It wasn’t the greatest of rugby games – Scotland vs Italy matches rarely are these days – but Scotland emerged with a much needed win. Here are our player ratings from the match in Turin yesterday.
Greig Tonks – Had no problems under the high ball and defence remained strong. Another steady game for the fringe utility back. 6
Sean Lamont – Did what was required of him when the ball came his way, although it was a relatively unexceptional performance for his 95th cap. 6
Richie Vernon – Fairly good in defence, although hardly touched the ball until the second half. His replacement, Pete Horne, seemed to inject more pace into the game than Vernon could offer. 5
Matt Scott – Was involved in the very limited attacking chances available in the first half and provided the final pass for Pyrgos’ try. 6
Rory Hughes – Made his mark on the game with some big hits from kick chases. Limited opportunities available in attack with the ball rarely making it past the centres. 6
Duncan Weir – Kicking from hand was steady and from the tee, Weir kept the Scots within touch. Also made a number of good tackles on some of the larger Italian forwards on show. 6.5
Sam Hidalgo-Clyne – Had a strong first half with some clever kicks helping win the territorial battle. Faded after half time, however, with some dodgy mistakes, including failing to identify an overlap close to the try line. 6
Gordon Reid – Went off soon after half time with concussion symptoms, didn’t quite get the opportunity to prove why he should be a more regular feature in the team. 5
Stuart McInally – Finally made his first appearance in the blue jersey, although remained fairly quiet. Scrum and lineout remained fairly solid during this time, although opportunities with ball in hand were limited. 5
Mike Cusack – Penalised fairly often at scrum time, although appeared to be pretty mobile around the pitch in defence. 5
Richie Gray – Very important in the lineout, making crucial steals and helping to provide stability. Was also a rock in defence. 7
Jim Hamilton – Did very little and was guilty of giving away a couple of penalties. Will have a tough battle to gain a place in the World Cup squad. 4
Alasdair Strokosch – Handed the captain’s armband just hours after the game after Gilchrist fell ill, his game today can be best described as ‘content’. 6
John Hardie – Facing more scrutiny than most, Hardie was key in defence with a number of big hits helping to limit Italian momentum. Could have looked to get more involved with attack, something he tried to do before injury struck. 7
Adam Ashe – Stayed quiet for most of the game due to his side’s limited attacking opportunities. Will be looking for another game next week to cement his World Cup place. 5
Replacements:
Ross Ford, Alasdair Dickinson, W.P. Nel – Scrum had issues on occasions, although did what was required at the right time, winning a penalty against the head in injury time to secure victory. 5
Hamish Watson – Was good in defence and made a nuisance of himself at the breakdown. Also got his hands on the ball fairly often. 6
Henry Pyrgos – With Hidalgo-Clyne starting to struggle, Pyrgos combined well with Weir and Horne to increase the number of attacking opportunities available for Scotland. Good decision making resulted in the only try of the game, which he scored himself. 7
Pete Horne – With Scotland behind, Horne’s 12 minutes on the pitch proved to be crucial with a number of clean breaks being made. Scotland then went on the front foot and it wasn’t long before the try came. 8
Damian Hoyland – Very little to report on his debut with opportunities limited in attack and defence. 4
In case you missed the game (as I did – Ed.) here are some video highlights someone put up the whole game over on Youtube:
Which players stood out for you?