HOGG SIZZLES AS SCOTS ROAST GEORGIANS
Scotland 43 Georgia 16
RUGBY SPARK: Hogg touches down for Scotland’s sixth try on a bountiful day in Kilmarnock
SCOTLAND finished their autumn campaign with a resounding six-try victory over Georgia that ensured a confident end to 2016 and ranking of seventh in the world.
After one of their greatest performances under Vern Cotter against Australia resulted in another agonising one-point defeat and a dour display brought victory over a strong Argentina, Cotter sent his troops into a near-full Rugby Park demanding a performance of intensity, accuracy and, above all, victory.
This 80-minute showing was not perfect, Scotland losing an early try and slipping out of shape in the second half, but their control over the first 45 minutes yielded scores for the back three Tommy Seymour, Stuart Hogg and Sean Maitland, a penalty try for the pack and a first score for flanker Hamish Watson, to hammer any hopes the Georgians held of claiming a first top-tier scalp.
The only previous Test match between these nations was also on a cold winter’s day at Rugby Park — Invercargill’s Rugby Park in the south of New Zealand in the 2011 Rugby World Cup.
That was a dire slug-fest in the rain, Scotland winning 15-6 thanks to four penalties and a drop-goal from Dan Parks — and never looking like scoring a try.
The Scots are a more dangerous, inventive side now under Cotter but, adding spice to yesterday’s occasion, Georgian scrum-half Vasil Lobzhanidze revealed the visitors to be a different prospect too after just four minutes when he broke blind off a scrum to dive into the righthand corner.
Seymour made amends for letting the scrum-half escape his clutches when he beat Lobzhanidze to a Hogg chip ahead in Scotland’s half in the ninth minute, and while the series of replays were not clear-cut, English referee Matthew Carley ruled a try and Greig Laidlaw duly converted from the left touchline to nose Scotland in front.
Cotter’s men went on to show how they had learned lessons from previous games, controlling possession and territory well with solid set-piece play, good game understanding by Laidlaw and Finn Russell and physical, aggressive defence.
The pack attacked the main Georgian strength, the maul, by taking them on from line-outs and, while a first maul was well defended, the second ended in a collapse and penalty try. Lock Konstantin Mikautadze was also yellow-carded for his part in sacking the drive — the only route to denying Ross Ford the try.
After a fine World Cup last year, in which they secured qualification for the 2019 tournament, Georgia are developing from the onedimensional forward-dominated side under Kiwi coach Milton Haig. We saw little of that in the first half due to Scotland’s vice-like grip on the game and the visitors’ desire to kick much of their possession back to them.
Full-back Merab Kvirikashvili kept them in touch with a penalty kick, but Scotland showed another lesson learned with improved restarts — an Achilles heel in recent years — and when Hogg attacked one, the team set up camp in the Georgian 22 and eventually wore down the tourists’ resistance when wing Sean Maitland broke through from close range on the right. Laidlaw converted to push the hosts into a commanding 21-6 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Scotland’s line-out was imperious, Richie Gray and Ryan Wilson the main collectors of Jonny Gray’s calls and Ross Ford’s pinpoint throws. And with front rows Zander Fagerson and Ford, and restored flanker Rob Harley, brilliantly leading the charge with ball in hand, Scotland dominated possession and territory.
Laidlaw and Kvirikashvili swapped penalties before Hogg finally broke the heroic Georgian defending with a cheeky chip that bounced wickedly away from left wing Alexander Todua and into his arms to release the full-back on a 30-metre sprint to the corner. Hogg was at his lively best, eager to get on ball and look for gaps, and Georgia struggled to contain him.
Laidlaw’s incredible touchline kicking continued and Scotland went in at half-time with a convincing 31-11 lead. They started the second half in bold fashion and Mark Bennett was unlucky not to score immediately, the Ayrshire-born centre being held off the ball to great uproar from his local support.
But the fifth try was only momentarily delayed as, from the penalty and subsequent lineout, Richie Gray collected and fed Watson, who darted like a ferret between red jerseys and over for his first Scotland try.
The game well and truly wrapped up with still 35 minutes remaining, Scotland allowed their accuracy and momentum to drop, and Georgia made them suffer.
They stole two line-outs inside their own 22 and, seizing the chance to reacquaint themselves with ball, begun to reveal slick off-loading and running lines.
Their reward for a lengthy spell of domination was a second try by Lobzhanidze, which owed everything to his pack’s set-piece strength and the scrum-half’s nose for the line.
Scotland’s slide into the comfort zone continued and lapses of concentration and basic mistakes started to creep into their game. The Test match lost its fizz.
Cotter left it late to introduce uncapped scrum-half Ali Price, but when he eventually sprung the livewire Glasgow youngster with six minutes to go — the Scots down to 14 men with replacement prop Moray Low sin-binned for a scrum infringement — Price and Scotland produced one last cheer for the crowd.
Price took a tap-penalty and broke from inside his own half, up the left touchline, and found replacement wing Rory Hughes inside.
He, in turn, fed Hogg, steaming up the middle of the park and the full-back sprinted to finish off the sixth and final try with three minutes left — ensuring Rugby Park, and Scotland’s autumn series, finished to the sound of raucous cheers.