Finn Russeell celebrates with the Calcutta Cup. (Image: Getty)
England’s players have already been given extra motivation for today’s Calcutta Cup clash by Scotland’s own marquee player. Finn Russell is likely to miss the clash with a head injury after a sickening collision with team-mate Darcy Graham against , but his past antics concerning this fixture will be fresh in the hosts’ minds.
Having previously dominated the annual clash with their rivals, England have now been beaten in four meetings in a row by their ‘auld enemy’.
That run signifies Scotland’s best winning run in the fixture since the period between 1969 and 1972 when the tournament still only featured five teams.
And No.10 Russell has not only been central to their success on the field, but also been notably prominent in the celebrations off it. In 2023, following his side’s dramatic 29-23 win in London, the 32-year-old performed his now infamous Spiderman celebration to the cameras.
Since England’s last win in 2020, Russell has also been filmed topless and singing wildly with the Calcutta Cup alongside him. Never one to back down from confrontation, the footage was referenced by ex- prop Joe Marler last year in the build-up to the clash between the two countries at Murrayfield.
“I wish I could be doing that rather than watching it,” said Marler, of the Scottish celebrations the previous year. “Or that famous Finn Russell photo where he’s got his Spiderman hands up and he’s loving it.
Joe Marler (centre) cited Russell’s celebrations before the 2024 Calcutta Cup. (Image: Getty)
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“That stirs passion in me to go, ‘I want that cup’, and I know a number of the other boys in the team want that cup back as well. The last few years without that cup, seeing Finn Russell and Greig Laidlaw, that video of them with their shirts off and singing…”
Marler had previously been part of the England side that had won the Calcutta Cup four years in a row before the tide turned in 2018, with the Scots stopping the rot with a 25-18 win. And despite his words last year, a hat-trick from winger Duhan van der Merwe ensured Gregor Townsend’s men kept their grip on the trophy by prevailing 30-21.
in November, the Harlequins stalwart is no longer around to exact revenge over . But many of the players also ‘stirred up’ by Russell last year remain regulars in the England fold.
Current captain Maro Itoje, No.8 Ben Earl, hooker Jamie George, centres Ollie Lawrence and Henry Slade and winger Tommy Freeman all started the game in Edinburgh. And this week, Earl revealed how of the last four years.
Players have been forced to rewatch sections of those games, leading to s “We’ve watched some of that back, we’ve learnt some lessons. We’re not going to be short of motivation that’s for sure.”