Star man: Chris Cusiter
There is certainly cause for Christmas cheer up in Scotland this festive season as they look back on a largely profitable autumn where they picked decent fruit on which to store until February comes a knocking.
Victory over Fiji and then Australia before an unfortunate 9-6 defeat to Argentina slightly soured matters for Andy Robinson and his charges - but ending a 27-year barren spell against the golds will of course be savoured. That 9-8 win was one bought out of new-found confidence and self-belief in what the former Edinburgh coach is trying to achieve...and boy is it paying off.
Scotland have smartly stuck with Phil Godman at number ten and consequently done away with the hot-and-cold pivot that is Dan Parks. The Lamont brothers have also complimented either Simon Danielli or Thom Evans while the idea of Chris Cusiter or Mike Blair leading when playing could work nicely.
Nathan Hines meanwhile continues to do what he does best and it cannot be underplayed just how vital he is to what is still a slightly inexperienced pack, which has been without the injured Euan Murray. His combination with 'Chunk' and Ross Ford will be right up there with the best that their European rivals have to offer.
Speaking of the Six Nations, where can this group of players realistically finish come March time? They begin the championship at home to France in a game that may or may not be decided by which Les Bleus team shows up in Scotland. The remainder of their games will see them travel to Italy and Ireland so all in all it's not a bad schedule for Robinson, who is eyeing consistently strong performances.
"We have the ability to win any game; and, as you've seen today (Saturday), we have the ability to lose any game," said the former England boss.
"That's where we'll always be and it's how we control the scoreboard and how ruthless we can be.
"It's how we now go away and work at improving our game and improving our skills under pressure over the next two months. If the players are prepared to go away and really work hard at our skills under pressure and our decision-making under pressure, we can move forward."
A strong message that smacks of 'hard work equals results' that might be worth taking heed of south of the border. Let's not go there shall we.
Star man: Co-captain Chris Cusiter was the consistent performer of this refreshed Scotland outfit while Nathan Hines also deserves a big mention. But the scrum-half picks up the award following his try-scoring effort against Fiji and then his game-management in the historic victory over the Wallabies.
Rising star: Andy Robinson handed Worcester centre Alex Grove a massive autumn opportunity to press his case for a permanent slot in his plans going forward. A strong defender and decent in attack, we urge Robinson to stick with fellow up-and-comer Ben Cairns as Grove's midfield partner.
Comments
Be the first to comment on this story..