Scotland call in ‘Tartan Tornado’ to add punch
The perception that today’s Calcutta Cup at Murrayfield may turn into the rugby equivalent of an oldfashioned “square-go” was heightened yesterday when home captain Stuart Hogg revealed that Scotland’s players were preparing for the game with a call to arms from boxer Josh Taylor.
The “Tartan Tornado” is a dyedin-the-wool warrior, a confrontational and unbeaten southpaw who is world light-welterweight champion. Calling him in to rally the troops – or, in Hogg’s words, “get us riled up” – tells its own story.
The sense that this is a match that will be all about physicality, brutality and gain-line muscularity has been growing. The pre-match narrative has been shaped by the use of war metaphors, references to 1990, England’s forward-dominated bench and the realisation that it may be played in a howling gale and lashing rain.
Hogg talked about Scotland’s intentions, emphasising his side’s willingness to offer blood and guts in defence of the Calcutta Cup Scotland won at Murrayfield two years and retained at Twickenham last year for the first time since the Grand Slam year of 1984. Scotland, and in particular their forwards, are ready “to stand up and go toeto-toe” with England, he insisted.
Scotland’s pack fronted up well in Dublin, and have been bolstered by No 8 Magnus Bradbury, the only change from last week’s starting side. But the forwards coach, Danny Wilson, admitted that their poor performance at the breakdown needed to be remedied if they were to beat an England side fielding three opensides.
The solution, he says, is a mix of greater accuracy and brutality. When asked if that meant Scotland would indulge in a lot more of the “niggle” that England coach Eddie Jones predicted, Wilson was uncompromising. “Yes,” he said. “We’ll have to be physical and if that is classed as niggle, then so be it. We’ll be extremely physical in all facets of play – collisions, contact area, attack, defence, maul defence, scrum, whatever it is.”
There is a sense of optimism in the Scotland camp after England were poorer than expected in Paris, and Scotland better than anticipated in Dublin. But there is also a major imponderable, with Storm Ciara, forecast to be the worst storm in the UK for seven years, due to arrive between 5-6pm, bringing with it winds of 80mph and torrential rain.