If you believe the old showbusiness adage about a bad dress rehearsal paving the way to a successful performance, then Scotland’s rugby stars can look forward to a fantastic World Cup.
That’s one of the few positive things to take from the fashion in which France swatted aside Gregor Townsend’s team 32-3 on Saturday night in Nice. Yet, from a Scottish perspective, there was nothing nice about it all, as Les Bleus ran in five tries, and displayed a ruthless cutting edge which was completely lacking in the visitors.
Optimists might retort that this was just the first act in a series of warm-up fixtures and nobody wants to peak too soon. But, wherever you looked, there was a failure by the Scots to master the basics, capitalise on the few opportunities they did create, and, in similar vein to the most recent Six Nations Championship campaign, they seemed one-dimensional when they weren’t allowed to play in the manner they wanted.
The way in which the championship ended – with Townsend’s troops launching a remarkable comeback to achieve a 38-38 draw with England in the Calcutta Cup – glossed over any number of deficiencies in the SRU’s Class of 2019. Yes, at their best, the likes of Stuart Hogg, Ali Price, Finn Russell and Co can be a joy to behold, and they have the ability to crank up the momentum when they strut their stuff at Murrayfield.
The trouble is that they are currently conceding more than 25 points a match this year and you won’t win many contests against the globe’s elite with that sort of statistic.
The comparison between the parsimony of the England and Welsh defences at the weekend in the latter’s narrow 13-6 triumph was in stark comparison to how tackles were missed and basic errors perpetrated by a string of Scots who unquestionably possess talent, but are letting themselves down too often.
In the Six Nations, the Scots at least managed a try during their 27-10 defeat in Paris. But it was typical of their overall approach that they knocked on after a prolonged encampment in the French 22 towards the end of the proceedings.
Their opponents could have grabbed two or three further touchdowns and while it’s difficult to envisage a repeat performance when the teams meet again in Edinburgh on Saturday, the home truths can’t be avoided and longer. Like the little girl in the nursery rhyme, when Scotland are good, they are very good. But when they are bad…!
They have shipped 24 tries in their last six games, which illustrates the porous nature of their defence. And while it was heartening to watch the return of Duncan Taylor, and Townsend has lots of options at his disposal, I doubt he knows his best XV, which is more than a little worrying just a month before the World Cup commences.
Hopefully, there will be a marked improvement in the remaining tussle against France and the double-header against the powerful Georgians, but streetwisdom can’t be acquired overnight. It is always folly to write off Scotland – and they are often at their most dangerous in these circumstances – but there is talking the talk and walking the walk and there’s simply not enough of the latter just now.
Too Nice for their own good!