Scottish Rugby

Sandy Smith
Fan writer

At the end of September 2024, following defeat to Bulls, I wrote that Edinburgh required a specialist lineout coach as inaccuracies in that area went a long way to us losing that game.

Fast forward six months and the very same problem has bitten us again as both our hookers failed to get pass marks for their darts against Benetton and their inability to link with the jumpers consistently has cost us dearly.

It wasn't all their fault, but if you are failing with around half your lineouts then praise or prizes may elude you.

Before we move on from that particular issue, I have a further question. Who was calling the lineouts?

They might want to consider that if you've brought a sub on at hooker that perhaps the first thing you ask him to do, a throw to the tail (probably the hardest throw to get right) might not have been the best option.

Back in September I also criticised our over-dependence on one-out passes and that also haunted us against Benetton.

Just after Ewan Ashman's try, Ross McCann made a great break. He could probably have reached out and scored but instead the ball was recycled and we went through 10 phases of one-out passes on the Benetton try line yet failed to score.

If we had done better there then we would have had a two-score lead and that may have made a huge difference to the final outcome.

Other factors, or excuses if you prefer, that contributed include a ridiculous yellow card for Ben Muncaster in the first half. A contact so fleeting it could have been mistaken for an air kiss.

Benetton's ability to include some players who had been Six Nations regulars such as Simone Ferrari, Ignacio Brex, Tommaso Menoncello and Italian captain Michele Lamaro off the bench. Even the introduction of 40-year-old Agustin Creevy was a point of difference for Benetton.

The rest protocol for Scotland players is not a new thing but we still struggle to deal with these absences.

We started the weekend in seventh and a good win could have seen us in fifth. Instead we are 11th and our race to the eight could be over before you can say boo to a Goosen.

Sandy Smith can be found at The Burgh Watch, external

Grant Young
Fan writer

Glasgow showed why they are the defending champions and a major threat to anyone on Friday night.

A scrappy battle with Irish rivals Munster where Glasgow fought until the end to snatch victory, unlike what they did two weeks ago when they gifted the win back to Ospreys.

There is something pretty special about a Glasgow and Munster game, there's always a good travelling support and it does feel the players understand the rivalry that exists.

Franco Smith was able to add a sprinkling of players that had been involved in Scotland duty but also we saw the return of some injured players.

The return of Sione Vailanu slightly makes up for the injury sustained by Jack Dempsey and the return of Captain Kyle Steyn speaks for itself and the impact he has across the game.

A slow start again hampered Glasgow and early Munster pressure (even when reduced to 14 players) saw them dominate possession and territory. Glasgow showed habits of the previous game where they were wasteful and looked to be overplaying with senseless offloads.

There was a lot you could see that coach Smith wasn't delighted about and starting the second half he made numerous changes. The injection of Matt Fagerson and Gregor Brown likely made the decisive move in the game as the two Scotland players went about destroying Munster and gave Glasgow good forward ball.

Adam Hastings is yet to fire on his return to the pitch with two below-par performances. Duncan Weir ticks Glasgow on but with Tom Jordan moving down to the Premiership and no real noise that the Warriors are bringing in any external signings, will the 10 jersey be problematic?

In the end Glasgow took a big three-point win that continues to cement them within the top two of the URC and actually closed the gap slightly on league-leading Leinster.

Next up, the Lions come to Scotstoun. Expectations are high and no doubt some more Scotland squad players will drop into the squad for selection.

It's an important part of the season for the Warriors. The travelling South African side lost by three to Cardiff last weekend. They sit outside the top eight for now but we can see how close the current battle is from Cardiff in fifth all the way to Zebre in 15th.

The Warriors fans will expect a win and it's over to the players and the coaches to deliver.

Tyrone Smith
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

Image source, SNS

After describing her Scotland debut last weekend as "totally surreal", Adelle Ferrie says "there is nothing that could stop me now".

