Townsend salutes Scotland for coming through 'mental challenge' against Italy
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Gregor Townsend hailed Scotland for passing the "mental challenge" of their Six Nations opener with victory over Italy, which saw them win the Cuttitta Cup.
Huw Jones scored a hat-trick as the hosts ran out 31-19 winners at Murrayfield, where they have now been victorious in each of their last seven meetings with the Azzurri.
However, it was not all straightforward for Townsend's side, who were pegged back to 19-19 from 14-0 up after Juan-Ignacio Brex intercepted Finn Russell for a converted try before eventually prevailing.
Nevertheless, the head coach thinks the need to "find solutions and a way to win" will serve his players well for the remainder of the Championship.
"I think a lot of the forwards provided a platform at times, they worked really hard," Townsend said. "We had to defend our line on two or three occasions in that second half, so it was a tough opening game, but we managed to get the win.
"There was a physical challenge today. The most important element today was the mental challenge - to come together as a team on the field to find solutions and find a way to win, which will be important in the next games."
Jones was the hero for Scotland, who have now won each of their last five opening Six Nations fixtures.
The outside centre took his try tally at the Six Nations to 15, with only five players scoring more in the Championship since Italy joined in 2000.
"It's not every day you manage to get on the end of three [tries], so thanks to the boys for setting me up," he said.
The pick of Jones' tries was his second as, with the scores level at 19-19, Darcy Graham embarked on a stunning break from deep before setting up his team-mate.
"It was a big turning point [Jones' second try]," he added. "There wasn't really anything on for him, but Darcy will find a gap when there isn't one. I just had to try and keep up with him.
"I don't want to say that our confidence is sky-high. We're happy with the win today, but our focus is on taking it week by week."
A well deserved Guinness Player of the Match for Huw 👏#AsOne | #GuinnessM6N pic.twitter.com/Hvh4i7BG7e
— Scottish Rugby (@Scotlandteam) February 1, 2025
