Townsend redeemed as Scotland ignite Six Nations title chase by stunning France

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Townsend redeemed as Scotland ignite Six Nations title chase by stunning France

2026-03-08 04:30 Last Updated At：04:40

EDINBURGH, Scotland (AP) — Gregor Townsend is not one to gloat when he so easily could.

Exactly a month ago, his Scotland started the Six Nations with a dull loss to Italy in the Roman rain. His 10-season tenure was already under intense scrutiny after a miserable autumn test series.

Now the coach has Scotland the closest it's ever been to the Six Nations crown since it won the last Five Nations in 1999.

Impressive wins over England and Wales were upstaged by a mind-blowing 50-40 win over Grand Slam-pursuer France at Murrayfield on Saturday. It was Scotland's highest score against France in 116 years of matchups.

France was prevented from clinching the title while Scotland rose into a tie on points with France at the top of the table going into the final round next Saturday. Scotland head to Ireland, also in title contention, while France close against England in Paris.

The odds still favor France retaining the title but Scotland's rebound from the Italy defeat with three straight wins for the first time since 2020 has awed all comers.

“It was a brilliant day, brilliant day for our supporters,” Townsend told the BBC. “Not just the rugby we played but the mindset to keep attacking.”

He believed painful moments and defeats were needed in a team's evolution.

“Italy is part of the journey,” he said. “I believed in the team. Our game is built to put some of our best strike players in the game into space and they built phase after phase and grew in confidence.”

Captain Sione Tupulotu was grateful that they could win for Townsend and take some pressure off their coach.

“We stuck together after a tough first round and tough autumn and have now given ourselves one more job to do next week,” Tuipulotu said. "It's something a Scotland team hasn't done before (in the Six Nations era), going into the last week with everything to play for.

“I couldn't be happier for him (Townsend). We have rallied behind our coach since the start of the tournament.”

The victory was marred only by the sight of player of the match Kyle Steyn being carted off with a gashed right thigh. But Steyn was confident afterward he would be available to play Ireland.

France coach Fabien Galthié praised Scotland, especially centers Tuipulotu and Huw Jones, but was confident his side will keep the crown. France lost to Scotland for the sixth time on Townsend's watch.

“It is not surprising for the Scots to win this match. They played great,” Galthié said. "They taught us in the basics of rugby.

"We're still first. We have the possibility to win the competition. That's the truth.

“We wanted to do much better (today). We were very ambitious. We understand the disappointment of our fans. We share it. But we're in a race to win the competition. We have a game in Paris. Saturday night at the Stade de France. It's our daily life. We know we have to go through this.”

AP rugby: https://apnews.com/hub/rugby

Iranian attacks target Gulf States as US warns bombing will intensify

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Intense Iranian fire targeted the Gulf Arab states early Saturday as Israel and the United States kept up their airstrikes targeting the Islamic Republic.

There was no foreseeable end to the fighting. U.S. President Donald Trump's administration approved a new $151 million arms sale to Israel after Trump said he would not negotiate with Iran without its “unconditional surrender” and U.S. officials warned of a forthcoming bombing campaign they said would be the most intense yet in the weeklong conflict.

Iran's U.N. ambassador said the country would “take all necessary measures” to defend itself.

Associated Press video showed explosions flashing and smoke rising over western Tehran as Israel said it had begun a broad wave of strikes. Also early Saturday, loud booms sounded in Jerusalem and incoming missiles from Iran had people heading to bomb shelters across Israel.

There were no immediate reports of casualties by Israel’s emergency services.

In a sign of the widening nature of the conflict, sirens sounded early Saturday in Bahrain as Iranian attacks targeted the island kingdom. And Saudi Arabia said it destroyed drones headed toward its vast Shaybah oil field and shot down a ballistic missile launched toward Prince Sultan Air Base, which hosts U.S. forces.

The U.S. and Israel have battered Iran with strikes, targeting its military capabilities, leadership and nuclear program. The stated goals and timelines for the war have repeatedly shifted, as the U.S. has at times suggested it seeks to topple Iran’s government or elevate new leadership from within.

Qatar’s energy minister, Saad al-Kaabi, warned in an interview with the Financial Times that the war could “bring down the economies of the world,” predicting a widespread shutdown of Gulf energy exports that could send oil to $150 a barrel.

The price for a barrel of benchmark U.S. crude rose above $90 on Friday for the first time in more than two years.

Russia has provided Iran with information that could help Tehran strike American warships, aircraft and other assets in the region, according to two officials familiar with U.S. intelligence on the matter.

The people, who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity, cautioned that the U.S. intelligence has not uncovered that Russia is directing Iran on what to do with the information.

Still, it’s the first indication that Moscow has sought to get involved in the war.

In a social media post Friday, Trump said “There will be no deal with Iran except UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!" After a surrender, “and the selection of a GREAT & ACCEPTABLE Leader(s),” he wrote, the U.S. and its allies will help rebuild Iran, making it “economically bigger, better, and stronger than ever before.”

Those comments were likely to raise further questions about the endgame of the war. The fighting has killed at least 1,230 people in Iran, more than 200 in Lebanon and around a dozen in Israel, according to officials in those countries. Six U.S. troops have been killed.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian wrote on social media that “some countries” had begun mediation efforts, without elaborating.

Iranian state television reported Friday that a leadership council had started discussing how to convene the country’s Assembly of Experts, which will select the new supreme leader.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a television interview on Friday that the “biggest bombing campaign” of the war was still to come.

Israel has said that over the past week it has heavily bombed an extensive underground bunker that Iranian leaders had planned to use during the hostilities.

New information surfaced suggesting that a deadly Feb. 28 explosion at a school in the Iranian city of Minab, some 1,100 kilometers (680 miles) southeast of Tehran, was likely caused by U.S. airstrikes. The information included satellite images, expert analysis, a U.S. official and public information released by U.S. and Israeli military forces.

Iranian state media has said more than 165 people were killed in the blast, most of them of children.

Iran has blamed Israel and the U.S. for the explosion. Neither country has accepted responsibility, though Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has said the U.S. is investigating.

The Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah said its fighters clashed with an Israeli force that landed late Friday in the mountains of eastern Lebanon. The Lebanese Health Ministry said at least three people were killed.

Israel did not acknowledge the fighting, and its military did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Israel has carried out waves of airstrikes on the southern suburbs of Beirut, where Hezbollah has a large presence but which is also home to hundreds of thousands of civilians.

Lebanon's Health Ministry said at least 217 people have been killed by Israeli strikes since Monday and 798 wounded.

Roads in the Lebanese capital were choked with evacuating traffic as smoke rose over the city’s southern districts. Two hospitals evacuated patients and staff.

“What can we do? We prayed here under the tree. During the night, we slept in the car because there is no place to stay,” Jihan Shehadeh, one of the tens of thousands of displaced, said.

Metz reported from Ramallah, West Bank, Rising from Bangkok and Abou AlJoud from Beirut. Associated Press journalists around the world contributed.