Our form slump in Wales has been Dragon for too long ..but now we smell blood

McInally says Scots have no better shot at ending jinx

STUART McINALLY claims Scotland have never had a better opportunity to end their Cardiff hoodoo.

The Dark Blues have suffered 10 straight defeats in Wales since their last win in 2002.

But hooker McInally says Gregor Townsend’s current crop can smell blood this time round.

Scotland travel south in buoyant mood after bouncing back from defeat to Ireland and England with back-to-back wins.

Italy were kept off the scoresheet in Rome while France’s Grand Slam ambitions came crashing at Murrayfield last weekend.

And there was more good news for Townsend’s men yesterday as Nick Haining was given the go-ahead to line up against the Welsh.

The Edinburgh back-row ace had been at the centre of eyegouge allegations by France bosses in the wake of last week’s home triumph

But the game’s citing officer

BY RODDY DUNCAN ruled Haining had not committed any foul play in the build-up to the incident in which French prop Mohamed Haouas was shown a straight red for punching Jamie Ritchie.

Haouas was last night banned for three weeks after accepting he had committed an act of foul play.

Wales on the other hand have suffered a tough transition from Warren Gatland to new head coach Wayne Pivac, losing to Ireland, France and England.

Now McInally has urged Scotland to take advantage of the Dragons’ slump.

The Edinburgh forward said: “We’ve not won down there in a long time so everyone is focused. We know it’ll be a big challenge.

“We’re in a great place, we’re confident and we’re going to go and put our best foot forward.

“Is this the best time to be taking on this Wales team? I think so. Coming off the back of a win is always nice, we always get confidence from not only the way we play but also the result.

“They’re changing their style under their new coaches but they’re playing some exciting rugby and they proved that in the first round when they put 42 points on Italy and we know how dangerous they can be.

“They seem to be playing a lot more with a high phase count when they carry the ball, they go through a lot of phases before they decide to kick.

“They’re a lot more dangerous with the ball in hand, our defence is going to have to be as good, if not better than it’s been before.

“It’s something we’ve been working hard on and we’re proud of our defensive record so far in this tournament but we know we’ll need to be at our best to handle their attack.”

Townsend’s team are normally known for their attacking flair but this year it’s gritty defensive efforts that have stood out.

The Scots’ try line has only been breached four times in their four games with two coming in Sunday’s 28-17 win over France.

But touchdowns at the other end have been just as scarce. McInally’s try to clinch victory over Les Bleus was only the sixth Scotland had managed but the former skipper insists his side are still looking to play on the front foot.

He said: “I feel we’re playing good rugby. Results are important but we’ve been more pleased with how we’re playing. Our biggest step forward has been in defence, we’re making it difficult for teams to score. So we need to make sure we keep to that against Wales.

“Everyone is on the same page of knowing what we are doing.”

We’re proud of our defensive record in this tournament STUART McINALLY