Scotland coach Gregor Townsend celebrated his 100th Test match in charge this past weekend, and the 31-20 win over England was a perfect way to mark the occasion.
It was a result that also suddenly saw England slip to fourth in the World Rugby rankings, while ever-impressive France move up to third despite not being able to gain any points after thrashing Wales.
Scotland move up to ninth after proving to be once again be a big bogey team for England at home, with Townsend’s team moving ahead of 10th-placed Italy in the rankings after the Azzurri let a half-time lead slip against Ireland before losing 20-13.
Updated rankings after Scotland stunned England again
| Rank | Country | Points |
| 1 | South Africa | 93.94 |
| 2 | New Zealand | 90.33 |
| 3 | France | 88.40 |
| 4 | England | 87.71 |
| 5 | Ireland | 86.81 |
| 6 | Argentina | 84.97 |
| 7 | Australia | 81.53 |
| 8 | Fiji | 81.14 |
| 9 | Scotland | 81.10 |
| 10 | Italy | 79.81 |
| 11 | Wales | 74.23 |
| 12 | Japan | 74.09 |
| 13 | Georgia | 73.18 |
| 14 | Uruguay | 69.19 |
| 15 | Spain | 69.01 |
| 16 | USA | 68.26 |
| 17 | Chile | 66.72 |
| 18 | Tonga | 66.66 |
| 19 | Samoa | 66.43 |
| 20 | Portugal | 64.98 |
Scotland celebrate
“I’m quite emotional,” coach Townsend admitted after the epic win in Edinburgh. “After 20 minutes, I thought that was some of the best rugby we’ve ever played. To see our players play with that ambition and accuracy… it’s all you want as a coach.
“There are so many games where you play well but the opposition come back and win. We’re pleased, but there’ll be another challenge next week. Three Test matches in a row: we’ve got to recover well and build on what we did today.”
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