ARGY BARGY
Brutal Aussie Test took its toll on the Scotland squad but coach Cotter says battle-hardened Pumas will be just as tough
THE BRUISES, bumps, knocks and thumps inflicted by Australia are still taking their toll. The fact that two of the toughest Scotsmen alive — John Hardie and Richie Gray — were left in bits by the marauding Wallabies tells you about the physical damage done to Vern Cotter’s men in their opening autumn Test.
Now the really bad news for those just fit enough to be considered for active duty tomorrow evening. Cotter believes his boys in blue — or black-and-blue — will face equally punishing opposition when Argentina’s power-hitting Pumas march on Murrayfield ready to rumble.
‘That Australia game was probably one of the most physical we’ve ever played,’ admitted Cotter, who revealed yesterday that hard-tackling Edinburgh flanker Hardie could be out for two months, while medical staff remain undecided on whether towering lock Gray’s recurring headaches are the result of neck injuries or concussion.
The Scotland head coach, never one to exaggerate, added: ‘We think this one is going to be just as physical. We anticipate that because they’ve been playing in the same competition, playing against each other. We had quite a few players who couldn’t train until today because of the physicality of last week’s game.
‘And we know Saturday is going to be fast and physical again, against Argentina.
‘So, we need to have people on their feet as much as possible. A little bit of speed and a little bit of freshness will help that. It will be a faster game.’
The fact that Argentina now share a spot in the Rugby Championship with the Springboks, All Blacks and Aussies does add a certain glamour to opposition just one place above Scotland in the world rankings.
It should be pointed out, of course, that they are very much the fourth-best team in a four-team competition. Still, they did beat South Africa this year. And any team capable of reaching the semi-finals of the World Cup, as they did last year, has something about them.
The way they play, taking risks in contact and running from almost anywhere, offers the Scots encouragement. If they can keep with the pace set by the visitors, that is.
With his hand partly forced by injury, Cotter has changed four from the starting XV who ran Australia close, the decision to give Magnus Bradbury a debut — ahead of ‘project player’ Cornell du Preez, called into the group but not included in the match-day 23 — obviously catching the eye.
With Bradbury (right) at blindside flanker and Hamish Watson winning just his fourth cap at openside, a
great deal of responsibility will rest on the shoulders of back row veteran John Barclay — outstanding against the Aussies and asked to play at No 8 tomorrow.
Admitting he’d been won over by Edinburgh player Bradbury in training, having initially called him into the autumn squad just to get experience around the group, Cotter said: ‘Yeah, there have been a couple of injuries. But he has impressed, he really has.
‘We brought Cornell in so he can have a look at what we’re trying to achieve — and you never know what’s going to happen against Georgia.
‘If a player gets the jersey, we want him to make it as hard as possible for us to take it off him. That means Magnus.
‘And the injured players who didn’t get the run, they will be looking on thinking: “If he plays well, when do I get it back?” So it’s all out there for Magnus. This is a great opportunity for him.
‘John has a role and he does two things. He leads by example, shows them the way — and they (Bradbury and Watson) follow him.
‘And then, when there are key moments in the game, when we stop for a scrum or lineout, when there are key decisions to be made, he helps them by talking them through that — so they don’t get lost in the combat and the battle. He will reassure them. That’s what the old heads do.
‘If you look at Hamish’s game, he got a start and he did well. He deserves to be out there again — and he’ll back it up. Then there is Magnus, who has the qualities to do well. ‘He’s got a good head on his shoulders, so I think having John next to him is a good thing, but he and Hamish will be looking to apply pressure on Argentina in their own right. ‘We will have to be quick on our feet — and quick around the park. Argentina will attack from anywhere. As soon as they make half a yard forward, they start offloading and keep the ball alive. They’re very dangerous there. ‘But that also opens them up for us. If they go for those risky offloads in contact, they are a team who turn over the ball more than any of the other three in the Rugby Championship. ‘So, if we defend well and put pressure on them, and the idea is to apply pressure on them, they are a team who will, hopefully, cough it up, give us the ball back.’
Grant Gilchrist and Fraser Brown have been promoted from the bench in place of the injured elder Gray brother and Ross Ford, who drops into the replacements with instructions to come on and settle the team in a closing 15 minutes that — according to Cotter — is likely to be key.
That Scotland should be focusing on the final stage of the match should hardly be surprising, given their late collapse against Australia, Cotter admitting: ‘Nobody likes losing but the honesty within the group on Monday was a down-to-earth analysis of what did we contribute to it.
‘We were tough on ourselves on Monday and the players were tough on themselves. There is a good group there and it’s nice to be able to have a group full of critics, who do analysis and set standards.’