SHOCK TO THE SYSTEM

Scots promised to cause chaos but this was pandemonium in the Principality...

SCOTLAND had boasted they would bring ‘organised chaos’ to Cardiff, for which Wales would have no answer. At least they were half right. They certainly brought chaos to the proceedings. However, rather unfortunately, it did not appear to be organised.

You would certainly struggle to recall a less structured, more all-over-the-place performance.

The definition of ‘organised chaos’ in rugby terms means playing at 100 miles per hour, taking risks, spreading the ball wide and never letting the opposition settle. Attacking at every opportunity, taking quick-tap penalties, keeping the ball moving.

The way Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend used to play during his career.

For that high-risk style to work, a player needs top-class ball-handling skills, perfect understanding with his team-mates and total concentration from the first whistle.

Scotland had none of those things. And the end result was embarrassing.

So what went wrong after the autumn Tests had given us so much hope? Had the team not been prepared well enough in training? Did the players freeze on the big occasion? Could there, perish the thought, even have been an element of complacency in the ranks because Wales were missing so many first-choice players?

Townsend needs to sit down with his coaching team this morning and get to the bottom of this debacle.

It is worth remembering that Wales launched their Six Nations campaign without nine injured frontline players — a list of absentees that included star names like Sam Warburton, Jonathan Davies, Taulupe Faletau, Dan Biggar and Rhys Webb.

Scotland had major front-five issues of their own, although they had been played down by the management in the build-up. To be fair, the reason for the Scots’ demise couldn’t be blamed solely on the pack.

From the moment, five minutes in, that Ali Price’s telegraphed pass was picked off by Gareth Davies for Wales’ first try, their game plan completely fell apart.

Leigh Halfpenny converted the first score, before Wales almost conjured a spectacular second when forwards Aaron Shingler, Cory Hill, Rob Evans and Alun Wyn Jones combined brilliantly, but Steff Evans dropped Jones’ pass just five metres from Scotland’s try-line.

It would prove only a temporary reprieve as Wales sacrificed a kickable penalty for an attacking scrum — and then made it pay as they exposed Scotland defensively and Halfpenny claimed his first Wales try for five years, before his conversion made it 14-0 after just 12 minutes.

With no Plan B, or anyone on the field seemingly capable of slowing things down and regaining composure, Scotland persisted in trying to play the ball wide rather than going up the middle.

Townsend was either unwilling to change tactics or, given his own injury problems, did not think he had the forward pack to take on the Welsh up front. Whatever the reason, his team went from side to side like a confused crab, getting nowhere.

In the end, they not only embarrassed themselves, but let down a nation of fans who had expected so much more after the back-to-back victories over the Australians and the narrow defeat to the All Blacks.

‘We should be criticised for this performance,’ said Townsend with refreshing honesty afterwards.

‘We come together a few times in a season and now, just over two months after we beat Australia, the shock is that we played so badly given that we played so well in that last game.

‘We have four Six Nations games left, and the next one comes up quickly and against France.

‘It goes without saying that we have to be much, much better.’

Townsend has enjoyed an extended honeymoon period due to some excellent performances on both the summer tour and during the three Tests in November, which included that magnificent victory over the Wallabies.

In his first game of his first Six Nations — the real stage where coaches are judged — that honeymoon came to an abrupt end.

With a heavy dose of hindsight, the marginal decision to start Price ahead of Greig Laidlaw backfired. The Glasgow Warriors scrum-half gifted the Welsh a try and, quite inexcusably, was penalised for blatantly putting the ball in squint at the scrum. He was like a cat on a hot tin roof and too wired.

It was evident that things were going badly for Price, but Townsend didn’t bring on Laidlaw until eight minutes into the second half. By that point, Scotland were 20-0 down and the game was over.

That was the moment he also hooked back-row forward Cornell du Preez, not a moment too soon, replacing him with Ryan Wilson.

Chris Harris, Byron McGuigan and Ben Toolis — all of whom had been truly awful — were also taken off before the hour mark.

Leadership-wise, Scotland captain John Barclay had a day to forget. Desperate to do well against a Welsh side that included ten of his Scarlets team-mates, the flanker was anonymous.

With Scotland 14-0 down at the break, they needed a disciplined start to the second half. What they definitely didn’t need was their captain giving away two penalties — at the breakdown of all places — to allow Halfpenny to put over two kicks to extend the Welsh lead.

Halfpenny went over for his second try, adding the conversion to end things as a contest. Steff Evans then sealed the deal through a spectacular diving onehanded finish, with Halfpenny’s conversion ending Scottish misery — securing a 24-point individual haul — and sending Wales to London this Saturday in confident mood. As for Scotland...

‘We have to look at it, where we went wrong and turn it around. But, just now, things are too raw,’ said Barclay, who looked shell-shocked after such a demoralising defeat. ‘A lot of these things have to be fixed off the pitch before we get on it again against France.

‘Did we do everything we should have done? We are a straight bunch of guys, everyone is honest, no one is going to hide behind anything.’

Peter Horne’s converted try in the last minute ensured the Scots at least made it on to the scoreboard but, as Bread of

Heaven reverberated around the stadium at the final whistle, there were no crumbs of comfort to be found by the visitors.