USA 30-29 Scotland: Scotland 'lacked leadership' in key positions - Peter Wright
- Published
Highlights: USA 30-29 Scotland
Scotland "lacked leadership in the right positions" during their shock defeat by USA in Houston, believes former prop Peter Wright.
Seven of the Scots made their first Test starts, including Matt Fagerson, George Horne and Adam Hastings.
Scotland led 24-13 at half-time but were over-powered in the second half, a last-minute try insufficient as Blair Kinghorn missed a conversion to win it.
"It was a lack of experience," ex-Lions prop Wright told BBC Scotland.
"I thought they lacked a real leader at 10 who could dominate the game, like [USA fly-half] AJ MacGinty. He was outstanding. If he had played for Scotland, Scotland would have won by 50 or 60 points."
The Scots had beaten Canada 48-10 last weekend and finish their summer tour against hosts Argentina on Saturday.
"[Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend] got the selection back to front," said Wright on Sportsound. "He should have played this team against Canada, and put the Canadian selection in against USA, because it was slightly more experienced.
"I'm not sure what the rationale was. I know they looked at this as a development tour, and part of development is you have got to put guys under pressure.
"The guys that played badly, or didn't play consistently for 80 minutes, have to have a serious look and understand that international rugby is about getting your basics correct, and your decision-making correct, and then adding that touch of class.
"The penalty count was poor, and the type of penalties they were giving away was poor. And the mistakes - Matt Fagerson dropping that high ball [in the build-up to the USA's decisive third try for Hanco Germishuys] was inexcusable for me. You just want a player to do the basics right, and that gifted them points.
"Once USA believed they could win, they really put Scotland to the sword and Scotland really struggled with the physicality of the Americans. That was a concern for me."
Half-backs Adam Hastings and George Horne have started five Pro14 matches together for Glasgow
As well as number eight Fagerson, scrum-half Horne and fly-half Hastings, loose-head prop Jamie Bhatti, hooker George Turner, lock Lewis Carmichael and flanker Luke Hamilton were all making their first Test starts in Houston.
The starting line-up also included Kinghorn, winning his fourth cap, fellow wing Byron McGuigan (fifth) and centre Nick Grigg (fifth).
Wright picked out the "outstanding" Kinghorn's display as "the one massive positive for Scotland" but questioned whether others will have an international future.
"Glasgow and Edinburgh, and the Pro14, is a level below international rugby," noted Wright, who won 21 Scotland caps. "Some guys are good club players but you put them in at international level, they get found out.
"You can make mistakes at club level and not get punished. When you make mistakes at international level, you get punished heavily.
Back-rower Hamilton made his Scotland debut as a replacement against New Zealand last November
"We need to look at this objectively. It is not about criticising Gregor Townsend or the players. This was the time to experiment, to try guys and give others a rest with the World Cup coming up. The physicality of the game now is so brutal and you can't keep playing tour after tour, season after season.
"There were guys there who had great opportunities to establish themselves at international level, which would have helped their club as well, because there are one or two who have not quite established themselves at club level yet. We are taking players on tour that you would not normally see in an international jersey.
"Fraser Brown [normally a hooker] came on at seven, which I thought said a lot about Luke Hamilton. We maybe won't be seeing much of him in a Scotland jersey in future.
"I thought one or two of the experienced guys didn't help the younger players either - you can't just blame the younger players.
"But your number eight, nine and 10 are your key positions. They are the generals that dictate your game. And ours were very inexperienced - Matt Fagerson, George Horne and Adam Hastings had one cap between them.
Scotland 'went to sleep' - Stuart Hogg
"You are taking a big gamble when that spine of your team has so little experience, against a good, brutally physical American side, and in AJ MacGinty they had a great leader."
Full-back Stuart Hogg, on his 61st cap, led Scotland for the first time, but Wright believes it is "difficult to captain a team from 15 if you don't have leaders up front, because you are too far away to influence much".
"Gavin Hastings captained Scotland from full-back but he had leaders about the forward pack, and at half-back," the former prop added.
"We need to find leaders and a leadership group. If you look at the best teams in the world, the eights, nines and 10s dominate the game, and not just in a rugby sense. You see the way they talk to referees and players, they bring people in.
"It's something Scottish rugby has an issue with. Years ago everybody wanted to be the chief and it was easy to pick a captain. Now you look at it and think 'who is the guy who wants to front up?' Rugby playing is one thing, but you have got to have that ability to lead."