Scotland players will not take a knee before Wales game

Scotland’s players will not take the knee ahead of Saturday’s match against Wales but will stand together in recognition of rugby’s commitment to fight racism.

Scotland players were caught by surprise when members of the England team took a knee.

The Scots were caught by surprise before the game against England at Twickenham last weekend when most of the home players knelt during “a moment of reflection”.

Four Scotland players followed suit but the rest remained standing, prompting criticism in some quarters.

It prompted Six Nations organisers to issue a statement which stressed that all participating unions were united in fighting racism but that “there was no request to take a knee”.

Gregor Townsend, the Scotland coach, confirmed his side will offer a coordinated approach at Murrayfield.

“We know what is happening this weekend,” he said. “Both teams are going to stand and recognise rugby's stand against racism and discrimination like we have done in all previous games.

“As I mentioned earlier, [what happened at Twickenham] took us by surprise and a number of our players weren’t aware of it.”

The coach denied rugby was in danger of looking out of touch if players do not take a knee.

“Everyone’s got an opinion and if people have an opinion on that, then that’s up to them,” he said. “There’s a moment to reflect, there are messages going up on the screens, everyone is watching on TV. It’s what rugby has chosen to do and we’ll follow that.

“The surprise [at Twickenham] was that it happened with the English players taking the knee and some [Scotland] players saw that and thought, ‘I’ve got a decision to make on the spot, do I do this or do I not.’”

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