Wily Watson will use size to his full advantage against Springbok giants...

FOR any pack of forwards in world rugby, a battle with the Springboks is the ultimate acid test. Their sheer size and physicality offers no hiding place.

Fortunately for Scotland, however, they have within their own ranks a player who is well-accustomed to life in a land of giants.

Since making his debut three years ago, Hamish Watson has established himself as Scotland’s pocket rocket at openside flanker.

Living proof of the old saying that size isn’t everything, he has become the chief scavenger in Gregor Townsend’s back row.

Pouncing upon loose balls, stealing them away from unsuspecting opponents, and disrupting the opposition’s fly-half have become key skills in Watson’s development as an excellent No7.

He has never previously faced South Africa but he is under no illusions just how stern a test they will present for Scotland on Saturday.

Not least in the back row, where the Boks have the 6ft 4in, 18st 6lb man mountain of Duane Vermeulen at their disposal.

Watson, though, remains confident that he and his team-mates will be walking tall come the end of what is bound to be a gruelling 80 minutes.

‘South Africa are a really big challenge,’ acknowledged the 27-year-old Edinburgh man, who has been restored to openside in place of his club-mate Jamie Ritchie.

‘They’re probably one of the most physical teams in world rugby — if not the most physical — so it’s going to be a really big challenge.

‘Up front in the forwards, we’ve got to front-up physically if we’re going to win the game.

‘I haven’t played them before, but everyone is well aware of just what a physical test the South Africans present any time you play them.

‘If you look at the Six Nations earlier this year, the French pack were massive and so were the English forwards.

‘We won both of those matches at home, so we are confident that we can cope with their size.

‘They are really big men, and they’ll have a couple of stone on me, but I’m used to that.

‘When you’re lining up in the tunnel, I’m often the smallest player bar the scrum-halves, so that’s something you get used to. If you don’t, you’ll be out. But I have to get used to it and use it to my advantage because I’m not getting any bigger.’

Despite what would appear to be the disparity in power and bulk, South African man mountain Pieter-Steph Du Toit believes the huge Springboks pack are in for a torrid time at Murrayfield with the smaller Scottish forwards looking to run the legs off the visitors.

Du Toit, who can play at lock and flanker, isn’t fooled by a tale of the tape guaranteed to show the Boks holding an advantage in muscle and physique.

‘I think, at this level, size doesn’t really matter that much,’ said the 6ft 7in all-rounder, who tips the scales at well over 18 stone.

‘The Scots are very smart and I think they will target us and try and make the game fast as well and tire us. But, if we stick to our plans, we will be okay.’

Both the Scots and South Africans have enjoyed massive success with the driving maul in recent outings, suggesting a genuine battle in that area of the game on Saturday evening.

And Du Toit added: ‘I think that is going to be massive. If you have dominance up front it is always nice for the backs to attack — so that is going to be massive for us.

‘If we can focus on our driving maul especially, we know that Scotland are very technical in mauls and contesting systems as well. So I think for us to get our options right and set the mauls is going to be vital for us.’

The match could be a nail-biter. It seems that Townsend’s approach may well be to stay in it for as long as possible, then unleash some youth and fresh legs towards the end.

Ritchie, unfortunate in the extreme to drop to the bench, could still then have a key role to play.

‘There are so many good sevens and back-rowers out there, but Jamie took his opportunity well,’ Watson admitted after watching his Edinburgh team-mate shine in the win over Fiji.

‘It wasn’t tough to watch it, it was just great to see us all playing so well. It’s good to have that depth in the squad coming into such a huge year for Scotland.

‘No one in the team takes anything for granted and there’s no guarantee that anyone will start given the depth we have in the squad. Whenever selection comes around, nothing’s guaranteed with this squad.’ Watson will line up in the back row with Sam Skinner, who earned the man-of-the-match award on his debut in the demolition of Fiji.

That was in the second row, with the versatile Exeter Chiefs man now being moved to blindside by Townsend.

Of his new team-mate, Watson said: ‘Sam’s a positive guy. At Exeter, they have a great culture and he’s fitted in pretty easily with our squad. He’s a good leader.

‘He’s got a chance to start in the back row and he gives our back row a slightly different dimension, so it’ll help us physically having him there.

‘The difference between Sam and some of the other second rows is that he’s quick, which you saw in that line-break against Fiji. His pace is a big asset.’