France v Scotland unlikely to be played next weekend

Scotland’s Guinness Six Nations match with France is unlikely to be scheduled for next weekend as tournament organisers try to come up with a new date that suits all parties.

France's scrum-half Antoine Dupont is one of the players to have tested positive for Covid-19.

The sides were due to meet in Paris this Sunday but the game was postponed after the home side lost another player – the 11th this week – following a coronavirus outbreak in the French squad.

The Scots have lobbied hard for the fixture not to be played on March 6-7 because that weekend lies outside of the international Test window, and English Premiership sides would be under no obligation to release their players for Six Nations action.

That could deny Scotland the services of the likes of Stuart Hogg and Jonny Gray among others.

France’s players are now isolating after the latest Covid-19 positive and that makes playing next weekend unlikely.

Discussions between the two nations plus Six Nations chiefs and TV broadcasters on a re-arranged date are ongoing and, while reports in France now say July is being considered, Scotland will also resist that option because it clashes with the Lions tour.

Head coach Gregor Townsend wants the game played when he has all his top players available.

He said: “We will wait to see what options are available to play this match against France, but it remains our position that we want to have all our eligible players available to us for that fixture, so we can compete to the level we would have done this weekend.”

A message from the Editor:

Get a year of unlimited access to all of The Scotsman's sport coverage without the need for a full subscription. Expert analysis of the biggest games, exclusive interviews, live blogs, transfer news and 70 per cent fewer ads on Scotsman.com - all for less than £1 a week. Subscribe to us today