Skipper Greig Laidlaw insists Scots' attitude is not a problem

Scotland captain Greig Laidlaw admits his place could be in doubt for the England match

Scotland captain Greig Laidlaw believes a bad attitude did not cause the defeat by Italy - publicly disagreeing with one of his coaches.

On Monday, Matt Taylor said the players had shown a bad attitude in the Murrayfield match and that they had been told that in a meeting.

Laidlaw, however, disagreed with that assessment.

"Definitely not the attitude, not at all," he told BBC Scotland. "The players have got a great attitude."

And he added: "I think (against Italy) we were just a little bit off."

Ahead of this weekend's penultimate Six Nations match, against England, Laidlaw did admit that the squad were made to hear a few home truths in the wake of the 22-19 defeat by Italy.

"It's been a tough few days after the disappointment of the Italian game," he added. "Clearly we let ourselves down and the coaches have got stuck right into us, and rightly so.

Scotland coach Matt Taylor had some harsh words for the squad after the defeat to Italy

"We're a tight-knit group and we're honest with each other, and we're extremely disappointed the way the first three games have gone, but there are two games we can get something out of before the end of the Six Nations. If we do that we'll be extremely happy leading into the World Cup."

Coach Taylor also hinted that changes could be made for the Calcutta Cup match at Twickenham, and Laidlaw added: "The first few games I was happy with my performance. I don't think anybody can say that the other weekend.

"Changes always happen and competition for places is good. You can never rest on your laurels."

Gloucester star Laidlaw, 29, is hoping to see his side right some wrongs when they face England at Twickenham, where the Scots have not won since 1983.

"There needs to be a reaction this weekend and that's what we're focussed on," he added. "The game speaks for itself, the history of the game, and it's a privilege to be involved in it. We need to put in a performance that merits that.

"The most important thing is actions on the field - we can't just keep saying the right things and not actually doing them.

"We're playing for our jersey, we're playing for our country and we're playing for our positions. We let each other down the last time we wore it so this time out we need to make sure that doesn't happen.

"England are a good team, they have a strong set up. In the games I've played in there in the past, their pack's got on top of us and squeezed us, and that goes a long way for them to winning games."