Gregor Townsend swings the axe as Scotland overhaul pack for England showdown

The changes come in the wake of Scotland's disappointing 18-15 defeat to Italy in round one of this year's Championship, which leaves them a mountain to climb if they want to keep their title hopes alive.

Townsend's side do have recent history on their side, however, winning four of their past five Calcutta Cup Tests against England.

While Townsend has made several changes, the starting backline from that defeat in Rome remains intact, with Tom Jordan, Kyle Steyn, Huw Jones, Sione Tuipulotu, Jamie Dobie, Finn Russell and Ben White keeping their spots.

Townsend's changes come up front in the form of Jamie Ritchie, Gregor Brown, George Turner and Nathan McBeth. As a result, Matt Fagerson and Pierre Schoeman drop to the bench, while Grant Gilchrist is taken out of the 23 altogether. Ewan Ashman also misses out through injury.

Elsewhere, Jack Dempsey and Rory Darge feature in the back row alongside Ritchie, with Scott Cummings also slotting in alongside Brown in the locks. Zander Fagerson is the sole survivor from last weekend's starting front row.

There is still no room for Duhan van der Merwe or Blair Kinghorn in the 23.

England named their team on Tuesday, with head coach Steve Borthwick recalling Maro Itoje and Luke Cowan-Dickie to the starting line-up while last weekend's starters Alex Coles and Jamie George join the replacements.

Borthwick's side head to Scotland in great form after winning their past 12 Tests, but they have not tasted victory north of the border since 2021.

"Playing Scotland at Murrayfield is always a fantastic occasion and a challenge we are relishing," Borthwick said.

"We made a pleasing start to the Championship, but we understand that we must continue to raise our standards. The squad has trained with focus and determination this week, and we're excited for the opportunity to test ourselves again on Saturday."

Scotland: 15 Tom Jordan, 14 Kyle Steyn, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Sione Tuipulotu (c), 11 Jamie Dobie, 10 Finn Russell, 9 Ben White, 8 Jack Dempsey, 7 Rory Darge, 6 Jamie Ritchie, 5 Scott Cummings, 4 Gregor Brown, 3 Zander Fagerson, 2 George Turner, 1 Nathan McBeth.

Replacements: 16 Dave Cherry, 17 Pierre Schoeman, 18 Elliot Millar Mills, 19 Max Williamson, 20 Matt Fagerson, 21 George Horne, 22 Adam Hastings, 23 Darcy Graham.

England: 15 Freddie Steward, 14 Tom Roebuck, 13 Tommy Freeman, 12 Fraser Dingwall, 11 Henry Arundell, 10 George Ford, 9 Alex Mitchell, 8 Ben Earl, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Guy Pepper, 5 Ollie Chessum, 4 Maro Itoje (c), 3 Joe Heyes, 2 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 1 Ellis Genge.

Replacements: 16 Jamie George, 17 Bevan Rodd, 18 Trevor Davison, 19 Alex Coles, 20 Tom Curry, 21 Henry Pollock, 22 Ben Spencer, 23 Fin Smith.