Gregor Townsend facts for kids
| Full name | Gregor Peter John Townsend | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | 26 April 1973 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Galashiels, Scotland | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Galashiels Academy | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| University | University of Edinburgh Aston University |
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| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Gregor Peter John Townsend MBE (born April 26, 1973) is a famous Scottish rugby coach and former player. He has been the head coach for the Scottish national rugby team since 2017.
Before becoming head coach, Townsend was an assistant coach for Scotland from 2009 to 2012. As a player, he was a key part of the Scottish team, earning 82 appearances (called caps). He also played twice for the special British and Irish Lions team. He used to coach the Glasgow Warriors and was a player-coach for the Border Reivers.
Townsend played rugby in many countries, including Australia, England, France, and South Africa. As Scotland's coach, he led his team to a historic win at Twickenham in 2021, which was their first victory there in 38 years. He was also chosen as the attack coach for the 2021 British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa. In 1999, he received an MBE award for his great contributions to rugby.
Early Life and School
Gregor Townsend was born in April 1973 in a town called Galashiels in Scotland. He went to Galashiels Academy. Later, he studied at the University of Edinburgh, where he earned a degree in History and Politics in 1995.
Playing Rugby
Club Teams and Journeys
Townsend started his rugby journey at his local club, Gala RFC, just like his father did. He played there from a young age all the way to the senior team.
In 1993, he spent a season in Australia, playing for Warringah. His team almost won the Shute Shield, finishing as runners-up. He returned to Warringah in 1995 after leaving Gala.
In 1995, Townsend moved to England to join Northampton Saints. He helped them get promoted to the top English rugby division. After two seasons there, he moved to France to play for Brive. In 2000, he joined Castres Olympique. His Castres team did well in his first season, reaching the semi-finals. After the 2001–02 season, Townsend returned to Scotland to play for Border Reivers.
After he stopped playing international rugby in 2003, Townsend signed with the Sharks in South Africa. He played one season there before going back to France to play for Montpellier. In 2005, he came back to Scotland for the second time. He was a player and coach for the Border Reivers until the team was closed down in 2007.
Playing for Scotland
Townsend also played for the South of Scotland District team. He played for the Scotland 'B' team in 1991 and 1992. He also played for the Scotland 'A' team five times.
He made his first international appearance for the main Scotland team when he was just 19. This was against England in 1993. A year later, he started his first game for Scotland against Wales. He then started the next 35 games for Scotland.
In 1997, he was chosen to play for the famous British and Irish Lions team on their tour to South Africa. He played in six games, including two important matches against South Africa.
During the 1999 Five Nations Championship, Townsend achieved something amazing. He scored a try against every other country in the tournament. This was the first time a Scottish player had done this since 1925! His efforts helped Scotland win the Championship for the first time since 1990. Later that year, he played in his first Rugby World Cup. Scotland reached the quarter-finals but lost to New Zealand.
In 2002, he became Scotland's most capped player, playing more international games than anyone else at that time. He played in another World Cup in 2003. His last game for Scotland was when they lost to Australia in the quarter-finals.
The "Toonie Flip"
Gregor Townsend is famous for a special move called the "Toonie flip." This was a clever reverse pass he made in 1995. It led to a dramatic last-minute try for Gavin Hastings. This try helped Scotland win 23–21 against France in Paris, a very memorable victory!
Playing Achievements
Here are some of the big wins Gregor Townsend was part of as a player:
Scotland
- Five / Six Nations Championship
- Winners: 1999
- Calcutta Cup
- Winners: 2000
- Centenary Quaich
- Winners: 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001
- South African test series
- Winners: 1997
Warringah
- Shute Shield
- Runners-up: 1993
- National Division Two
- Winners: 1996
CA Brive
- Heineken Cup
- Runners-up: 1998
- Coupe de France
- Runners-up: 2000
Coaching Career
Starting at Border Reivers
In 2005, when Gregor Townsend returned to Scotland, he became a player-coach for the Border Reivers. This was the start of his coaching career. After the club closed in 2007, he helped create a program to mentor young Scottish rugby players. He worked with top clubs like Edinburgh and Glasgow Warriors, and with national youth teams.
Coaching Scotland (Assistant)
In October 2008, Townsend became an assistant coach for the Scotland A team. In January 2009, he became the backs coach for the main national team. The next season, he became the national attack coach.
As an assistant coach, he helped Scotland achieve important wins. They beat Australia for the first time since 1982 and South Africa for the first time since 2002. He was the attack coach during the 2011 Rugby World Cup.
