Six Nations: Scotland unfazed by Eddie Jones' mind games - Greig Laidlaw

Scotland scrum-half Greig Laidlaw says the mind games of England coach Eddie Jones will have no bearing on the Calcutta Cup match at Murrayfield.

Jones made disparaging comments about Scotland before the Six Nations began and after the heavy defeat by Wales.

The Scots got their campaign back on track with a 32-26 win over France and now host England on 24 February.

"Last time I checked, Eddie wasn't playing for England," said Laidlaw, who kicked 22 points against France.

"Eddie's got a lot to say, hasn't he? It's hard not to hear these days. But it's about the players and implementing game plans."

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At the Six Nations launch event in January, Jones suggested Scotland had become "the darlings" of European rugby simply by throwing the ball "from side-to-side".

In the wake of their crushing defeat in Cardiff, Jones was again pointed in his comments about Scotland, saying the players "couldn't cope with the expectation".

Greig Laidlaw was named man of the match after kicking 22 points to steer Scotland home

Laidlaw said: "Eddie likes to get out there and speak but ultimately it doesn't really matter. It's about when you cross the line and get into the middle of the field.

"As a Scotsman, there's no better game to play in. We'll be in front of our own people. We can use our record here that we are starting to put together. But do we need to improve? Yes, I believe so."

Since losing at home to England on the opening day of the 2016 Six Nations, Scotland have won eight of their 10 Tests at Murrayfield, the only defeats being a one-point loss against Australia in November 2016 and a close shave against New Zealand in November.

They have won all five of their Six Nations matches in Edinburgh since, including victories over France (twice), Ireland and Wales.

Laidlaw delivered a man-of-the-match display against France on his first Test start in a year, which included a surprise stint at fly-half in the closing stages.

Head coach Gregor Townsend admitted Laidlaw's preparation for his spell at 10 had been "jogging through a few plays in the car park" on the morning of the game, but the Clermont Auvergne man had no concerns when asked to step into the role when Finn Russell made way for Ali Price.

"It was a bit of a surprise but thankfully the forwards were on top at the end of the game and I didn't have to do too much heavy work," the former Edinburgh and Gloucester scrum-half said.

"It was easy enough to slip back in. The forwards were starting to carry well by that point and once you're on the front foot as a nine or a 10, it becomes so much easier.

"Ali came on and added a bit of zip and again that just added to our game plan to finish strong. Ali, 'Dents' [Dave Denton], [Ben] Toolis, the boys that came off the bench really added impetus.

"That's something we've been trying to build over the last few seasons - the impact off our bench - and I really felt we got that today."

Scotland have not beaten England since 2008, with nine defeats and a draw in the interim, while Jones' side have won 25 of their past 26 Tests.

But Laidlaw feels Scotland have proved they can compete with the world's best on their own turf over the past two years.

"We can beat anyone but I think we will have to play better than we did against France to beat England," he added.

"England are playing really well again at the minute. Clearly they're on a big run so it'll be a tough game, but is it a game if we turn up and play the right rugby we're going to be in? I believe so."