We’re improving, Huw warns Welsh
HUW Jones has burst onto the international scene with a bang and the Scotland centre believes there is a lot more to come from Vern Cotter’s men during the Six Nations starting against Wales on Saturday.
In the first half of the opener against Ireland the Scots were flying and scored three tries.
Ireland came back before Scotland edged the game in the end.
They then went to France in week two and played some good rugby in patches, but lost out 24-18 and suffered a number of injuries.
The most serious of those was the ankle ligament damage that has sidelined skipper Greig Laidlaw for the rest of the tournament.
With other walking wounded in the group some pundits have questioned Scotland’s strength in depth.
Jones, for one, is not panicking and he is ready for the Welsh challenge when it comes to Murrayfield next weekend.
The 23-year-old said: “We have a lot to improve on. The result against Ireland was amazing, but I still don’t think we played to our full potential.
“We defended for most of the game and struggled to keep hold of the ball. We gave away quite a few penalties, the story was the same against France and we ended up losing.
“We’ve done some things really well. Our conversion rate of chances has been good, but there’s a lot to work on.
“Against France, especially, our decision-making in attack wasn’t great. That falls upon all of us, maybe not working as hard as we should have done and not seeing opportunities.
“We’re still giving away quite a few penalties and not really playing in the right parts of the field.
“But I’ve seen enough from this squad to believe that we can still get a lot better and put in a complete performance.
“Wales can be a good attacking team so we’ve got to be wary of that. They’re a big side, similar to France, so they might come out and try to bully us like France did. We’ll have to have a good look at them and formulate a plan.”
Despite having a Welsh name and Welsh heritage, Jones would not have been eligible to play for Rob Howley’s men.
And since he made his Scotland debut last summer on the Japan tour he has brought a different dimension to the backline and linked up well with fellow centre Alex Dunbar.
Later in the year he will move from the Stormers to Glasgow Warriors, but for now he believes his Super Rugby experience can help this Scotland team move forward.
“The game’s slightly different in the Southern Hemisphere, the pace of the game is a bit quicker and the skill level a bit higher,” he said.
“That’s not to say the guys playing up here aren’t skilful, they definitely are, but I think I have brought over different skills to add to the group.”
Meanwhile, former Scotland prop Allan Jacobsen has asked supporters to back new front-row men Allan Dell and Zander Fagerson.
The duo had a tough afternoon against France and conceded a number of penalties.
But Jacobsen, who earned 65 caps between 2002 and 2012, said: “Propping at international level is tough and a steep learning curve.
“Any team would miss Alasdair Dickinson and WP Nel, but Allan and Zander are learning fast and I think they will come good as they get more games under their belts.”