Finn Russell is ‘free and fearless’ and has England worried

Elliot Daly insists England will pay a high price if they lose concentration against Scotland ringmaster Finn Russell even for a moment of Saturday’s Guinness Six Nations opener.

Finn Russell scores Scotland's fifth try during the 38-38 draw with England at Twickenham in 2019. Picture: Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images

Daly knows the “free and fearless” Russell has the range of attacking skills to orchestrate a first victory at Twickenham since 1983.

Two years ago the Racing 92 maverick inspired a remarkable Scottish comeback when a 31-0 deficit ended in a 38-38 draw, the visitors denied a famous win only by a stoppage-time try from George Ford.

And more recently Daly was present for Saracens’ Champions Cup semi-final defeat at Paris La Defense Arena when Russell engineered the match-winning try with a trademark chip over the defensive line.

Finn Russell in action for Racing 92 against Saracens in the Heineken Champions Cup. Picture: Mike Hewitt/Getty Images

“The way he plays is very free and fearless. You have to be ready for everything. He might do a few things that come off, but you have to stay in the moment and limit them,” full-back Daly said.

“I’ve played against him a few times now and you have to anticipate some stuff that you wouldn’t anticipate from other players.

“It’s understanding what he sees in the game and trying to work out what he’ll do, although you can’t get it right every time.

“With Saracens, we switched off a little bit and that was the game sorted. If you look back on that match, we could have stopped that if we were a bit more alert.

“That was in the 70th minute, so it’s about doing it for the full 80 and not switching off.”

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