Scott Johnson has accused Wales of football-style simulation, claiming his team were "conned" at Murrayfield on Saturday, and called for the sport's administrators to address the scrummage problems that are blighting the sport.

Naming a team in which one Six Nations Championship newcomer was given his Test chance while another was discarded as Grant Gilchrist was called up for his debut and Rob Harley was dropped, he refused to accept that Scottish naivete had been at fault as Wales gained the upper hand in that key battleground, however.

"We were frustrated by the fact we got conned," he said, apparently referring to the way Wales were reckoned to have held back at scrums to give the impression Scotland were trying to engage too early.

"I don't want to be a coach that is sitting here telling players to start diving like soccer players. If we're not good enough then we're not good enough but I don't want to be chasing rainbows and trying to get us to cheat."

Johnson said he was in no way blaming the South African referee Craig Joubert and, for all that he expressed such contempt for the Welsh tactics, made it clear he believes that it is the law-makers who have to act.

"Every time we get a referee, we do due diligence. You would not believe how much they differ from one another," he asserted. "But the ref did not cost us the game, he's a good, decent man. The frustration lies in that we're not trying to con anyone.

"At the moment, people are trying to find ways to con them but we are not at the stage where we can con them. We are at the stage of saying we are being honest and let's see what we need to work on."

In terms of the impact on the sport, Johnson went so far as to hint that he would prefer to see England win the title on Saturday if the nation he once coached sticks to a similar approach.

"All I care is that the team that's trying to be positive wins," he said. "Positivity should be rewarded. If both sides are trying to be positive, I have no issue, but if it's a 50-50 call and people are playing ducks and drakes, give it to the side that's trying to do something."

He went on to express concern that his comments would be characterised as "a tirade" whereas his tone was reasoned as he reflected the concerns many have for the risk to the sport if the issues leading to so many failed scrummages are not addressed.

He is, however, expecting a more traditional challenge in the Stade de France this weekend, partly explaining why he has decided to give front-five forward Gilchrist a Test debut in the starting XV in such a potential cauldron rather than bring him in from the bench.