Glasgow Warriors flyhalf Finn Russell picked up a nasty injury very early on in the Warrior”s match against Connacht in Galway in the PRO12 semifinal on Saturday. He was involved in one of those ‘freak’ events when he and team mate Zander Ferguson ran into each other.

Current Scotland U20 tighthead prop Fagerson had to leave the field but was able to walk off although he didn’t return for the rest of the game.

For Finn Russell however the collision was more costly, as the medics rushed onto the field to treat the two it became clear that Finn had suffered a nasty injury to his face. Early on during the on-field assessment they had him standing up but then lay him on the ground. After what seemed like quite a while he was stretchered off to a sporting applause from concerned fans at the ground and taken to hospital.

Glasgow Warriors put out a short message on Sunday night confirming that Finn was still in hospital undergoing observation. Today the club put out a longer statement with the news that although he remained in hospital he didn’t require surgery and that he may be released later this week.

Finn Russell remains under observation in hospital following a clash of heads in the first minute of Saturday’s GUINNESS PRO12 Play-Off in Galway.

Finn Russell with ball in hand

However, his condition has improved significantly over the last couple of days and it’s been confirmed that he does not require surgery.

Russell, who was transferred from University Hospital in Galway to Beaumont Hospital in Dublin, is expected to be discharged later this week.

His return to training date will be determined when he is back in Glasgow.

Glasgow Warriors would like to thank the Connacht medical team, players and staff for their support. The club would also like to thank the University Hospital in Galway and Beaumont Hospital in Dublin for all their help.

Finn and his family really appreciate all the messages of support, with which they have been inundated.

Other players are still being assessed by the Glasgow Warriors medical team following Saturday’s match against Connacht.

Further updates will be provided when available.

Finn Russell out of Scotland squad to tour Japan:

In the meantime it has been confirmed that Finn Russell, who was in the original Scotland squad picked by Vern Cotter to tour Japan, has been ruled out of the tour due to the injury. This comes as no surprise and at the moment Russell’s attention must be solely on getting over the injury and then seeing where he is in relation to rugby. Player welfare is of paramount importance especially when it comes to head knocks. Would like to wish Finn all the best on his road to recovery.

Scotland, who play two Tests in Japan, are yet to announce a squad replacement for the 23-year-old.

The squad will gather for a training camp on 6 June before their departure for Tokyo five days later.

The Tests are on 18 and 25 June.

Ruaridh Jackson is the only other specialist stand-off in Vern Cotter’s squad, although centre Peter Horne can cover number 10. Jackson is possibly the nearest other player in terms of style to Finn Russell in the squad and one assumes he will go to number one on the pecking order. Peter Horne is also a talented player who distributes and runs well so he could do a job slotting in at flyhalf as well if needed.

However one feels it would be wiser to take another specialist flyhalf along and the obvious choice is Glasgow Warriors Duncan Weir who is Edinburgh bound for next season. Having Weir there would offer the team a choice of different game plan as Weir is more of a kicking flyhalf, although he has shown he can also take a gap and is a good defender especially considering his size.

Considering the amount of game time these players have had and the fact that Weir perhaps didn’t play to well when he came on to replace Finn Russell on Saturday I would suggest that Vern Cotter choose Worcester’s Tom Heathcote as Russell’s replacement. He is a player who I don’t feel has always been given a fair crack at the position both at international level and also during his time at Edinburgh in the 2014/15 season and it may be worth it for Vern Cotter to get a chance to work with him on tour.

Cotter already knows what Weir brings to the table and with Weir playing for the centrally controlled Glasgow this year and Edinburgh next year he has had and will have ample opportunity if he feels the need to have more input into Weir’s development outside of the environment of an international tour.