ROB ROBERTSON IN SHIZUOKA STADIUM ECOPA:Scotland scrum-half George Horne scored a hat-trick as his side easily secured the bonus point win they needed against Russia.

COMMENT BY JOHN GREECHAN: This utter farce accurately reflects not merely a shambolic lack of leadership in World Rugby, but Scotland's continued status as an international irrelevance.

Sunday's clash, which is effectively a play-off match for a quarter-final place, may still be called off by World Rugby in the aftermath of Super-Typhoon Hagibis, which is set to hit on Saturday.

NIK SIMON IN TOYOTA: The Rugby World Cup's credibility was called into question as feelings grew that rich nations have received favourable treatment as Scotland vent their frustrations.

Scotland suffered a devastating Rugby World Cup elimination at the hands of Japan, who made history by reaching the quarter-finals for the first time.  

Gregor Townsend insists Scotland can recover from their World Cup heartache - but knows they must learn from the mistakes that cost them in Japan.

CHRIS FOY IN JAPAN: The World Cup quarter-final line-up has now been finalised after hosts Japan booked their place in the knockout stages with a barnstorming victory over Scotland on Sunday.

Greig Laidlaw has admitted he has a decision to make over whether to prolong his Scotland career. The scrum-half's last World Cup ended in agonising defeat to Japan on Sunday.

CHRIS FOY IN TOKYO: England's match against France is in danger of being cancelled, as Typhoon Hagibis has changed course and is now due to tear through Tokyo and Yokohama.

Saracens' case for their defence fell at La Defense as the besieged Barnet bashers were battered by Racing 92. The reigning Champions Cup holders took their biggest continental loss in two years.

Hogg said he would be 'very annoyed' if one of his Scotland team-mates was so quick to move on from their own exit at this year's showpiece in Japan.

Stuart Hogg admits that if his Exeter Chiefs side win the Premiership, people will believe they triumphed only because of Saracens' hefty points deduction for breaching the salary cap.

CHRIS FOY AT THE AJ BELL STADIUM: Exeter extended their lead at the top of Pool Two of the Heineken Champions Cup with a close-fought 22-20 victory over Sale courtesy of Stuart Hogg (middle).

Tommy Seymour is the second player to retire from international rugby in the past seven days. Seymour has announced his decision on the heels of former Scotland captain John Barclay quitting. 

The 34-year-old Clermont scrum-half skippered the side in 39 out of his 76 international appearances, more times than any other player, and is Scotland's second-highest point scorer with 714.

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW BY NIK SIMON: Finn Russell is loving the different life in France, and he has emerged as Europe's in-form No 10 this season.

Scottish rugby fans were left truly stunned after it was revealed that the SRU chief executive more than doubled his salary from £455,000 to £933,000. The news comes prior to the Six Nations kick-off.

Finn Russell was dropped from Scotland's Six Nations opener after refusing to stop drinking at the team's hotel bar and then skipping training the following morning.

New Scotland captain Stuart Hogg is to seek out national icon Gavin Hastings for last-minute advice on how to lead the team from full-back in the Six Nations opener against Ireland.

GRAEME CROSER AT CELTIC PARK: The past seven days have seen Leigh Griffiths locked in a personal battle with Finn Russell for custody of the back pages.

The headlines will have made painful reading for Stuart Hogg yesterday after his costly howler in Dublin, but I thought he fronted up well afterwards and stayed focused during the game.

Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend has backed captain Stuart Hogg to bounce back from his horror miss against Ireland and lead the team with confidence against England next week.

Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend has warned his players not to let their emotions get the better of them in Saturday's Calcutta Cup showdown.

Thursday at Murrayfield. Greig Laidlaw looks at an empty arena. It is tempting to chronicle his career in a series of kicks, but the deserted grass surrounded by stands holds a comforting familiarity.

NIK SIMON IN EDINBURGH - Sam Underhill admits the pressure is on as England walk into the eye of a storm in Saturday's clash with Scotland.