Coaching Glasgow Warriors
In March 2012, Townsend left his role with the national team to become the head coach for Glasgow Warriors.
In his first year, Glasgow reached the play-offs of the Pro12 league. In 2014, they made it to their first final but lost to Leinster. The 2014–15 season was a huge success! Glasgow won their first ever Pro12 title by beating Munster 31–13 in the final. They also won all their home games that season, with an unbeaten run of 21 games at Scotstoun.
The 2016–17 season was Townsend's last with Glasgow. He was announced as the new head coach for the Scottish national team. Glasgow reached the knockout stage of the 2016–17 European Rugby Champions Cup for the first time since 1998. Townsend left Glasgow Warriors with a strong record, winning 91 out of 147 games coached.
Coaching Scotland (Head Coach)
Townsend became the head coach of the Scotland national rugby team in May 2017. His first game was a 34–13 win against Italy in Singapore. Then, Scotland achieved their first ever win in Sydney against Australia, winning 24–19.
In the Autumn Internationals of 2017, Scotland had a great campaign. They beat Samoa and Australia. They also came very close to beating New Zealand, losing by only 5 points.
Townsend's first Six Nations Championship started with a loss to Wales. But Scotland bounced back, beating France and then achieving their first victory over England since 2010, winning 25–13. This was their biggest win over England in a Six Nations game. Scotland finished third in the tournament, their highest position since 2013.
The June 2018 tests saw a young Scottish team travel to the Americas. They beat Canada 48–10. However, the United States got their first win over Scotland, 30–29. Despite this, Scotland went on to beat Argentina with a record score of 44–15.
His second Six Nations campaign in 2019 started well with a win over Italy. However, they then lost to Ireland and Wales. In the final game against England at Twickenham, Scotland made an incredible comeback. England led 31–0 early on, but Scotland fought back to lead 38–31 with minutes to go. England scored a late try, making the final score a thrilling 38-38 draw. This was the highest-scoring draw in rugby history and a huge comeback! Scotland kept the Calcutta Cup because of the draw.
Scotland's Record Against Other Teams
Here's how Scotland has performed under Gregor Townsend against different opponents:
| Opponent | Played | Won | Drew | Lost | Win ratio (%) | Points for | Points against |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Argentina |
6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 67 | 188 | 119 |
 Australia |
6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 67 | 134 | 85 |
 Canada |
2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 121 | 22 |
 Chile |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 52 | 11 |
 England |
7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 71 | 159 | 131 |
 Fiji |
5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 80 | 161 | 73 |
 France |
12 | 5 | 0 | 7 | 42 | 238 | 300 |
 Georgia |
4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 161 | 32 |
 Ireland |
10 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 122 | 248 |
 Italy |
9 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 89 | 306 | 167 |
 Japan |
2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 50 | 50 | 48 |
 Portugal |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 59 | 21 |
 New Zealand |
2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 40 | 53 |
 Romania |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 84 | 0 |
 Russia |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 61 | 0 |
 Samoa |
2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 78 | 38 |
 South Africa |
4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 52 | 106 |
 Tonga |
2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 105 | 31 |
 United States |
2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 50 | 71 | 37 |
 Uruguay |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 31 | 19 |
 Wales |
8 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 38 | 145 | 161 |
| TOTAL | 71 | 39 | 1 | 31 | 55 | 2418 | 1702 |
| *Correct as of November 24, 2024 | |||||||
Coaching the British & Irish Lions
Gregor Townsend was named the attack coach for the 2021 British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa. He had previously turned down a chance to join the coaching staff in 2017 because he had just started as Scotland's head coach.
Coaching Honours
Here are some of the trophies and achievements Gregor Townsend has won as a coach:
Scotland (as assistant coach)
- Centenary Quaich
- Winners: 2010
- Hopetoun Cup
- Winners: 2009
Glasgow Warriors
- Pro12
- Winners: 2015
- Runners-up: 2014
- 1872 Cup
- Winners: 2013, 2014, 2017
Scotland (as head coach)
- Calcutta Cup
- Winners: 2018, 2019*, 2021, 2022, 2023 (*retained through a draw)
- Auld Alliance Trophy
- Winners: 2018, 2020, 2021
- Hopetoun Cup
- Winners: June 2017, November 2017, 2021
- Douglas Horn Trophy
- Winners: 2018
- Doddie Weir Cup
- Winners: 2020, 2023
- Cuttitta Cup
- Winners: 2022, 2023
Personal Life
Gregor Townsend is married. He is also a strong supporter of mental health awareness. He has spoken openly about times when he felt a lot of pressure and discomfort during his rugby career.
