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Stuart on Scotland

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Third place in the 6 Nations table seemed impossible after the English had torn us apart at Twickenham in our first game, so to end up where we did was a big step forward for Scotland under Scott ­Johnson.

Our defence was so much better after the England game, and that was a big plus, but there are certainly areas we need to improve on if we are to build on what we have achieved in this campaign.

Lack of territory and possession are big concerns still, but there were times when we showed we can score tries and play good attacking rugby.

Two tries against England were highlights and the four against Italy was a rare sight which we all enjoyed.

The final moments of the French game proved that we are capable of opening up defences – I just wish we had played a more attacking game earlier on, but you cannot blame Scotland for trying to secure the win first before throwing caution to the wind.

It was interesting that the talk about the Wales v ­England game beforehand was that the match would be a low-scoring affair, probably decided on penalties.

With France and Scotland out of the running, a free flowing game of attacking rugby played by two teams wanting to express themselves was predicted.

In the end the predictions were flipped, with both teams running the ball from everywhere. It proved the perfect scenario for the Welsh, but the English played right into their hands.

Wales were so much better at playing this way.

Over in Paris, we were again at the wrong end of the territory and possession stats, but on the hour we were still in the game at 9-9 and eyeing up our first win in Paris since 1999.

Two quick tries from France forced us into an attacking game as we found ourselves 14 points down, and we looked comfortable going forward.

Tim Visser scored our seventh try in the tournament and we almost got another.

We have Visser, Stuart Hogg and Sean Maitland, all of whom score tries.

Matt Scott is growing on me, too, at centre, while Kelly Brown is settling in well in the captain’s role.

It’s a more settled team and that is a good thing. We can take heart from this campaign and build on what we have achieved. Yes, plenty of work to be done, but it’s all fixable. Progress is being made, and that is good news.


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