 8th February, 16:45
Where is Scotland vs England taking place? BT Murrayfield
What is the expected weather for Scotland vs England? 6c with showers expected
What channel is Scotland vs England on? BBC 1
Where can I stream Scotland vs England? Scotland vs England can be streamed via BBC iPlayer
Where can I get tickets for Scotland vs England? Fans seeking tickets should visit the ticket section of the official rugby union website for each nation
What was the outcome in the last meeting? England 38-38 Scotland
THE TEAM NEWS
SCOTLAND
- Scotland pushed Ireland all the way in their Six Nations opener but came out second best as they were unable to find a way over the line late on with the Irish defence standing firm to condemn the Scots to defeat.
- In a closely-contested game, Scotland were left to rue an error by captain Stuart Hogg who dropped the ball under no pressure as he was about to score which would have left the score at 13-11 with a conversion to come to level the scores.
- Fly-half Finn Russell has again been left out by head coach Gregor Townsend with retaining Adam Hastings in the number 10 shirt but there is one change to last week's starting XV with back-rower Magnus Bradbury replacing Nick Haining with the later reverting to the bench in place of Cornell du Preez.
ENGLAND
- England failed to live up to their hype as they were dominated by a physical French outfit and Eddie Jones has plenty of work to do if he is to get his side’s Six Nations campaign back on track after that loss.
- France raced into a 17-0 lead at the break and extended
it further in the second half to 24-0 but England did show some
character to respond to close the gap to seven points but it was not
enough and they must now do without Manu Tuilagi who picked up a groin strain in the first half of last week's clash with Jonathan Joseph replacing him.
- That is one of five changes to the side that was selected last week with Willi Heinz, Lewis Ludlam, Mako Vunipola and George Kruis also coming into the side for Ben Youngs, Courtney Lawes, Joe Marler and Charlie Ewels but they will once again be without an out-and-out number eight with Jones deciding against adding to the initial squad that he named at the start of the tournament.
KEY STATS
- Scotland have won one and drawn one of their last two Six Nations matches against England.
- Scotland have won 14 of their last 18 home games.
- Scotland are without a win in their last five matches in the Six Nations (D1 L4).
- Scotland have been losing at HT in nine of their last 13 matches.
- Scotland have been losing at HT in each of their last five matches in the Six Nations.
- Scotland have lost by a margin of exactly seven points in each of their last two matches.
- England have won only three of their last nine matches in the Six Nations.
- England have lost four of their last five away matches in the Six Nations.
- England have lost three of their last four away matches in the Six Nations by a margin of 6 to 8 points.
- England have scored less than 20 points in each of their last three matches.
THE PREDICTION
Scotland played out a thrilling game with England in last year’s Calcutta Cup with the two teams finishing level on 38 points apiece. A similar outcome on Saturday would make for another brilliant watch but this could be a very different type of game. Scotland will be rueing their inability to take their chances against Ireland last week whilst England have plenty of improving to do after being outclassed by France. It is likely that both teams will want to keep it tight defensively in wet conditions and that should result in a game that goes under 46.5 points.
