‘Relief’ as side avoid early exit

Blade Thomson admits Scotland let out an almighty sigh of relief after avoiding an early World Cup exit on Monday.

The Dark Blues knew their participation in the tournament was on the line as they took on Samoa in Kobe after being thrashed by Ireland in their Pool A opener.

However, Gregor Townsend’s men refused to buckle as they ran up a 34-0 triumph, grabbing the bonus point which puts them back on track for a place in the quarterfinals.

The players let off some steam in the dressing room as they launched into a noisy post-match sing-along session.

But Scarlets forward Thomson admits it was the release of tension which pumped up the volume.

He said: “Relief is exactly what it was. We had got over the hurdle, tried to do our best to make the Scottish people proud and I think we did that.

“What was the mood in the camp last week? Intense, there have been a lot of people on edge. We all knew what we were coming to do this week, to get a win and we did that.

“We didn’t get into the external pressure, it was all internal pressure.

“We just had to stay cool and calm, I am just proud of them all.

“There was always belief. We just didn’t play to our best against Ireland and they capitalised 100% on it.

“We can take a lot of confidence out of Monday’s game but there are still improvements to be made.

“There are a few things we need to tidy up, but on the whole we played decent, not outstanding by any means but enough to get the job done.”