Familiar flaws undo Scotland potential

The look of disbelief on Andy Robinson’s face was one to behold as he had watched his side yet again press the self destruct button last weekend in their Six Nations clash with Wales they could so easily have won. The Scots had showed themselves to be more than capable of competing and arguably had the better of a tight first period just as they had done against England the previous week. Yet in the first 15 minutes of the second half they had two men sin binned to leave themselves perilously short in the face of a powerful Welsh side who took full advantage. Their backline wreaked havoc, cutting through the obvious gaps now appearing to score 24 points in 20 minutes. The culprits, Nick de Luca and Rory Lamont must hang their heads after giving away needless infringements.
The Scottish camp should however look for the positives. The pack matched their opponents with Ross Rennie providing the heartbeat alongside the young David Denton who built upon his man of the match display against England to again impress, especially with the ball in hand. Lock Richie Gray meanwhile charged around with his usual full-blooded vigour and looks more like a potential Lions starter the more games he plays at this level.
The backs however must take criticism for both the sin bins and their profligacy in front of the white line. What can be said in their defence is that in the final 20 minutes when victory was beyond them, the Scottish backline played with a freedom not seen since the days of Gregor Townsend. The performance of Greig Laidlaw at fly half was particularly promising with his distribution skills looking to finally galvanize the men outside him in the games later stages. The converted scrum half must however improve his defence if he is to have a future in the international game. Sean Lamont was an effective battering ram inside him although it remains to be seen whether the expansive game forwarded by Laidlaw requires a more ball playing inside centre.
Young players such as Stuart Hogg and Lee Jones also showed flashes of speed and guile that could bear fruit by the end of the tournament and beyond. Yet the likes of De Luca, who has always flattered to deceive on the international stage despite excellent club form, must now step up or be replaced. Young players such as Edinburgh’s Matt Scott and Clermont Auvergne’s Mark Bennett are two men who could potentially provide a creative spark in Scotland’s midfield in his place.
Scotland must for now refocus as picking up the wooden spoon in this year’s tournament is still very much a reality. Their main rivals for the unwanted crown are perennial last place finishers Italy, yet the Azzuri have shown much promise in their opening games and are arguably just a quality half back combination away from being a genuine force in world rugby. Cut out the unforced errors however and it could just be that this group of Scottish players finally fulfil their undoubted potential.