YOU could argue that it is a backhanded compliment to Vern Cotter’s Scotland that Eddie Jones, the England coach, has felt it worth his while trying to wind them up with his trademark mind games more than a week before the Calcutta Cup clash at Twickenham takes place.
The Scots, however, have refused to play ball with his claim they are burdened by expectation.
And now Matt Taylor, the defence coach, has turned the tables as he pointed out all the advantages that England have in their favour.
Read more: Returning Edinburgh prop Alasdair Dickinson may be a saviour for Scotland squad
“As coaches, you listen to other coaches’ comments and sometimes there is a hidden meaning in there, an agenda they want to push.
“Look, they have the most players in the world to choose from, they probably have the biggest budget in world rugby, they have won 17 in a row and they are second in the world. Maybe he [Jones] can put his feet up this week – who knows?” he said.
“They have really good carriers all around the field. You look at the forward pack, everyone carries really well. They get up really hard and quick. We have some plans on how we are going to work our attack, but across the board they have a very good team and their record shows that.”
This simply is the reality facing Scotland, not defeatism. Taylor is still adamant, however, that if the Scottish players get it right for long enough in England, then they can make history and come away with the win they are all so desperately craving.
“If you ask, ‘Are we going to win the game?’ – on our day we can beat anyone,” Taylor added.
Read more: Returning Edinburgh prop Alasdair Dickinson may be a saviour for Scotland squad
“You are not going say, ‘We can’t win’ because of course we can. That’s the beauty of sport, anyone can beat anyone and we’ve seen in the last year or two the underdog has beaten the top team. We’re going to have to prepare well and execute well, but there is no reason why we can’t win.
“It has been great to be involved with this team over the last couple of years because everyone has seen the progress-ion. We took some heavy knocks a couple of years ago, then we took some tight losses. Now we have come out the other side, now we are winning those tight games.
“We can go down there with the mindset to win if we execute well, but we know it will be difficult. We know it will probably be the most difficult game so far in the tournament. Of course we can go down there and do well.”
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