Eddie Jones has made five changes to his England team for Saturday's Calcutta Cup clash against Scotland with Willi Heinz coming in for Ben Youngs at scrum-half.

Scotland host England in the second round of the 2020 Six Nations at BT Murrayfield in Edinburgh. Follow all the action here with Sportsmail's Ieuan Ivett as the sides battle for the Calcutta Cup.

England beat Scotland to lift the Calcutta Cup before an angry Eddie Jones laid into the Scottish yob who threw a beer bottle at his right-hand man.

OLIVER HOLT AT MURRAYFIELD - The trees outside Murrayfield swayed in the gale and empty plastic coffee cups scattered. Storm Ciara was brewing, but Owen Farrell remained unfazed.

England captain Owen Farrell revealed the conditions the team's suffered at Murrayfield yesterday were some of the worst of his Test career.

Gregor Townsend has absolved Stuart Hogg from blame despite the Scotland skipper making his second costly mistake in as many Guinness Six Nations games.

MARTIN SAMUEL AT MURRAYFIELD - It was at a certain moment, following England's dogged win over Scotland in torrid conditions, that the game's observers received enlightenment.

Officials are investigating ugly scenes at Murrayfield on Saturday where Neil Craig, a member of England's backroom staff, was struck on the head by a plastic beer bottle.

Townsend has warned exile Russell that he will have to make the same 'sacrifices' as every other Scotland player - or be banished from his squad for the duration of the Six Nations.

The veteran fly-half's kicking was exemplary as he added the extras to tries from Jacques Vermeulen and Stuart Hogg as well as slotting over four penalties.

SIR CLIVE WOODWARD: I try not to be overly partisan in my columns because I love good rugby and admire top-quality play from all teams, but I hope Scotland record a thumping win over Italy.

Russell will not feature in the remaining games, against France on Sunday and Wales in Cardiff on March 14, as it is feared his arrival would detract from preparations for two games only six days apart.

EXCLUSIVE: A Scottish Women's Rugby player being treated for coronavirus spent days training near to Team GB Olympians at their base in Loughborough before she was diagnosed.

The PFA Player of the Year ended last season with no opponent completing a dribble past him in a staggering 64 matches. Liverpool centre back has lifted the lid on what has helped him.

De Jong completed a big-money £65million move to the Spanish giants from Ajax in January and he will be officially unveiled as a Barcelona player on Friday.

United States take on Netherlands for ultimate glory in the Women's World Cup final in France today. Sportsmail will provide you live updates as it happens from the Lyon Olympic Stadium.

De Ligt became the most sought after youngster in the world after a huge breakthrough season with Ajax, and he has attracted heavy interest from the likes of Juventus and Barcelona.

Ajax have announced their star defender Matthijs De Ligt has been left out of their squad for their summer tour to Austria pending 'a possible transfer'.

Maurizio Sarri views Matthijs de Ligt as a key part of a three-man defensive wall at Juventus this season. The Dutch centre back is nearing the completion of his £63million transfer.

During the latest episode of BT Sport's 'What I Wore' series, Van Persie was asked to talk about the iconic moments from his career as he worked his way through the shirts he donned during his career.

The 35-year-old had been playing for Al-Gharafa in Qatar but images of him attending Utrecht's clash against VVV-Venlo caused a stir after they showed him to be carrying a few extra pounds.

The Dutch, managed by Bert Van Marwijk in 2010, were defeated in the final by Spain following an extra-time winner by midfield maestro Andres Iniesta in South Africa.

October 13, 1976. Best's career was on the wane. He had turned 30 that summer and come back from his first stint in the US with Los Angeles Aztecs.

Georginio Wijnaldum admits Holland's recent absence from major tournaments has been 'painful' as they look set to end that exodus at Euro 2020 next summer.

De Toekomst training complex in Amsterdam was like a scene from Armageddon as Ajax fans let their players know what the fixture means to them while there were similar scenes in Rotterdam.