England v Scotland, Six Nations 2023: What time is kick-off and what TV channel is it on?

This year's Calcutta Cup opens the Six Nations Championship for England and Scotland.

Newly-appointed England head coach Steve Borthwick said the team's players are "hurting" after their recent run of poor results, adding that he hopes to harness their frustration and turn it into fuel for a successful Six Nations campaign.

The 43-year-old, who replaced Eddie Jones in December, has selected a 36-man squad for the Calcutta Cup clash.

However, England have been hit with a number of key injuries with Henry Slade the latest big name to be ruled out.

Scotland, meanwhile, have four uncapped players in their Six Nations squad, including former England wing Ruaridh McConnochie.

When and where is England vs Scotland?

This first-round tie will take place on Saturday, February 4, with the match kicking off at Twickenham at 4.45pm.

The other matches on Saturday are Wales vs Ireland at 2.15pm and Italy vs France at 3pm.

What TV channel is England vs Scotland on?

England vs Scotland will be broadcast on ITV.

What happened in this fixture in 2022?

Scotland won their second Calcutta Cup match on the trot, for the first time since 1984, after beating England 20-17 in a close-run affair that came down to a penalty try conceded when Luke Cowan-Dickie was shown a yellow card for deliberately kicking into touch.

Read Telegraph Sport's full coverage of the match here.

What is the latest team news?

England

England are dealing with a large number of injuries to their first-choice squad. Henry Slade is the latest player to be ruled out, to be replaced by Anthony Watson.

Other injuries include Jamie George, who is still completing return-to-play protocols after a concussion, Luke Cowan-Dickie and Courtney Lawes. Tom Curry and Dan Kelly are also out injured.

In midfield, Manu Tuilagi is set to be dropped from the starting line-up, with Joe Marchant taking his place at outside centre. This means England are likely to start with Marcus Smith at 10 and Owen Farrell at 12.

Among the forwards, Ben Curry is set to start at openside flanker with Lewis Ludlam on the blindside. In the front row England are likely to pick Dan Cole and Kyle Sinckler.

Scotland

Gregor Townsend has named his matchday XV for the clash with England. Stuart Hogg and Duhan van der Merwe have been passed fit to play after their respective injuries but there is no such luck for prop Zander Fagerson, who was not deemed at the requisite level of match fitness for Test rugby after recovering from a hamstring injury.

WP Nel will start at tighthead alongside Pierre Schoeman and George Turner in the front row with Glasgow's contingent of Fraser Brown, Jamie Bhatti and Simon Berghan on the bench.

In the absence of Hamish Watson, Edinburgh's Luke Crosbie, a star in the Champions Cup win over Saracens, will start at openside alongside captain Jamie Ritchie at blindside. Matt Fagerson completes the back-row trio at No 8.

Finn Russell will continue at fly-half after reclaiming the jersey from Blair Kinghorn during last year's autumn internationals, while Huw Jones is preferred to Chris Harris at outside centre, where he will reprise his Glasgow partnership with Sione Tuipulotu. Both Kinghorn and Harris are named among the replacements, alongside Exeter's Jonny Gray, who has recovered in time from whiplash.

Scotland starting XV: S Hogg; K Steyn, C Harris, S Tuipulotu, D van der Merwe; F Russell, B White; P Schoeman, G Turner, WP Nel, R Gray, G Gilchrist, J Ritchie, L Crosbie, M Fagerson. Replacements: F Brown, J Bhatti, S Berghan, J Gray, J Dempsey, G Horne, B Kinghorn, C Harris.

Who is the referee for England vs Scotland?

New Zealander Paul Williams has been picked for this fixture. He has not taken charge of a championship match since France's loss to Scotland at Murrayfield in 2020. In that infamous fixture, Williams sent off French tighthead Mohamed Haouas for a punch on Scottish flanker Jamie Ritchie, a move that effectively ended Les Bleus' hopes of winning the title and the Grand Slam.

Despite the three-year break, Steve Borthwick's side know Williams. The 37-year-old refereed England's series decider over Australia in July, a 21-17 victory against the Wallabies under former head coach Eddie Jones.

What is Williams' history?

Having taken up refereeing in 2011, Williams officiated his first Test match in 2017 – Italy versus Scotland in Singapore – and was selected among the panel of officials for the 2019 World Cup in Japan, where he took charge of England's group-stage opener against Tonga.

One of Williams' most controversial moments came in the 2022 Rugby Championship, where he showed a yellow card to South Africa scrum-half Faf de Klerk for a seemingly faint hand to the face of opposite number Nic White during a Wallabies' victory in Adelaide.

How will he officiate the match?

We know that Kiwi officials are lenient at the breakdown, which will be music to the ears of Jack Willis, Ben Earl, Jamie Ritchie et al. In preparation for the northern hemisphere switch, however, Williams was tasked with overseeing Connacht's United Rugby Championship match against Emirates Lions last weekend.

• Assistant Referee 1: Ben O’Keeffe (NZR)

• Assistant Referee 2: James Doleman (NZR)

• TMO: Brendon Pickerill (NZR)

What are they saying?

Gregor Townsend has challenged his Scotland side to "inspire their nation" ahead of their Six Nations opener against England at Twickenham.

Townsend named his starting XV for the Calcutta Cup clash on Thursday, omitting regular scrum-half Ali Price from the matchday 23. Scotland triumphed the last time that the two sides met at Twickenham, in 2021, but the win – their first at the home of English rugby since 1983 – took place behind closed doors due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Townsend admitted that a win on Saturday in front of a full house would be a huge positive for Scotland.

"It would be massive," Townsend said. "2021 meant so much, too; we were sent videos from people at home who had been confined to their houses during lockdown. That gave us a massive lift. But we're here to win and we're here to inspire our nation and make them proud. For that, there's no better fixture.

"The atmosphere at Twickenham is always of anticipation and excitement. It's their first Six Nations game, it will be loud. The first few minutes, the crowd will be supporting their team.

"It's a challenge to focus the mind. We've had England first up the past two seasons. It means more than just a one-off fixture. But it'll be hugely challenging away from home against England. We have to be at our best for 80 minutes and that does focus the players' minds."

England vs Scotland latest odds

• England 3/10

• Scotland 18/5

• Draw 28/1

Odds correct as of January 31

What is our prediction?

England 23 Scotland 19

It may be far more gritty than pretty, but expect Steve Borthwick to get off the mark by edging out Scotland. He will inspire set-piece improvements immediately, and that can go a long way.