Andy Nicol: Townsend is only ever one game away from pressure. He needs a big win

Scotland came so close to a first win against New Zealand last weekend, only to fluff their lines when history beckoned. Now Argentina come calling to Murrayfield on the back of a record victory over Wales. As Gregor Townsend’s team look to salvage their autumn series with a much-needed win, former Scotland captain ANDY NICOL addresses the key issues. 

What are your thoughts on the team selection? Has Duhan van der Merwe now lost his place in Scotland's first-choice XV?

I am very comfortable with Duhan not being selected because Kyle Steyn is a very good rugby player and a better all-round player than Duhan. His non-selection is a talking point every time because he can score tries from anywhere, he can win you tight games, he is box-office. 

I like the selection because this team needs another go because they got close to beating the All Blacks last week and when they were good, they were very good. Rory Darge has been brought back in to improve our competitiveness over the ball in the tackle area which is the right call. This team needs to find its ruthless streak, it needs to take the chances when they are there. I counted 8 guilt-edged chances last week and we only scored 2 tries. This has to improve when we play the top teams.

Grant Gilchrist is 35 now. He will be 37 by the time the next World Cup comes around. Is it realistic to still expect him to be playing by that point? There's some good young locks coming through. Why not blood them now?

Coaches get criticised when they start looking ahead to World Cups and also get criticised when they focus on the immediate term. Damned if you do, damned if you don’t. Gregor should not be looking beyond this autumn series and the upcoming Six Nations, it is vitally important for him and the players that we finish the autumn strongly and have a good Six Nations. 

In that regard, I am very comfortable with Gilchrist in the team because his workrate is exceptional and he brings real ballast to the pack. There are some big and good young players coming through and they will get their chance next week against Tonga, but this game needs winning and Gilchrist deserves his spot.

Argentina are coming to Murrayfield in formidable form after destroying Wales last week. What do you make of them at the moment?

They are a top team who do not get the recognition for being so. They have beaten the All Blacks and Australia this year and blew Wales away in Cardiff last week by 50 points. I could make a case that this game against Argentina will be tougher than the game last week against the All Blacks but they don’t have the same allure or reputation. 

We talk about how good Scotland’s back-line is but this Argentina back-line is something else as well. They have some worldies like Santiago Carreras and Santiago Chocobarres who get such a good platform to play from because of the forwards such at Pablo Metero and Juan Martin Gonzalez in the back-row. Throw in some huge forwards and you have a formidable team that are coming to Murrayfield.

How big is this game for Gregor Townsend in terms of proving he's still the right man to take Scotland forward?

Gregor is only ever one game away from being under pressure. International rugby is about fine margins. If Darcy Graham scores his try and Blair Kinghorn make the tackle on Damian McKenzie then Scotland win that game and there is a very different narrative about Gregor and the team. 

Scotland looked very well coached in all aspects of the game, they just need to take their chances this week. We have bulked up in the pack, Gregor Brown was outstanding last week and D’Arcy Rae did well in place of Zander Fagerson. This team, under Gregor, need a big win and it could happen today.

Is it a problem for Scotland that we only play two tier-one nations in the autumn? This is happening more frequently. Is it something the SRU should look to address in future scheduling?

For sure. Now you need to be careful what you wish for as Wales, in their current state, played Argentina last week, Japan yesterday and have South Africa and New Zealand In the next two weeks. Now that is brutal. Somewhere between their fixtures and ours would be optimum as there is no doubt that you improve as individuals and as a team when you are exposed to the top teams more often. 

What did we really learn against USA in winning 85-0 and we have Tonga next week to finish off the Autumn when some of the younger players will get a run. It is a real balance in getting the right fixtures at the right time and we are just missing the right balance at the moment.