Gary Armstrong, below, and the team celebrate two days late at Murrayfield, while top, John Leslie stuns the Welsh with a try in 10 seconds, and Gregor Townsend celebrates a try in Paris

Gregor was electric when he decided to go. Knowing where he was going was always the difficult bit

COTLAND then lost at Twickenham. “24-21 wasn’t it?” Armstrong enquires, like someone who knew exactly what the score was as the disappointment of that day still rankles. “We should have won, probably. By then Toony [ Gregor Townsend] was at 10, and just added to the pace we had amongst the backs. Duncan [Hodge] was a good controller of the ball and the game, but Gregor was electric when he decided to go. Knowing where he was going was always the difficult bit.

“But fortunately we had John Leslie and Alan Tait at centre, and they were great readers of the game and quick on the uptake. We scored another three tries in London, then four against Ireland,” he recalls, although the 30-13 scoreline eluded him.

While Armstrong did say that Five Nations success felt like 20 years ago, the now-famous spring afternoon in Paris was like yesterday.

“It was a beautiful day, sunny, dry, not a breath,” he says. “That usually meant one thing; that France would run like a pack of hounds and tear in to you. And they did. The French ran everything. The only thing was we were more French than they were that day. It was just daft, like an exhibition game.

“Toony, Leslie and Taity ran riot. It was like a Barbarians game, 55 points scored in the first half, we got five tries, France three. Crazy.

“I don’t think they’d get away playing that way today, seeing how structured things have become. Actually, the exception might be Scotland now – how Stuart Hogg, Finn Russell, Huw Jones and Adam Hastings can play off-the-cuff stuff, that’s how Gregor played. That was his natural game, and when it came off it was great to watch, although a wee bit tiring chasing folk all over the pitch.”

The away games against France and England were never easy, and Armstrong reckons they are still the toughest on the calendar. However, he is confident Scotland can build on recent success, despite missing key personnel.

“People talk about how many injuries we have just now in the lead-up to the Six Nations, but for me that just gives others an opportunity. We lost Basil [Bryan Redpath] the week before the tournament with an ankle injury, which is why I played and led the team. We lost Doddie Weir after just 40 minutes against Wales, and Tom Smith broke his leg against Ireland. Actually, maybe losing them was the reason we won,” Armstrong laughs.

“But the guys who came in did the job. We hear a lot about the depth we’ve got now – well now is our chance for others to step up.”