We are inching towards a sliding doors moment in the life of Gregor Brown.
The day is surely fast approaching when Brown is no longer quizzed about being Blair Kinghorn’s cousin and when the Scotland full-back is instead asked what it is like being related to the Glasgow forward.
It is not exactly clear which position Brown is going to play for Scotland in the Six Nations, or indeed, if he starts or is on the bench, but there is one certainty – he is going to be pivotal to the team’s hopes.
The 24-year-old is only really 18 months into his time as a top-level player – a whirlwind of progress that he calls “insane” – but his impact has been enormous.
He has played Test matches with four, five, six and seven on his back. He has started against France at lock and against New Zealand and Argentina at blindside flanker.
He was Jonny Gray’s understudy in the Six Nations last season and by the summer had played some minutes for the British and Irish Lions in Australia.
“If I went back 18 months and you told me that I would have done all this, I would have laughed at you. Like, no way. It’s just been absolutely mental,” he says.
True, but Brown is a pivotal figure now for Townsend, a guy who gives the coach some questions to answer.
Townsend’s natural inclination for Rome on Saturday might be a second row of Grant Gilchrist and Scott Cummings. That would leave Brown either starting at six or, more likely, on the bench covering lock and blindside.
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