Hero Hogg shows why he can be a roaring success for Lions
WE HAVE BUILT A SOLID BASE FOR OPTIMISM THIS YEAR
IF BRITISH & Irish Lions head coach Warren Gatland, who was watching from the Murrayfield stands, wondered who should be his first-choice full-back for the tour to New Zealand this summer, then Stuart Hogg gave him his answer.
In a masterclass of attacking play that included two touchdowns to make him Scotland’s top try scorer in the history of the Six Nations, the Glasgow Warrior was at the peak of his game.
So much so that there was a wave of anticipation every time he got the ball, with his breaks from deep creating huge roars from the Scotland fans in the sell-out Murrayfield crowd.
What made his display even sweeter was that he dominated his opposite number Rob Kearney from first whistle to last.
Kearney was one of the full-backs that Hogg played second fiddle to on the 2013 Lions tour of Australia. He is also one of the men in competition with the Scot for the Lions full-back jersey this time.
The fact Hogg sold the Irishman an outrageous dummy on the way to scoring his second try indicated just how much he outplayed him.
Hogg’s two firsthalf touchdowns, which take him up to seven Six Nations tries — two more than Chris Paterson — were out of the top drawer.
For the first, realising Scotland had numbers out wide, he joined the attack and got on to the end of a pass from Finn Russell that bounced before it reached him. With Garry Ringrose bemused by the bounce and slipping, Hogg ran in for the converted try.
The build-up to his second started from a Ross Ford throw-in to the lineout. When the ball was played back, Russell found Huw Jones. He played a pass on to Hogg, who had anticipated the break but still had a lot of work to do.
In a moment of genius, he sold Kearney a brilliant dummy before going over the try line.
With Laidlaw’s conversion, the Scots were 14-0 ahead and the foundations for an impressive victory had been laid.
There was a wobble in the second half but two late penalties from Greig Laidlaw sealed the win.
Afterwards, Hogg — who will win his 50th cap against France in Paris next Sunday — praised the whole Scotland team for the way they kept the faith even when they were under the cosh and a point behind in a frantic period during the second half.
‘That win means everything,’ said Hogg with a big smile on his face. ‘It is 11 years since we won our first Six Nations game, which makes that victory even more satisfying.
‘What made it even sweeter is the way we dug in. We were under the pump in bits of that second half but I had every confidence we were not going to lose the game. Not a single player in a Scotland jersey thought we were going to lose.
‘Then the little general (Laidlaw) put the ball over at the end to put the icing on the cake for the win.
‘For me, it is up there with the best-ever victories of my career. All credit to the whole team and although I scored two tries, the foundations for that win were laid up front.
‘OK, we gave away a few scrum penalties early on but we grew into the game and we didn’t panic when we were behind in the second half.’
Hogg praised the way his team set up his two tries, which takes him to a total of 15 in all competitions for Scotland.
‘I was in the right place at the right time,’ added the full-back. ‘There was a bounce from Finn’s pass before it reached me, so maybe I got a bit of luck there.
‘The second was a set-piece play that came off. Our forwards were great in the lineout and Huw Jones put me away, then Kearney bought the dummy.’
Hogg said the team would analyse what went wrong early in the second half when a halftime lead of 21-8 turned into a 22-21 deficit before two late penalties from captain Laidlaw won the game.
‘Credit to Ireland in that second half. They changed their game plan and made it really tough for us,’ said Hogg. ‘They have intelligent coaches and players, and their team rolled their sleeves up to get stuck into us.
‘We weren’t at our best during that second-half period and we gave away a couple of silly penalties, which gave them good field positions.
‘Maybe we relaxed a bit too much early in the second half, which was wrong, but we adapted to the circumstances to come back strong and we are delighted at the win.’
Hogg insisted that even though Gatland was in the Murrayfield stands, talk of the Lions could not be furthest from his mind.
‘We take the win first and foremost and the only thing we are concentrating on is the next game against France,’ he explained. ‘You can’t think of the Lions as an individual and have to make sure you only look forward as a team.
‘That is exactly what everybody in this Scotland team does and we will have a debrief meeting of this match then prepare for France.
‘If I win my 50th cap in Paris, that will be great but I just want to enjoy this win over Ireland with the team.’ THERE was a buoyant mood at Murrayfield yesterday. Optimism was in the air ahead of this year’s Six Nations. And given the fortunes of Glasgow and Edinburgh in Europe, coupled with last autumn’s victories over Argentina and Georgia, there was certainly good cause for it.
