NO NEED TO DWELL ON WELSH HELL
Watson insists Scotland will not let the humiliation of Six Nations rout in Cardiff play on their minds tomorrow
THEY’VE talked about it. Come to understand, hopefully, a few of the contributing factors to a catastrophic failure upon launch.
But Scotland’s surviving starters from their embarrassing Six Nations capitulation in Cardiff cannot, must not, allow the events of February to stay with them when they march out at the Principality Stadium tomorrow.
Hamish Watson, one of the XV left humiliated by a 34-7 defeat just when the nation had dared to dream of a glorious Championship, insists the players going back to the crime scene will not flinch in the face of those famous red jerseys.
‘I don’t know, we will speak about it a bit during the week — but it’s no different when it comes to kick-off time,’ said the Edinburgh flanker.
‘The year before, we beat them. So it’s not as if they’ve beaten us in loads of games consecutively. That might play a tiny factor, if that was the case. But it’s not.
‘So last year has been spoken about — but we’re not dwelling on it, we’re not letting it get in our heads too much.
‘There has been a bit of a mention about what happened in the Six Nations. We obviously need a much better performance than that in Wales.
‘It’s going to be an amazing atmosphere and Wales is always a tough place to go. We’re looking forward to the challenge.
‘What makes going to Cardiff so tough? I think any away game is tough these days — you saw that with the results in the Six Nations.
‘Every team is struggling a bit more away from home now. Teams really want to perform for their home crowd, so it’s a challenge that we need to overcome.
‘Obviously we want to do that — and dedicate the win to Doddie.’
Scotland and Wales are playing for the Doddie Weir Cup, of course, raising both awareness and — after a little external pressure — funds for the great man’s foundation.
That, and the fact that this is an ‘extra’ Test outwith the IRB calendar, might cause one or two to view it as maybe slightly less important than the average Six Nations clash.
With the World Cup less than a year away, however, every fixture takes on extra significance. Especially one between the sides ranked third and sixth in the world.
‘It’s the first international of the season and a few of us haven’t played since the Six Nations, having not gone on tour,’ said Watson. ‘So we’ve got to blow off the cobwebs and start well.
‘This is a massive year for Scottish rugby, with 14 Test matches before the start of the actual World Cup.
‘So it’s important that we start well and have a really good autumn series.
‘I didn’t make it to the last World Cup, I did the preparations but didn’t get in.
‘It’s still a way away, we’ve got to concentrate on the here and now.
‘For us, that’s these four autumn games, then it’s the Six Nations — and after that our attention can turn to the World Cup.
‘I think it’s good having four games. We only had a week-long camp last week, so by the end of it, we’ll really know our game plan.
‘We’ve not had much time together, so getting four games back-to-back — being in camp for five weeks — that’s great. It’s good to help build momentum.’
A victory over a Welsh team they are very familiar with would certainly help in that regard. It won’t be easy, of course, with a passionate home crowd and a red-hot reception always guaranteed.
‘Wales like the roof shut for the atmosphere,’ continued Watson. ‘We’ve got to be ready for that atmosphere.
‘It’s slightly different in that it’s just that bit louder, so we have to be much clearer with our calls when they’re getting fed in, making sure everyone understands. It does make a difference, having that roof closed.
‘A lot of the players you face in this game, you play against them every other week.
‘Obviously, you play Cardiff or Scarlets, you have five to ten internationals in the starting line-up.
‘Here, you’ve got the full XV, the full 23 internationals, so the intensity is completely different, the tempo is a lot higher.
‘They are a lot tougher than the club games — but they should be.’
Being restricted to picking just
Glasgow and Edinburgh players has enabled head coach Gregor Townsend to make a couple of bold selections.
Jamie Ritchie, winning just his third cap, qualifies in that category — the flanker bracing himself for a totally new experience in Cardiff.
Ritchie has never even been to the Principality Stadium to watch a game, although he has played at Cardiff Arms Park.
‘I’m really looking forward to getting down there, it is a place I have always wanted to play, especially internationally,’ said the man who will line up alongside Edinburgh team-mate Watson and Glasgow skipper Ryan Wilson in the back row.
‘The experienced guys have told me just to shout a bit louder to each other.
‘It is obviously a really loud place and we’ll be under a bit of pressure, but I’m really looking forward to it.
‘They’ve spoken a bit about it at training, basically saying that it is going to be loud, so you need to be ready for it — and you need to know your role because you won’t necessarily hear anything.’
Deafened by the din, Scotland also played as if they were blinded by Welsh brilliance and struck dumb by the occasion nine months ago.
As they prepare for another assault on the senses tomorrow, they will at least have that experience to draw on. If not to dwell upon.