'Completely': Scotland's players take accountability amid calls for Gregor Townsend's head

The pressure and scrutiny continues to build upon Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend after his team blew a 21-point lead against Argentina - but as hooker Ewan Ashman admits, the players need to carry the can too.

Scotland’s 33-24 home loss to Argentina on Sunday was greeted by boos from the crowd - a rare occurrence at Murrayfield. Some supporters had even left early, unable to stomach one of the greatest capitulations in the history of Scottish rugby.

Already out of credit with some fans, Townsend is now facing calls for his head from pundits and the public alike. But it should not be forgotten that Scotland’s men on the pitch have too often let very presentable opportunities slither out of their grasp.

Ashman scored two tries in a barnstorming first 45 minutes against Los Pumas. The powerful hooker embodied Scotland’s performance up until that point. His brace should have been more than solid foundations to go and land the win. Scotland quickly unravelled after Argentina pounced on a loose Finn Russell pass. A team should not be derailed by one solitary moment, but that is what happened.

“It's completely players,” said Ashman when asked where the fault lies. “You can see from being 21-0 up, we stick to what we're doing. We should have buried him, but it's just players' accountability. It's individuals' errors, individuals' discipline, and certain decision-making that killed us. You can't do that against a quality team like Argentina. It's all on the players.

“We had a few offsides and discipline, but then also the decision-making around that finish zone. We got rewarded, and then we decided to go away from that. We had the framework, and we were doing what we were doing well. I don't know why we went away from that. It's just on the players. We have to put our hands up individually and say that's on us.”

What ‘absolutely killed Scotland’

Ashman spoke emotionally on the pain of defeat. “You always want to win for Scotland,” said the 25-year-old. “It is gutting. I don't know a better word for it. It's really disappointing to lose. Everybody wants to do absolutely everything they can. I think the effort that went into it from the players was absolutely massive. That just makes it hurt a little bit more. You can't question the effort out there. It's just a personal few decisions and a bit of discipline that absolutely killed us.

“I think the first half was positive. I think we dominated them. I'll have to watch it back, but the scrum was good. I felt like in the finish zone we were really clinical in that first half. The opportunities we got, we took them. Unfortunately, we didn't do it for 80 minutes. There's a few positives that we can take, but we have to have a hard look at ourselves because we let it slip.”

Ashman claims he was not aware of the jeers coming from the stands, the hurt of defeat taking over. “I can't say I noticed it,” he said. “Nothing anybody says to you is going to make you feel worse. We want to win more than anybody. I'm only concerned with the people in the group and the guys standing next to me. I can't comment on that.”

Ewan Ashman scored two tries for Scotland against Argentina. | SNS Group / SRU

The defeat by Argentina - and the manner of it - came eight days on from Scotland failing to take down a New Zealand side that played half-an-hour with 14 men in a 25-17 defeat. While Scotland started off this Quilter Nations Series campaign with an 85-0 rout of an extremely weak USA side, whatever happens in Sunday’s final match against Tonga cannot put lipstick on a pig. Two wins from four will not be good enough.

“It's not acceptable, but all we can do now is go out and put on the best performance we can next week,” said Ashman. “We have to take our learnings from it, but there's no point. We can't change it now. We've got to go out and win next week and win convincingly.”

Ashman has started all three matches for Scotland this month and is desperate to be involved against the Tongans. “Obviously, you want to play for Scotland as much as you can,” he said. “I'd love to play next week. It's not in my hands now. I've done as much as I can. Obviously, you want to win every opportunity you get. We'll have to wait and see.

“It's been competitive in training. It's only going to get more competitive. The boys are going to be wanting to put their hands up. There's a lot of good players that haven't played yet. It's going to be a physical week's training, definitely. The boys that have played, they're going to have to up it again. We've got to get better than that.”

One man who may return to the Scotland team is tighthead prop Zander Fagerson, who has been sidelined for the past six months due to calf and knee issues. D’arcy Rae has deputised admirably for the Lions man but he limped off during the first half against Argentina. Fagerson’s return would give Scotland a welcome lift against a physical Tongan pack.

“He's a British and Irish Lion with however many caps he's got for Scotland, he's an experienced player,” said Ashman on Fagerson. “It's going to lift everybody. I don't know if he's coming back. It would be great if he is. He's a massive character and a great player.”