Healy starts for Scotland as Townsend rests regulars against Romania

Gregor Townsend has called on his Scotland stand-ins to seize their chance to impress against Romania on Saturday and play their way into contention for involvement in what is shaping up to be a box-office showdown with Ireland.

The head coach has made 13 changes to his starting XV for the must-win match against the Pool B minnows in Lille this weekend, preserving several big guns including Finn Russell, Duhan van der Merwe, Jack Dempsey, Zander Fagerson and Sione Tuipulotu for a Paris meeting with Ireland on Saturday week that is likely to decide whether the Scots progress to the quarter-finals.

Javan Sebastian – with six caps as a substitute – will make his first start for Scotland, and the recently-recruited Edinburgh prop will be joined in the XV by his new club-mates Luke Crosbie, Hamish Watson and former Munster out-half Ben Healy, who are also getting their first game time of this World Cup.

Tipperary native Healy, a former Ireland underage international, will win his fourth Scottish cap having made the switch to Edinburgh at the end of last season.

Lock Grant Gilchrist will captain the side in the absence of Jamie Ritchie, who is still on track to return against Ireland as he progresses through his return-to-play protocols after suffering a head knock against Tonga last weekend.

Townsend said that this weekend's match is "absolutely" an opportunity for players to secure a spot in the 23 for the Ireland match.

"It’s hard when you’re training to show what you can do at the World Cup," he said.

"We put a lot on what players have done for us in the past and players have been training well, so we know they are in really good physical shape.

"But the best way to influence selection is to play well. The performance against