Sioned Harries column: Wales not getting carried away ahead of Scotland test

In her BBC Wales Sport column, Wales number eight Sioned Harries reflects on a convincing win over Ireland and predicts a stern test against Scotland.

We felt really good in the week leading up to the Ireland game and were all quietly confident that if we did the basics right, we would come away with the win.

We talked about starting fast, something we've struggled with in the past, and Alex [Callender] got her try in the opening three minutes which settled us and allowed us to build momentum and bag the bonus point before half-time.

It's probably the best half we've played for a while in terms of being clinical, confident and going through our phases. We had also worked on our line speed and speed of ball from the ruck which forced Ireland into skills errors.

A 31-5 win was great, but we're certainly not getting ahead of ourselves. We were in camp today and there are definitely improvements to make, especially when we looked at the second half, where the score was 5-5.

We should have put more points on the board, so our focus this weekend is keeping our intensity beyond 60 minutes and not allowing fatigue to creep in.

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I have to mention Sisilia [Tuipulotu], what a game she had and I was thrilled to see her get player of the match, although she looked so embarrassed!

As a team we had no doubts she was capable of performing like that, it's just great to see her have the confidence and recognise her own strength.

When she first came into our environment as a teenager, she was very quiet and reserved, but the World Cup has really given her a sense of belief in her ability.

I said to her before the game 'you're going to get a try today, I feel it' and she did. In fact she got two, but sadly one was chalked off.

I was thrilled to see Kate [Williams] get her debut. It was a special moment, especially with her dad flying over from New Zealand to surprise her.

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But on the flipside we're all absolutely gutted for Gwen [Crabb] who came off so early. She had worked so hard to come back from her last injury ahead of schedule, and that was down to her tenacity and character.

Let's also talk about that record crowd - of 4,962 - at Cardiff Arms Park. What an atmosphere they created. It's just so amazing to see the women's game evolving.

When you're playing, you don't realise how many people are in the crowd. For me, I just check for my mum and dad, and then once the whistle goes, I'm in the game.

At the end when they let everyone come on the field, it really hit home. I was like 'wow', because we've never had that before.

You're sometimes told you're inspiring a generation, but to actually see it was an incredible feeling.

To have my niece there as well in her first international was very special for me. I had to apologise to my parents afterwards; I only spoke to them for two minutes because so many people wanted to say hello and take pictures. But it's always a privilege, and they said themselves that it was great seeing all that support.

The Cardiff Arms Park crowd broke the previous record for a Wales home game - 4,875 against Scotland last year

Wary of wounded Scots

Our games against Scotland are always close and always very physical. If I'm honest, I think they could pose our biggest threat of the campaign when you put the importance of the game into context.

They'll be hurting after we beat them at the World Cup with Keira Bevan's final kick of the game and the way we came back to win at the Arms Park last year.

But Scotland are a different animal at home, they're a team that play with a lot of emotion, and that emotion can be dangerous. They are going to get the home crowd rallying behind them and they'll be looking to right some wrongs after a heavy defeat to England.

They have a big pack and will probably try to play through us and target our scrums. Our set-piece was dominant at the start against Ireland, but towards the end they found a way through a couple of times, so we need to tidy that up.

Their back line is also dangerous, with some threatening players in their back three. They often get creative with unpredictable play, but if we can be consistent and clinical, I'm confident we'll put in a good performance.

Sioned Harries (left) was player of the match when Wales beat Scotland 24-19 in Cardiff last year

Camp has been really positive again this week. I talked last week about the committees we've formed to keep morale up throughout the campaign.

I'm on the comedy committee and we decided to put together a bloopers reel of the first week.

The best one was Cara Hope hitting a tackle bag and then doing a roly-poly over the front. It was absolutely hilarious, and even better in slow motion!

We also held a baby shower for Caryl Thomas whose wife is expecting, which was great fun with all the typical games. I feel it's important we keep having time and moments like that as a squad. Being cohesive off the field will only make us better on the field.

But our heads are down now as we head to Edinburgh and hopefully by the next column, I'll be talking about two wins from two.

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