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Finn Russell reckons Scotland will benefit from having burgeoning backs Ben White and Blair Kinghorn plying their trade at the top level in France.<\/p>\n
Scrum-half White, 25, joined Challenge Cup winners Toulon after the World Cup following the demise of London Irish, while 26-year-old full-back Kinghorn moved from boyhood club Edinburgh to Top 14 giants Toulouse earlier this month.<\/p>\n
Russell returned to the UK to join Bath this season after establishing himself as one of the top stand-offs in the world during five fruitful years in France with Racing 92.<\/p>\n
The 31-year-old believes it can only be a good thing for Scotland to have two key players \u2013 both of whom scored tries in the Champions Cup last weekend \u2013 spending their prime years in a league he holds in the highest regard.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s good moves for the two of them, they\u2019ll have great fun playing over there,\u201d Russell told the PA news agency. \u201cThey\u2019ll learn a lot and they\u2019ll be challenged in a way they probably won\u2019t have experienced before with the language, the lifestyle and the style of rugby.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I think both of them will adapt really well and they\u2019ll grow as players as well as men. They\u2019ll get to learn about the French mentality, French rugby and the individuals.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s knowledge that you don\u2019t really get until you\u2019re out there playing. It will be great for the national team and it will be brilliant for the two guys personally.\u201d<\/p>\n
I think it’s good moves for the two of them, they’ll have great fun playing over there<\/p>\n
While Scotland have no issue with their players moving overseas, Rugby Football Union rules do not allow those based abroad to be selected for England.<\/p>\n
That means 21-year-old winger Henry Arundell \u2013 who featured for Steve Borthwick\u2019s side at the World Cup \u2013 will no longer be able to be picked for his country after this week extending his contract with Racing until 2026.<\/p>\n
Russell is thankful he did not have to consider such a scenario when he moved to the Paris club from Glasgow in 2018.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know what it\u2019s like to be an Englishman and rule yourself out for playing for the national team but that\u2019s obviously a decision he\u2019s happy to live with,\u201d said the Scotland talisman.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe must be loving it out there. I was in Paris for five years and I loved every minute of it so I can understand why he\u2019s staying.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019ll grow as a person and be challenged in a way he probably wouldn\u2019t be over here with the language and the lifestyle. He\u2019ll love it out there and I can understand his decision to stay.\u201d<\/p>\n
Russell will be reunited with some familiar faces next month when Bath host Racing \u2013 with Arundell in tow \u2013 and then visit Kinghorn\u2019s Toulouse the following weekend in the Champions Cup.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt will be good fun,\u201d he said. \u201cIt will be different playing against Racing having been there for five years but I just need to treat it as another game.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t get caught up in the mental side of playing against my old team. Toulouse is another great place to go and play, especially in a European game, so I\u2019m looking forward to both of those games.\u201d<\/p>\n