PLENTY OF PASSION IN PARIS AS SCOTS FALL JUST SHORT
Cotter’s men frighten the French and have victory in sight but pay the price for the same old failings
Scotland showed their strength at times in Paris but could not hold on to the lead as France pushed for the win. Cotter’s men had a chance to draw the game with a late penalty but opted to go for glory
SCOTLAND fell short of an historic win in a brutally physical encounter in Paris last night after failing to match their defensive passion with the necessary accuracy in attack.
France rocked the Scotland line-out early on, flanker Damien Choully stealing the first two from Ross Ford while the game’s third line-out, on home ball, resulted in a penalty against Richie Gray for interference, which Frederic Michalak hit past the posts.
The Scots lost Alasdair Dickinson to a suspected concussion, Gordon Reid coming on, but powerful ball-carrying by No 8 David Denton led to some territory and a penalty which Greig Laidlaw nailed from 40 metres to nudge Scotland 3-0 up after eight minutes.
Richie Gray claimed the next Scotland line-out, 15 metres from the home line, but it was again smuggled when he came to ground and though he won the next one too, again close to the home line, a hit by Thierry Dusatoir on WP Nel swiftly ended that attack.
The state of the Stade de France pitch did not help, the turf peeling back hugely with every scrum, and the set-piece became the usual merry-goround with penalties dished out either way without any side holding the edge.
The French did manage an attack off one, Louis Picamoles picking up and releasing Mathieu Bastareaud through a series of attempted tackles. He was finally held, but Scotland conceded a penalty at the breakdown and Michalak kicked over to level.
Interest in Scotland surrounded the second run out for John Hardie and he and his back-row mates faced the kind of ferocious test that should serve them well ahead of meetings with big packs in their World Cup pool.
The Gray brothers, Jonny and Richie, got to grips with the line-out and provided some thrust for Scotland, one Jonny break yielding another penalty for Laidlaw to slot home from over 40m at the start of the second quarter.
Finn Russell came within a fingertip of bursting the French defence on halfway with a trademark arcing run, but, held, he fed the ball inside and Nel could not hold the pass.
Scotland then undid the promise with a series of infringements, handing Michalak an easy penalty leveller on the half-hour, and another lost line-out served to wave the French into the Scots 22.
Cotter’s men defended with aggression, but needed a try-saving tackle by Russell on Scott Spedding and a Bastareaud forward pass, that ruled out a Wesley Fofana ‘try’, to keep their line intact.
Fofana was replaced having taken a hefty knock ‘scoring’ and the Scots finished the half on the attack. A scrappy — but won — line-out brought a penalty which Laidlaw goaled from wide on the left to send Scotland into half-time 9-6 ahead.
If the message in the dressing room was ‘cut out the indiscipline’, some did not get it as within two minutes of the restart France drew level through Michalak after another tackler failed to re-lease his man on the ground.
With a bit of ball, Scotland began to reveal their threat playing the game at a higher tempo, Maitland and Matt Scott asking questions of the French defence, but still the ball would not stick or the passes lacked accuracy.
Russell released Mark Bennett with France opened up, with a sublime chipand-chase in the 55th minute, but the cover scragged the Scotland centre and ball was lost in the tackle 20m out, and when the next of the regular ruck penalties showed up Spedding kicked France ahead with a penalty.
And then Scotland stunned the Stade de France. Great scramble defence halted the French as they swarmed the Scots 22, forcing a turnover, and Cotter’s men broke out on the left with Maitland and Tim Visser. Laidlaw swiveled and sent a kick away into open prairie on the right, and Seymour set off after it.
Spedding, sprinting crossfield, seemed favourite to reach it but Seymour got his toe to the ball, flicked it off Spedding’s despairing hand and picked up to run in round the French posts. Laidlaw converted to put Scotland into a 16-12 lead with 19 minutes remaining.
The French pressure told with a yellow card for Denton, for the umpteenth ruck infringement, with 10 minutes left, but huge tackles by Hardie and Swinson helped to deny the French once again.
But then the line-out woes flared again, with a throw to no one being knocked on and handing France a scrum 10m from the Scottish line, and this time France took advantage with Noa Nakataici taking an inside pass and breaking the tackles to get over.
Moragn Parra’s conversion took France into a 19-16 lead but Scotland were not finished yet. Russell released Bennett on a mazy run through the defence only for the centre to be hauled down by Huget 10m from the posts. Scotland still had an overlap left but Scott wasted it with a long pass that bounced into touch to the fury of his team-mates.
Still they came, however with Richie Gray now towering in the line-out and leading the charge into the French 22. The French defence held firm even when Scotland turned down the chance to draw the game.
There was much for Scotland to take from the game, even in defeat, not least on the day when Wales may have lost key figures Rhys Webb and Leigh Halfpenny from their World Cup campaign.