'He's so much fun to watch' - the rise of Kinghorn
Guinness Six Nations 2025: France v ScotlandWhen: Saturday, 15 March 2025 Kick-off: 20:00 GMT Where: Stade de France, ParisCoverage: Listen live on BBC Radio Scotland Extra & BBC Sounds, follow live text coverage on BBC Sport app & website.
Having been part of the all-conquering Toulouse side that swept all before them last season, Blair Kinghorn is now tasked with trying to halt his superstar team-mates in France colours from completing their charge towards the Six Nations title.Scotland head for Paris and their final match of the tournament hoping to derail what looks like an unstoppable French juggernaut fresh from a clinical dismantling of a previously unbeaten Ireland side.Kinghorn won a Champions Cup and Top 14 double with Toulouse last season, a far cry from his days as one of the shining lights in a consistently under-performing Edinburgh side.He has taken his game to another level and Scotland are now reaping the benefit. Aside from a poor showing against Ireland - along with the rest of the Scotland team - Kinghorn has enjoyed an excellent Six Nations.The statistics show him at the top of the charts for carries, metres carried, metres gained and offloads as well as second for line-breaks.His player-of-the-match display, which included two tries, in the victory against Wales was one of his best in a Scotland shirt, suggesting the 28-year-old is hitting his peak.
From makeshift 10 to star full-back
Kinghorn has always been a player blessed with incredible natural attributes and an outstanding skillset.That all-round talent means he has been deployed in various positions along the back-line for Scotland. Indeed, he has scored two Six Nations hat-tricks against Italy - one from the wing (in 2019), and one from fly-half (in 2023).That decision to convert Kinghorn into a number 10 for Edinburgh and Scotland - dubbed 'the Blair-Switch Project' - stemmed from a desire to find a suitable alternative to Finn Russell for the national team.His adaptability meant he offered plenty in that role, but Kinghorn comes alive in the open field that only comes while playing in the back three, and it is in the more familiar role of full-back he is now thriving.The fly-half experiment may have been beneficial in the long run, however, with that knowledge of being the team's chief playmaker now informing how he sees the game from the deeper full-back position.
"I do think having an appreciation for how difficult it is for a 10 helps you in your position as a 15," said Scotland's record points-scorer Chris Paterson, who at times in his own career flitted between fly-half and full-back."If you've played 10, you know what you're looking for. Then if you drop to 15, by definition, you kind of know what the opposition 10 is looking for. "So it allows you to be in position quicker, because you can almost read the play."The skillsets are quite similar as well. You spend a bit of time in the backfield as a 10, you'll spend a bit of time kicking as a 15."It also helps you take pressure off the 10 you're playing alongside, because it's a vulnerable position and it's an exposed position. Almost every decision feels as if it has to go through as a 10."His physical attributes - his speed, his size, his height, his ability to dominate space in the air, to catch a ball above his head - and his skill set - his distribution, his timing onto the ball, his kicking - is excellent."As a 15, you need to be an all-round package, the physical attributes and the skill set, and he's got the lot."
'They love Kinghorn in France'
Kinghorn's understanding of where and when to arrive into the attacking line was evident in some of the stunning tries constructed against England and Wales.A show reel of Kinghorn's X-factor moments would be a long one, and since his move to link-up with the galacticos of Toulouse, there is now a maturity to his game to complement the fireworks."Blair Kinghorn is so much fun to watch," said Johnnie Beattie, the former Scotland number eight who now lives and works in France covering the Top 14."He's class and a good character as well, which us Scots love, but they love him here in France too."Starting on the wing or at full-back for Toulouse, he's been phenomenal. With the power he plays behind, the creativity, the opportunities and space he's given on the ball, he's been exceptional."He's a wonderful athlete. This is the longest run of games we've seen him start for Scotland at full-back, and he's been excellent."I'm really hoping he gets on that Lions plane as well this summer because he's been tremendous."
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