I can’t believe just how much you’ve improved in four years

THE white heat of a Calcutta Cup clash at Twickenham provides ideal laboratory conditions for Warren Gatland’s purposes.

Scotland carrying out a controlled explosion to wreck England’s chariot would give him some interesting results, to say the least.

As he tries to build a Lions team capable of beating the All Blacks in New Zealand, he needs players who can keep their heads amid the madness of the game’s greatest grudge match.

Guys who won’t back away from a fight — but know how to avoid conceding daft penalties.

So he’ll be watching Vern Cotter’s men closely on Saturday, looking for further evidence of the transformation witnessed at close range during his visit to the camp this week. Seeking a reason to call up more than a token two or three Scots on tour this summer.

Gatland, who watched Scotland training on Tuesday, offered up a pretty stark comparison between the current set-up and the one he visited on a similar scouting mission four years ago when Scott Johnson — since promoted to director of rugby at the SRU — was at the helm.

‘I looked at yesterday and was really impressed,’ said the Kiwi, who is in his second stint as Lions boss. ‘There was no comparison with yesterday to what I saw four years ago, in terms of structure, organisation, intensity and the way the session was run.

‘Just from yesterday’s session, you could see why Scotland are improved. When a team are competitive and hard to beat, you can see that in a training session — and I saw that yesterday.’

Training-ground performances may help Gatland build a picture of how to structure his own sessions come the big get-together, of course.

As for which players he names in the squad to be announced on April 19, well, it’s obvious that Saturday’s clash at Rugby HQ will influence his thinking.

Individually and collectively, he’s looking for Scotland to front up for their biggest challenge, admitting: ‘For a lot of players, this weekend is really important.

‘You’ve got to think about the Lions being away from home, against one of the best teams in the world. So I’m looking at it from a Scottish point of view and seeing that they’ve got two wins at home.

‘It’s not always about the result. It’s about the performance that’s important this weekend. They hung in against France when the French dominated up front, kept the score close.

‘So there are a few challenges for Scotland this weekend, although Wales probably need a result against Ireland more than Scotland do against England.

‘At Twickenham, I’m quite interested to see how the two No 10s match up against each other. The wingers, I thought Tim Visser played well and Tommy Seymour has been impressive.

‘I think Stuart Hogg has done all right and there’s a little bit of depth in the back three now, with Sean Maitland. Scotland have got some choices there.

‘Stuart has turned into one of those world-class players, particularly in an attacking sense, because he is strong, quick and physical. Defensively, he still has some things to work on — but everyone has things to work on. He’s also got a big boot and can goal-kick.

‘In midfield, they’ve got someone like Matt Scott, who hasn’t even been involved, as well as Alex Dunbar and Huw Jones. So I think there are some nice match-ups in the backs.

‘Scotland also have strength in the back row with Hamish Watson. They would fancy themselves against England.

‘I’m still not convinced that Maro Itoje is a six. I think he belongs in the second row for England and we’ll have to see if Billy Vunipola plays at eight, having not played a lot of rugby.

‘The two Gray boys (Richie and Jonny) have done well and then there is a big challenge up front for Scotland, because the front row have work to do, up against a pretty experienced English front row. So there are some really good match-ups in the Calcutta Cup.’

In pure rugby terms, this weekend’s game offers plenty of tantalising one-on-one contests. As Gatland mentioned, it’s going to be fascinating to see how Scotland stand-off Finn Russell, fresh from giving Welsh No10 Dan Biggar a schooling at Murrayfield, measures up to George Ford, assuming Owen Farrell isn’t restored to the playmaker’s position by Eddie Jones.

But there’s more to this fixture than just skills and speed, Gatland noting with some satisfaction: ‘There is always a bit of edge in the Calcutta Cup. You’ve seen that over the years.

‘That’s something we can definitely use in the Lions because it could get pretty testy and tasty down in New Zealand.

‘So I’ll be looking at a lot of things. How players perform. You want players playing on the edge — but you want them keeping their discipline, as well.

‘That’s going to be a key factor for me, watching this weekend. For players on both sides, their discipline has to be important. They have to be able to control their emotions.

‘What’s good about the Six Nations now is there have been three or four teams, excluding Scotland, regularly competing. Now they’re knocking on the door.

‘They had a pretty good World Cup, too. They would know there is still improvement to be made. But Scotland are playing well as a team and getting the most out of themselves as players.

‘What makes a difference at this level is having that X-factor in terms of world-class players. I think there are a couple in the Scotland team.

‘They probably lack the X-factor in terms of numbers, compared to a couple of other teams — but they’re definitely getting the most out of themselves and the team. That’s been impressive.

‘I’m a great believer that we should want Scotland doing well because we should want them to be represented in the Lions.

‘Sometimes, the team who win the Six Nations can have 17 or 18 in the squad of 38 or 40. The team finishing lowest, you still want six or eight coming in because we all feel part of it.’

The British and Irish Lions are supporting The Cure Parkinson’s Trust with a fund-raising dinner at Sheraton Grand Hotel, Edinburgh, on April 27 when great names from Lions history including Warren Gatland, Gavin Hastings and John Spencer will attend. To book places visit tours.lionsrugby.com/leadingthe-lions/or call 0344 788 4067.