Gatland throws down gauntlet

WARREN GATLAND has challenged Scotland’s stars to prove themselves worthy of a place on the Lions tour by ending our 34-year wait for a Twickenham triumph. The Lions head coach, in Edinburgh this week to watch Vern Cotter’s men at close quarters, insists their performance in Saturday’s Calcutta Cup showdown could go a long way to deciding whether they are ready to take on the All Blacks in New Zealand this summer. The stakes could not be higher, as England attempt to equal the All Blacks’ record of 18 consecutive Test victories against visitors chasing a first Triple Crown since 1990 and a first win at HQ since 1983. Asked what a win for the Scots would do to his selection process, Gatland said: ‘It would create

a few headaches, wouldn’t it? There’s nothing wrong with that. But it’s a big challenge for them this weekend. They haven’t won there since 1983. And I think they’re well aware of what is at stake on two fronts. ‘One, they can give themselves a chance of winning the Six Nations, with Italy at home to come in the last game. They’ll get that monkey off their backs, too, in winning at Twickenham. ‘Secondly, a lot of those players will be aware of the match-ups. They’ll be aware of the record that England are going for and of how the English press are pushing a lot of their English players for the Lions. ‘So you couldn’t ask for any better motivation from a Scottish point of view, going down there to play at Twickenham.’ The likes of Stuart Hogg, Finn Russell and the Gray brothers are pushing for inclusion on the Lions tour following a fine start to the Six Nations which has seen Scotland beat Ireland and Wales and narrowly lose to France. Hamish Watson, Tim Visser and Tommy Seymour are also among those to have done their prospects no harm with fine performances during this year’s tournament. And Gatland suggested that winning away from home this weekend will show him the Scots are ready to deal with an even more hostile environment awaiting his tourists in New Zealand. ‘There is always an edge in the Calcutta Cup. You’ve seen that over the years,’ said the Kiwi, who also said that the injured trio of Greig Laidlaw, Josh Strauss and WP Nel can’t yet be ruled out of consideration. ‘We can definitely use that edge in the Lions because it could get pretty tasty down in New Zealand. ‘So I’ll be looking at a lot of things. How players perform. You want players on the edge, but you also want them keeping their discipline. ‘That’s going to be a key factor watching this weekend. For players on both sides, discipline is important. They have to be able to control their emotions.’