The 27-year-old came on as a late replacement as the Scots opened their Women's Six Nations account with a 24-21 victory over Wales at Hive Stadium.

A trip to play France on Saturday is next up for the national side.

Having now got one cap, the Corstorphine Cougars second row is determined to make sure many more come her way.

"[It was] just totally surreal," Ferrie said.

"A moment I have wanted for so long and you never know if it is actually going to happen, so it just felt unreal to be out there.

"I have worked so hard to get here, there is nothing I feel like could stop me now just to progress further. I take on everything, the coaches and players are feedbacking to me so there is no stopping me.

"I came to rugby quite late, I started playing when I was around 18 when I was at university so it is not like a dream I have had since I was a young girl.

"Just really in the last four or five years it is something I have aspired to do but I have had coaches say 'this could be possible' so I really tried my best, worked hard to get it, to get that moment.

"There were times I doubted myself, even just a few months ago I didn't think it was going to happen this year.

"After a few conversations with coaches it came alive that it might actually happen."

The men's Six Nations may be over, but there was still plenty rugby to stick our teeth into over the weekend.

As usual on a Monday, we're giving you the chance to put your burning questions about the game to our rugby reporters, Tom English and Andy Burke.

Whether it be on the women's Six Nations opening win against Wales, Warriors' late victory against Munster or Edinburgh's defeat to Benetton, we want to hear from you.

Send your questions via this link, external and they will be answered on this page later in the week.

George O'Neill
BBC Sport Scotland

Image source, SNS

Bench provides much-needed impetus

Glasgow started slowly against Munster on Friday night, and although they went into half-time only a point behind, the visitors had dominated possession and could have led by a greater margin were it not for two excellent Warriors tries.

Gregor Brown, Matt Fagerson and Duncan Weir were all sent on for the second half by head coach Franco Smith, and the forward duo excelled as Glasgow wrestled the momentum their way.

Fagerson crashed his way over for the try that brought the hosts back into the contest and Brown got through an impressive amount of work in both attack and defence - the breakdown penalty he won in the final stages was celebrated like a try.

Horne moves to brink of history

Glasgow's best moment of the first half delivered a magnificent team try, finished off by scrum-half George Horne. It was his 54th in Glasgow colours, moving him level with DTH van der Merwe as the club's all-time record try scorer.

The try reflected all of Horne's best traits. He tracked the run made by Ollie Smith, showed sharp hands to link up with Stafford McDowall and then accelerated away from the final defenders to score.

Van der Merwe was in the stands to see Horne match his tally and it will only be a matter of time until the Scotland international stands alone at the top of the standings.

Glasgow show champion quality

Franco Smith spoke post-match about how it will take time for Glasgow to reintegrate players who have been away with Scotland.

They never reached top gear against Munster, but they did what top teams do and ground out a win without being at their best.

That too against Munster, who are no pushovers.

It would have been easy for Glasgow to panic and force matters when they trailed by four points with five minutes to play.

But they went through phases patiently, got their big ball-carriers into play and eventually wore Munster down, with Nathan McBeth crossing for the game's decisive try.

We asked for your views on Scotland women's Six Nations win over Wales, plus a URC victory for Glasgow against Munster and Edinburgh's defeat at Benetton.

Here's what some of you said:

Edinburgh

Graham: A sloppy display from Edinburgh. Ewan Ashman a nightmare at the lineout. Limited pack aggression and few lines breaks from the backs. Couldn't score from two feet said it all. Warriors second team is streets ahead of this lot.

Joe: I thought now that the Six Nations was over, we'd seen the end of the ridiculous refereeing against Scotland. Seems not though as the Edinburgh game had two TMO checks against Edinburgh but none for tackles made by Benetton and several forward passes that were ignored. Enough is enough. Time for SRU to call it out and hold officials to account.

