High-flying Scots gear up for Welsh encounter

The Scots are on Cloud Nine after their historic Round 1 defeat of England at the Twickenham fortress but the wise head of Gregor Townsend will have demanded concentration from his charges as they gear up for a celebrated Celtic clash with the Welsh at Murrayfield.

Scotland were focused, tough and determined as they ground out a victory against their oldest foes last weekend and adoption of that same formula will serve them well in Round 2 and the rest of the competition to come. They pack seemed aware of the task at hand for the full eighty minutes and executed their duties with gusto while the backs – including debutant Cameron Redpath – were steely on defence and confident in attack – an admirable all-round performance of which they will be proud for many years to come.

The Welsh, who have struggled of late, kicked their campaign off to a winning start as they saw off Ireland, eventually, 21-16, at the Principality Stadium. Their victory was aided in no small part by the red card shown to Ireland flanker Peter O’Mahony for a dangerous clean-out at a ruck – the men in green were thus forced to play the majority of the game a man short, but still put up a good fight, even managing to be ahead at half-time before Alun Wyn Jones’ men, with their numerical advantage, gradually loosened Ireland’s grip on the game.

Wales have already equalled their winning record from last year, wherein their solitary victory came against Italy in Round 1. They finished the tournament in second-last position with a total of 8 points.

The Scots finished in fourth place in 2020 – a comfortable six points above the Welsh, but, if their form of last week is anything to go by, they have a right to challenge for the title in 2021.

This is a rivalry that goes back to 1883, and has played out a total of 126 times; 73 won by Wales, 50 by Scotland, with a total of 3 draws between the two.

After Round 1, one has to lean towards a Scottish victory in this one, if the euphoria of their achievement last weekend does not cloud their focus.