That optimism went up a notch in the opening 40 minutes when Scotland were able to break down the Irish defence.
From there, they involved their strike-runners to devastating effect to see Stuart Hogg cross for his double. Alex Dunbar then pulling off a training ground move from the lineout was fantastic to see, too.
But what perhaps went unnoticed was Greig Laidlaw’s kicking game.
From the base of the ruck he was able to engineer Scotland into the right field position and that really paid dividends, resulting in those three scores. His distribution was excellent, and his selection of whether to pass, kick or give it to Richie and Jonny Gray to bust holes in the Irish line was perfect.
The back-row of Ryan Wilson, Hamish Watson and Josh Strauss combined well. With both ball in hand and in defence they were able to ask questions of Ireland. The pressure was exerted on Conor Murray and Paddy Jackson — slowing down any impetus the Irish might have gained in the opening half.
Off the back of Laidlaw’s control and a dynamic pack, Finn Russell was able to bring the powerful outside backs into play and Scotland looked to be really comfortable in the lead.
Hogg looked dangerous and his
You can’t think of the Lions as an individual. You have to look forward as a team
little show and go to cruise in for his second try underlined the class and confidence of someone who will no doubt be eyeing a spot on Warren Gatland’s Lions tour.
Scotland looked good value for the lead, and that was despite a scrum that wasn’t functioning at its best.
Allan Dell and Zander Fagerson will certainly take heart from the fact that they started their first Six Nations game together, and in spite of the Irish having the upper hand, the fact they managed to work out a solution to the problem at scrum time was pleasing to see.
We saw lots of conversations, with Dell, Fagerson and Fraser Brown saying to each other: ‘What’s going on here? What can we do to fix this before somebody gets yellow-carded?’ Because the last thing you want to do is cost your side three points. That showed maturity, and from there Scotland looked to have figured it out.
When the Scots were really under the cosh on the five-metre line, the front-row dug deep and managed to steady the ship to relieve the pressure. Moments like that are key in any rugby game in determining the result.
With the issues at the scrum under control, a half-time lead of 21-5 and Murrayfield rocking, Scotland looked really commanding and there were reasons to be cheerful.
Not many sides can put three tries past Ireland in any game, let alone in the Six Nations where the margins are so fine and minute.
The Irish came out firing, and that pre-match optimism, when they took a 22-21 lead, was certainly tested. The impression at Murrayfield was that despite going so far ahead, Scotland certainly didn’t let up in their intensity. It was more that the Irish found their rhythm and began to respect the ball.
Big carriers like Robbie Henshaw were getting involved and really causing the Scottish defence some
problems. Ireland’s ability to retain the ball, recycle it and distribute it sensibly was why they started the second half in such a rampant fashion.
Two tries followed, but from a Scottish perspective everything was about defence in the second half. They may have drifted away from their game plan ever so slightly, but when Jonny Gray is making an astonishing 28 tackles per game, it shows that this is a team that will stand up and not roll over.
It epitomised everything Scotland have become. Wave after wave, cover tackle after cover tackle — the home side were there and fighting. Whether it was knocking Rob Kearney’s toe into touch or felling Jamie Heaslip, they put their bodies on the line.
The performance will have been particularly satisfying when one considers that Scotland haven’t beaten Ireland since 2013. Even more so when weighing up the results at club level between the two nations.
Both Glasgow and Edinburgh have struggled against the provinces, but that experience will have made them stronger. When you bring in guys of the quality of Laidlaw and Richie Gray, that adds an extra dimension and instills a belief that you can triumph.
Yesterday was noteworthy, because in any match there will be times when it’s make or break. You ask: ‘Have we learnt the lessons from the World Cup, last year’s Six Nations, summer tour and autumn Tests?’ Scotland answered that. Under Vern Cotter, their mentality has changed.
There were, of course, reasons for concern given the difficulties at the scrum. But Cotter will not be sounding the alarm bells any time soon, and the fact that Fagerson and Dell managed to find a solution, and very quickly, is pleasing.
With a good review and another week of training together, there is no reason Scotland can not head to Paris full of confidence and hope.
Not many sides can put three tries past Ireland in any game