Fears before bedtime for Grant in opener
Gilchrist glad to be back after stressful stint in front of TV
EVERY Scotland fan was a nervous wreck last weekend as Gregor Townsend’s boys threatened to throw away a historic win in Cardiff.
But watching the action unfold on telly at home was even more stressful for Grant Gilchrist as he tried to stop a ruckus between his kids at bedtime.
The Edinburgh lock is expected to be back in the starting line-up announced by Townsend today after sitting out the Six Nations opener because of suspension.
Gilchrist was lapping it up at home as his mates raced into a 27-0 lead but the tension racked up as Warren Gatland’s Wales battled back to within a point.
He said: “The first 50 minutes were as comfortable sitting on my couch watching a game of rugby as I’ve been in my life. I absolutely loved watching that.
“And then that back half hour coincided with bedtime madness in my house, which was stressful in both parts! I was trying to keep a three-year-old and a two-yearold boy from fighting at the same time as panicking about what was happening on the pitch and what the result was going to be.”
He reckons that second-half collapse meant Scotland did not get the credit they deserved for how well they played while romping into a huge lead.
Gilchrist is backing the side to learn from what went wrong and put it right at Murrayfield against a French outfit who will be desperate to bounce back from a 38-17 home defeat by Ireland.
He said: “It’s not a bad place to be, to feel a little disappointed despite winning in Cardiff for the first time in 22 years.
“It brought us in on Monday eager to learn how to get better in the second half and put a full performance together rather than talking about staying grounded or any of these things.
“To win in Cardiff for the first time in 22 years is a big achievement. But we’re not going to sit there and celebrate that – we know we can be so much better.
“It’s easy to say the first 50 minutes looked easy or Scotland found it easy – it looked easy because we were so good.
“We took every chance we had. And when they had the ball, they struggled to get on the front foot.
“People said Wales were choosing to kick. They weren’t – they were forced into a kicking game by really good defence.
“We saw in the second half what happened when, yes, they had to chance their arm but also we weren’t stinging them on the gain line as in the first 50.
“It was good work at Testmatch level away from home to control the game from minute one to 50. It was impressive.
“We’ve just got to make sure from those positions we’re better.”
It was announced yesterday Gilchrist is set to take a first step into a coaching career later this year when he joins Watsonians as an assistant to Scotland teammate Fraser Brown.
But he has no intention of giving up playing any time soon and is looking forward to fronting up against a French side he admires for their attacking flair.
Much of that was missing against defending champions Ireland, partly because Les Bleus were without their World Cup captain Antoine Dupont, who has joined the Sevens for this summer’s Olympics in Paris.
But Gilchrist added: “They’re not a one-man team. I expect France to be a much better version of themselves this weekend. They know they need to win.”
Glasgow have agreed a three-year deal with tighthead prop Patrick Schickerling, who’ll join in the summer from Exeter.
Scotland Under-20s have made two changes for tomorrow night’s Six Nations clash against France at the Hive. Jonny Morris is in for Tom Currie while Theo Currie replaces Euan McVie.