Flying Scotsmen now a runaway train
thinking about it,” said centre Peter Horne when asked about facing the Auld Enemy at Murrayfield. “Even at the start of the [Australia] game with the anthem, the atmosphere was incredible. It’s hard not getting emotional, it’s special.
“It’s something Barcs [captain John Barclay] has spoken loads about, making this place a fortress so teams don’t want to come here. I think we’ve laid down another marker against Australia. We’ve come out and produced the goods. We want to make this place a fortress going into the Six Nations.
“The crowd has been great. You hear the anthem being sung on 60 D Marfo (J Bhatti 44), S Mcinally (F Brown 57-70), S Berghan (Z Fagerson 44), G Gilchrist (B Toolis 53), J Gray, J Barclay (capt), H Watson (C du Preez 66), R Wilson.
Australia K Beale; M Koroibete (H Speight 67), T Kuradrani, S Kerevi (K Hunt 61), R Hodge; B Foley,
W Genia (N Phipps 57); S Sio (T Faulkner 72), S Moore
(T Polota-nau 59), S Kepu, R Simmons (L Timani 67), B Enever (T Tupou 53), B Mccalman (L Tui 53), M Hooper (capt), S Mcmahon.
Referee Pascal Gauzere (France). minutes. It just buzzes you up, and you feel you can run all day.”
The crushing 61-21 defeat by England at the start of this year was part of a narrative in which Scotland fail to back up wins. After narrowly beating Ireland, they just lost to France. After comfortably beating Wales, they were destroyed by England, finishing with a straightforward win over Italy. This autumn, however, while their record is won-lost-won, there has been a consistency and attacking menace that will make the other Six Nations contenders take notice.
“Everyone has to take us seriously now,” said Horne. “England are flying and have a real winning culture, but it’s a challenge we can’t wait for. Like last week, as soon as the final whistle went against the All Blacks [in Scotland’s 17-22 defeat] you just wanted to play them again the next day. That’s the feeling in camp. We want to take on the best in the world and test ourselves.
“It will be great to face England and France at home. Ireland are flying, too. The Six Nations is going to be really competitive. We can’t wait for it.”
Given that Scotland have a notoriously well-established pattern of promising much in the autumn and then tanking in the Six Nations, it would be understandable were Gregor Townsend to downplay Scotland’s achievements.
But he made no effort to dampen expectations. “Optimism is a good thing,” he said. “We should be optimistic but realise there’s a lot of things we can do better. We’re not going to get carried away. We start with Wales away, so there’s a bit of history against us there. They’ll ask different questions than Australia and New Zealand have.”
It is to be hoped the answers will be the same ones received by this autumn’s visitors to Murrayfield.