mens
nations-championship
Gregor Townsend said hello Scotland for what he considered one of their best defensive performances as they closed out a hard-fought 15-12 win Australia in a hand-to-hand fight at Murrayfield.
The Nations Championship the clash between two sides known for cavalier rugby did not ignite as a spectacle, with just two tries apiece as wet conditions took their toll.
Matt Fagerson and Jack Dempsey led the Scots 12-5 at the break, with Harry Potter hitting back for the Wallabies.
A late Finn Russell penalty eventually gave the hosts some breathing room before Max Jorgensen’s 80th-minute try reduced the final deficit to three.
Although neither side could get the ball rolling in attack, Townsend was delighted with the way Scotland, who have kicked 38 points in five of their previous six matches, restricted Australia to their lowest output since a 25-7 loss to England last November.
“I think it’s one of our best defensive performances in years,” said the head coach after his fifth win in six meetings with Australia. “The shots in the first half and the effort in the second half were outstanding.
“I think we deserved to win considering the effort we put in and the fact that we led throughout the game.”
The win lifted Scotland back up Wales to fourth in the Northern Hemisphere table, but their failure to pick up the bonus point has reduced their chances of being able to move higher, even if they win by a wide margin over Japan next weekend.
Townsend, whose side went to the post with a penalty while leading by seven points in the 75th minute, insisted getting over the line against Australia was the priority rather than chasing tries in the closing stages.
“I think it was the right decision to go for the three points to get more than the result,” Townsend said. “We are here to win every game and obviously we lost New Zealand last week so it was important that we won.
“And if we don’t win the tournament, we can’t decide who we play that final weekend, but we’ll have an opportunity to go and win again next week and in the final weekend.
“I felt tactically that the decisions we made were the right ones.”
Influential lock Scott Cummings left in the first half with a thigh injury. “Initially he had an ultrasound, so it doesn’t look too bad,” Townsend said. “He’ll probably get an MRI as well. But he obviously felt he couldn’t go on, so that would put him in doubt for next week.”
