Dominating at home, the Scots had no trouble disposing of weak Welsh (35-7), Saturday, during the second day of the Six Nations Tournament.
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What if Scotland created a surprise in this 2023 edition of the Six Nations Tournament? After going to bring down England at Twickenham a week ago (29-23), the XV du Thistle offered the scalp of the winner of the 2021 edition (35-7), Wales, unrecognizable at the start of the competition. In Murrayfield, captain Jamie Ritchie and his partners confirmed their very good form by bringing down the Leek XV for the first time at home since the 2017 Tournament.
A balanced first half
More aggressive, with more intensity, Gregor Townsend’s men were able to count on the quality of Finn Russell’s kicking game at first. The opening half did not miss his two penalties to give the advantage to his team (6-0) against the Welsh already in the hard.
Half an hour into the game, hooker George Turner logically came to score the first try of the game by extracting himself from the maul (11-0). Back to the wall, Dan Biggar, the Toulon player, and his partners finally reacted. Captain Ken Owens went flat after a well-negotiated penalty (13-7). And it didn’t take much for Rio Dyer, author of a hand fault on a complicated ball, to come and score a second try just before the break, well shifted to the left side.
Kyle Steyn and Scotland unfold against a dying Wales
From then on, one could have imagined a second period just as disputed between the two nations. But the difficulties of the XV du Leek resurfaced, leaving a boulevard in which the Scots rushed. Three-quarter center Kyle Steyn, twice (51st, 58th), rear Blair Kinghorn (71st) and third line Matt Fagerson (79th) came to widen the gap after the break.
Still in agony, and already crushed last weekend by Ireland (10-34), Wales did not reassure, far from it, to the point of being a credible contender for the Spoon of drink. For Scotland, on the other hand, this show of force will boost confidence before going to challenge the Blues on February 26 (at 4 p.m.). The XV du Chardon is the only team, with Ireland, to still be able to achieve the Grand Slam.
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