Adam: Very disappointed with Edinburgh's display. Yet again we are playing a safe and unimaginative game. Set-piece, high kick, repeat. The lineouts were truly terrible. Our hookers need to learn to throw in or step aside. We did not deserve to win. Let's find another coach for Edinburgh please.

Rab: Deep in my heart I knew they would choke and loose. Typical of Edinburgh!

Glasgow's win

Geoff: Great win but not the best performance. The weakness at 10 must highlight the folly of losing Tom Jordan!

Keith: Good result against the odds.

Mark: Wow what a match, Glasgow had to dig deep, but it always feels nice to beat Munster, especially as I live in Ireland. It's a result that keeps us above the wacky races of the top eight in the URC. Well done boys.

Jim: Glasgow showed their winning mentality to get over the line in the end. It's difficult to have any sort of continuity with so many players missing. Glasgow should thank Gregor Townsend for not selecting Johnny Mathews or Nathan McBeth. The later really made a difference in the scrum as well as his try.

Scotland women's win

Stu: The bunker review system is in desperate need of clarifications. Two yellow cards is a full red card and cannot be replaced according to the laws but apparently if it's referred to the bunker for foul play, it becomes a 20-minute red? No wonder fans and players were confused when Wales were allowed to go back up to 15 players.

Will: Hopefully the Women's XV can be the first professional Scottish team to win in Paris. Scotland won during Covid with no pressure from fans in the cauldron of the Stade de France. Still waiting in my opinion.

It was a busy day for Scottish sides on Saturday, as Edinburgh fell to a disappointing defeat at Benetton before Scotland began their Women's Six Nations campaign with a hard-fought win against Wales.

Who impressed for you in either game and what was your reaction to the respective results?

Give us your thoughts on both matches, external.

Image source, Getty Images

Scotland captain Rachel Malcolm tells BBC Sport: "We knew they would bring a huge amount of energy which they did.

"We said at half-time we needed to up it and our game management at the end there was crucial.

"Our breakdown today was not what it needs to be. Wales are probably one of the best sides [in that area], but we need to be a bit quicker. Breakdown is the biggest thing because we showed today how dangerous we can be when we get it right."

Glasgow fans, what did you make of your side's performance in their narrow URC victory over Munster? Who was the standout performer for you?

Have your say on the match.

Image source, SNS

Glasgow head coach Franco Smith tells Premier Sports:

"Fortunately we got it done, even if we made it hard for ourselves again.

"We were our own enemies for most of it, but I'm happy to win even if it wasn't our best performance.

"We've had more than 20 boys away with the national team, only had two sessions leading up to this game. We need to add these boys to gel again. Next week the rest of the boys will come back and we'll face the same challenges.

"We missed touch three times from penalties, lost the gain-line most of the time tonight, couldn't get our attack shape, but credit to Munster - they are a well-coached team. We'll take that compliment in winning anyway tonight."

Image source, SNS

Edinburgh head coach Sean Everitt makes one change to the side that won away to Munster last month for Saturday's URC trip to Benetton.

Hamish Watson replaces fellow Scotland flanker Luke Crosbie, who misses out with an injured pectoral muscle.

Youngsters Freddie Douglas, Cammy Scott and Jack Brown are named on the bench, with the latter in line for a club debut.

Ben Vellacott captains the side having signed a new two-year contract earlier this week.

"The Munster performance has set the standard for how we need to play away from home, and we'll need to play like that against Benetton on Saturday," Everitt said.

"It's great to have some of our younger guys in the replacements. Cammy Scott ran the game well against Saracens, while Freddy and Jack have both impressed for Scotland Under-20s – they've earned their spots in the squad and I'm excited to see the impact they can bring."

Edinburgh: Goosen, Currie, Lang, M Tuipulotu, McCann, Thompson, Vellacott; Venter, Ashman, Hill, Sykes, Skinner, Muncaster, Watson, Bradbury.

Replacements: Harrison, Hislop, Rae, Young, Douglas, Price, Scott, Brown.