THE EDWARDS EFFECT!
That’s what Scotland must overcome to have any chance of stunning the French
CASTING his mind back to the British and Irish Lions’ tour to South Africa in 2009, a broad smile floods over the face of Mike Blair as he recalls his first encounter with Shaun Edwards. Blair was a vastly experienced operator by that stage of his career. He was Scotland captain and had played in two World Cups.
He was a player of considerable repute and standing in the game, certainly not some impressionable young kid wet behind the ears.
He was also one of four Scots in that Lions squad working under head coach Sir Ian McGeechan, which you would think may have offered a degree of protection.
Not a chance. Recalling one training session in particular, Blair reveals how Edwards, this raging bull of a man who was working as the Lions’ defence coach, went through him like a ton of bricks.
‘The first time I came across Shaun at a defence session, there hadn’t been a huge amount of chat about it before and I was in the defensive team, defending off a line-out,’ explains the former scrum-half, who is now an assistant coach with the national side.
‘I did what I would usually do with Scotland and Edinburgh, kind of fill in behind the line, and they went one phase, two phases… and then Shaun blows his whistle.
‘He was like: “Mike! What are you f ****** doing?! Get in the front line and make something happen!”
‘That was his attitude with nines, make something happen, get in their face, create turnovers.
‘That’s his attitude with a team as well, don’t sit back and wait to let it happen in front of you. It’s where France have that line speed from, that aggressive side of things.
‘It’s a tactic, a system we’re well aware of and we’ve got a few things we can look at to unlock them.
‘He has made a big impact with the French.’
Blair is referring to the Edwards Effect; an intangible quality which exists purely as a state of mind as much as anything else.
For all the talk of precautionary measures being taken against the coronavirus, it is the Edwards Effect which has spread like wildfire throughout this French camp.
Arriving in Edinburgh this afternoon armed with the man widely recognised as the best defence coach in world rugby, Les
Bleus are preparing an assault on the venue previously known as Fortress Murrayfield.
France have a Grand Slam in their sights and a new-found pride in their hearts.
Watching them go toe-to-toe with Scotland is bound to produce plenty of thrills and spills.
In boxing parlance, styles make fights — and these two contestants are perfectly suited.
France under Fabien Galthie and Edwards are the uber-aggressive knockout specialist, looking to get on the inside and smother the opposition with a flurry of punches.
In contrast, Gregor Townsend’s Scotland are the underdog, happy to absorb all the blows and catch their opponent with some sweet sucker punches on the counter.
It could be a helter-skelter affair best watched through the cracks in our fingers as France and the famous Edwards blitz defence spring into action.
There will be times when Scotland will be living on their nerves. Dicing with danger, one loose pass at any moment could lead to a France interception and a breakaway try.
Adam Hastings has history in that respect. In a game for Glasgow Warriors against Edinburgh at Murrayfield in 2018, he had a complete meltdown.
Hastings gifted two tries to Edinburgh by throwing ropey interceptions, which Duhan van der Merwe pounced upon to score. The Scotland stand-off dare not repeat those errors this afternoon.
Think Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp’s Gegenpress on a rugby pitch. That’s what awaits Scotland against this revitalised French team.
Stuart Hogg is relishing what promises to be the ultimate game of risk and reward.
‘France bring a high press and a blitz defence,’ said the Scotland captain. ‘It’s the Shaun Edwards effect — he’s a world-class coach.
‘But with every challenge comes an opportunity. They are a high-pressing team, but how long can they keep that up for?
‘Can France keep it going for 80 minutes? That’s a challenge for them. For us, it’s about what we do with their perceived strength of rushing up on the outside. Hopefully, we can turn it into a weakness.
‘It’s high risk, high reward — and we’ve got to make sure we have that clinical edge and make the most of our opportunities.
‘We have been challenged in training, put under stress at times, and we feel we’re in a better place because of that.’
Edwards spent 12 years working with Wales under Warren Gatland, winning the Grand Slam on three occasions in 2008, 2012 and 2019.
If evidence was ever required of how defence wins titles, then last year’s Championship stands as powerful testament.
Wales were the joint-lowest scorers with Italy, scoring just 10 tries across five games — yet won the Grand Slam thanks to a miserly and mighty defensive effort.
For context, Scotland scored four more tries, but finished 14 points adrift in the final reckoning. That’s what Edwards brings to the table.
His fingerprints are all over this French team in what is his first Championship with them since leaving his post with Wales after last year’s World Cup.
The revolution has its two poster boys in Antoine Dupont and Romain Ntamack, the young Toulouse half-backs who have lit up the Championship so far.
Keeping them shackled will be easier said than done as Scotland go in search of what would be a fourth successive home victory over the French.
‘He’s very, very good — really dangerous,’ said Hogg of Dupont. ‘That’s something we’ve looked at in our preparations.
‘His running threat, his ability to take on defenders, offload, bring others into the game.
‘Dupont is a world-class talent and we’ll have to shut him down.
‘He also brings a lot of line speed to their defence, so he has the full package.
‘I’ve got a lot of time for someone with the sort of ability he has.’
For all the talk of the French defensive machine springing into action, it should not go unnoticed that it is the Scots who have the best defensive record so far in this year’s Six Nations.
It does, however, come with an asterisk next to it.
The game against England at Murrayfield was effectively a write-off due to the horrendous weather, while Italy offered nothing as an attacking threat last time
out. With just two tries conceded in their three matches so far, this will be the acid test of Scotland and their own defence coach Steve Tandy.
France head into the game as second-top try scorers with 11 touchdowns, one behind Wales, and shutting them out looks to be nigh-on impossible.
‘We’re aware of the stat that we have the best defence so far — but that means nothing now,’ added Hogg.
‘We need to really front up and take some confidence against the French.
‘In the Italy game in Rome, we kept them to zero points. The negative was not getting a bonus point in terms of tries, but we kept an international team to zero points which is massive.
‘But it’s another challenge to play against this French side who are quality. I’m excited to see how good the boys can be.’