SOUND AFFECTS
Bradbury is buzzing for Scots fans to noise up Les Bleus
MAGNUS BRADBURY believes the roars of the home fans can help ‘shellshock’ Grand Slam chasing France in next week’s Six Nations encounter at BT Murrayfield. The back-row forward says all he needs to inspire him against a French side that have won their first three matches is the incredible support he gets from the second he arrives in the team bus at the home of Scottish rugby.
Bradbury is so keen to soak up the atmosphere that the first thing he will do when he steps off the bus on game day will be to take off his headphones and listen to the noise. He admits to getting a real buzz from the amazing welcome from the fans who cheer in their heroes long before kick-off time.
‘You get off that bus to go to the changing rooms and the senior players tell us take your headphones off and listen,’ said Bradbury. ‘The England game was the second or third time I’d done it and soaked up the atmosphere. It was special and I’ll do it again against France.
‘We’re playing in front of a home crowd and it’s a great experience for everyone involved. It’s been special this year to have England at home. We were unfortunate not to get the result but now we have France to look forward to.
‘As a team, we fancy ourselves against anyone at home so our preparations will start full-on next week when everyone is back together.
‘We don’t see ourselves as underdogs, we see ourselves as a good team who can compete with anyone. We’re going out there preparing for another physical, fast Test match against a team who are playing some good rugby at the moment and we understand the challenge that poses.
‘But we are in front of our own fans which helps us lots. We want to shell-shock teams and get early points on the board.
‘It’s difficult now for teams to get back into the game and put pressure on teams that have made a good start.’
Bradbury has been impressed by a French side that have beaten England and Italy at home as well as Wales in Cardiff. Their narrow win in the Welsh capital was built on a gutsy defence and a half-back pairing of fly-half Romain Ntamack and Antoine Dupont that ran the show.
The Edinburgh No 8 knows the French are the form side of the tournament but is confident that the Scotland back row can get up quickly to Ntamack to put him off his game.
‘We have started to look at their players,’ said Bradbury. ‘Having played for Edinburgh against Bordeaux in the past I know the players and how they play, so I have that in the back of my head. But come Monday night when we’re in camp, that’s when the hard work will start.
‘A French team with that kind of momentum behind them and going for the Grand Slam means they will play confidently. It’s going to be a physical game and a fast game, I’m sure.
‘We’re going to try our best to stop them getting the Grand Slam. Some commentators get a bit ahead of themselves but in this competition in particular, any team can beat anyone so we’re going out there to win and that’s what we’re concerned about.
‘How young that French team is and how successful early on they have been is encouraging from their point of view. I tend to look at the back-row players being a back-row myself and they work really well, they bounce off each other really well. And then you have even more dynamic players on the bench coming on to replace them.
‘But we have Hamish (Watson) and Jamie (Ritchie) in great form at the moment. They’re playing some of the best rugby I’ve seen them play in a long time so it’s good to see and I can draw confidence from that.
‘The guys on the flanks make my job easier as a No 8 and I can help them out as well. I try to carry and tackle as much as I can so I think we complement each other really well and get up early on the French.’