Paterson: Russell reaping the rewards of Townsend tutelage

Russell dazzled for Scotland at the weekend in Paris, and Paterson was quick to draw parallels between the way the 22-year-old plays and how his mentor at Glasgow, Townsend - who won 83 caps for the Scots between 1993 and 2003 - graced the dark blue jersey.

Paterson himself is remembered far more fondly by the Edinburgh faithful for his two spells at the club despite a brief stint with Warriors at the start of his career, but insists one of Glasgow's brightest sparks can be the real deal on the world stage.

"You can see the parts of Finn's game that Gregor has passed on to him and worked with him on," he told the Daily Mail.

"The exciting thing is that he is still a pretty young guy who is keen to improve even more. That bodes well for the future and I am looking forward to seeing how his game develops in the coming weeks.

"I did a lot of work with Finn when he was younger and what I would say to people is don't confuse his confidence for arrogance. He is one of the hardest working players I have seen.

"He is very clued up, he knows what he is doing every time he gets on the ball and he is physical and brave.

"He obviously has natural talent, but the hard work he puts in on the training pitch at Glasgow has helped him reach that next level in the GUINNESS PRO12."

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