WE LIVED WITH BEST
Barclay: Scots proved we can compete with world’s finest
Scotland had the guts but the All Blacks stole the glory.
An astonishing evening in Ed inbu r g h ha d Gregor Townsend’s men going toe to toe with the world champions but in the end they went agonisingly close to rewriting history.
It was a choker of a day which began with Scotland legend Doddie Wei r a f forded a pre-match standing ovation as he brought out the ball on the back of his devastating Motor Neurone Disease diagnosis back in the summer.
Dark Blues skipper John Barclay admitted it provided a poignant moment which brought applause which raised the Murrayfield roof.
And he reckons taking New Zealand all the way and heroic failure headlines doesn’t do his side justice.
He said: “When Doddie walked out it was emotional for him and for the players.
“The atmosphere was the loudest and most passionate I have ever heard Murrayfield.
“You can see the headlines about us being brave but that downplays some of the proper skill we showed under pressure.
“We were playing against the best team in world sport and we took them to the last moment.
“We were dangerous when we had the ball and had a great mentality.”
This is a Scottish side with formidable attacking weapons and a trademark surge from man of the match Stuart Hogg in the fourth minute opened a gap which was shut down after Alex Dunbar fumbled the offload.
All the early pressure was being asserted inside All Black territory and the dark blues went ahead thanks to a seventh minute penalty from Finn Russell after New Zealand were penalised for holding on.
Russell only just failed to gather an intercept moments later which would have sent him clear.
Vaea Fif ita offered Russell another chance for a three pointer by failing to to release the ball in the tackle but this time the Glasgow Warrior pulled his kick wide from 40 metres.
It was a wasteful attempt as the All Blacks enjoyed their first genuine foray into the Scottish half with 12 minutes on the clock but they were repelled by a a wall of Scottish bodies.
And the home side continued to look the most likely to build on their points tally.
Again it was the slippery hands of Russell which released Huw Jones who fumbled with the try-line beckoning but it brought a first 20 minutes to a close with Scotland playing it to near perfection.
New Zealand slowly slipped through some gears and only a forward pass let the Scots off the hook in the 26th minute as the visitors again were kept at bay by some colossal tackling from Townsend’s men.
Luke Hamilton replaced the injured Hamish Watson who suffered a back problem on the half hour mark before Hogg suffered a scare when he was taken out in the air by Waisake Naholo.
It was exhilarating stuff from a Scottish side that sensed these All Blacks were there for the taking as they continued to try and puncture their backline but still the score showed only a meagre three-point advantage.
Zander Fagerson was next to spi l l the bal l at the crucial moment as Scotland raced through the phases and another try possibility went abegging.
Scotland then started to creak and New Zealand drew level seconds before the break as captain Barclay went off his feet at the breakdown and Beauden Barrett put the penalty between the sticks. It was all square at the interval but Scotland should have been more handsomely rewarded. The pattern of Scot tish pressure continued from the restart as Ali Price was kept out just yards from going over but New Zealand were more clinical in the 45th minute. Rieko Loane fed Codie Taylor who went over in the corner before Barrett banged his conversion wide from a tight angle . Hami lton was stretchered off with what appeared a serious injury as George Hamilton entered the fray. Scotland switched off in the 52nd minute a n d Damian McKenz ie pounced on a loose ball to touch down and Barrett made no mistake with the extras.
It only served to send Scotland back in search of something more as Russell resisted an easy penalty before Sean Cane was sin- binned for getting on the wrong side of a dark blue maul which soon delivered a dividend.
Jonny Gray barged himself over on the hour and Russell kicked the conversion.
Belief surged throughout Murrayfield as the margin was reduced to five points.
But the final nail in the coffin came 13 minutes from time when Barrett broke clear to score before adding the extras to nudge the contest further out of Scotland’s reach.
Wyatt Crockett was next to be yellow carded for going offside as Scotland piled on the pressure which brought more reward two minutes from time. A slick interchange down the right flank allowed Jones to race clear.
Russell rattled over the conversion and five points was the margin. The final act saw Hogg get his nose towards the All Black try-line and just as it looked like he would get clear he was held up and with a forward pass it was all over.