Finn Russell to lead Scotland against France

Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend has named Finn Russell as the captain for the upcoming Rugby World Cup warm-up game against France to be played at Murrayfield.

Russell was left out of the initial squad of the autumn series in 2022 but has impressed since then. He will link up with scrum half Ben White with Huw Jones and Sione Tuipulotu restored in the midfield partnership.

The retirement of Stuart Hogg sees Blair Kinghorn shifted to fullback while Duhan van der Merwe and Darcy Graham start at wings. Ewan Ashman comes in as hooker and will be part of the front row that also has Pierre Schoeman and Zander Fagerson.

Townsend has opted for Richie Gray and Grant Gilchrist at second row with Jack Dempsey and Hamish Watson complete the loose trio alongside Matt Fagerson.

"He has always been a leader for us in terms of attack," said Townsend.

"He has obviously got older, got more experience and it's the right time to give him that opportunity.

"Finn is a very good connecter. He likes spending time with other people in the team and that's a really good way of leading. His knowledge of the game is very good and his competitiveness is infectious.

"He wants to win. He might be doing it with a smile, other times he's winding up the opposition or getting back for a tackle. We want our leaders prepared to put their bodies on the line, to work hard to help the team win."

Scotland: 15 Blair Kinghorn, 14 Darcy Graham, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Sione Tuipulotu, 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Finn Russell (c), 9 Ben White, 8 Jack Dempsey, 7 Hamish Watson, 6 Matt Fagerson, 5 Grant Gilchrist, 4 Richie Gray, 3 Zander Fagerson, 2 Ewan Ashman, 1 Pierre Schoeman

Reserves: 16 Dave Cherry, 17 Jamie Bhatti, 18 WP Nel, 19 Scott Cummings, 20 Rory Darge, 21 George Horne, 22 Cameron Redpath, 23 Ollie Smith