Following Scotland’s 85-0 win over the USA at Murrayfield, here are our five key takeaways from Gregor Townsend’s side’s Autumn Nations Series opener.
The top line
Scotland laid down a real statement ahead of next weekend’s Test against the All Blacks, scoring 13 unanswered tries to thump the USA 85-0.
Things got off to a dazzling start for Townsend’s side, with three tries in the first 10 minutes courtesy of Dylan Richardson, Duhan van der Merwe and Darcy Graham. That only set a trend for the first-half, with Scotland adding four more tries through Jamie Dobie (two), Van der Merwe and Graham again to take a 45-0 lead into the sheds.
Scotland could have been excused for taking their foot off the pedal in the second-half, but if anything, they only doubled their efforts. Six more scores followed in the final 40, with Graham and Dobie completing hat-tricks alongside further tries from Kyle Rowe, Stafford McDowall, George Horne and Ollie Smith.
That performance has now set a precedent ahead of next weekend’s clash, but they also expect a much tougher challenge.
Pretty in pink
Scotland were already heavy favourites coming into the Test, but they were absolutely rampant at Murrayfield. The tone was set early on, with Duhan van der Merwe nearly going over after just one minute, but that missed chance was just a sign of things to come rather than a killer blow.
Come the 20th minute, Scotland led by 28. Come the 25th minute, Scotland led by 40 points. Come full-time, they’d secured an 85-point victory.
The sheer volume of tries was quite something by itself, given the USA actually threw some nice punches of their own, but it was the way Scotland were scoring which left those who’d braved the November Edinburgh weather gleaming.
There was a flair, a pizazz, a desire about the way they went about their business. Their collective eagerness to play flat at the line and draw in defenders allowed the backline to slice through the USA defence like a hot knife through butter. Around that, their support running was also sublime, and allowed them to turn linebreaks into points. Take the two Jamie Dobie tries as the prime example of this, with the scrum-half spawning next to Stafford McDowall and Darcy Graham to finish off their breaks.
Scotland also looked to play expansive rugby at speed. The likes of Graham, Van der Merwe, and Rowe often found themselves getting the ball after just two or three phases, which in turn allowed them more time on the ball and more space to run in too. That allowed Scotland to just put their foot on the throat and kill the game off as a contest early on.
Their attack was one thing, but they also stood up in defence. Newly-appointed defence coach Lee Radford has clearly had an effect on this side, with their system markedly different to what they employed under Steve Tandy. As we’ve seen with Northampton, Radford’s system is based on connection and working as a unit, rather than an aggressive blitz. Scotland did that expertly well, just pushing out together and eventually suffocating their opponents to force a kick.
They will get much harder tests than this one in the coming weeks, with the All Blacks, Argentina and Tonga lined up across the month, but for a first runout, you couldn’t have asked for much more.
Day for wingers
Scotland’s attack was simply superb, but it was a real day for wingers. Of the three players that played out wide, Graham and Dobie scored a hat-trick each and Van der Merwe nabbed himself two as well, and it could have been more too.
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As we’ve already touched on, the desire to play wide early in their phases allowed the trio to get their hands on the ball a lot more than usual, but they all took those chances too. All three wingers hit three-digits for metres, with Dobie notching 124, Van der Merwe 110 and Graham 105, which in turn allowed them to become a crucial cog in their side’s rampant win.
There was a real hunger behind each carry too, with them all seemingly trying to outdo each other too, which only adds to that increased competition heading into the All Blacks Test next weekend.
Fitting 50th
He might have been outscored by both Graham and Dobie, but this performance encapsulated Duhan van der Merwe’s Test career to date. He again proved his poacher’s touch with two scores while charging around like an angry freight train.
The two-time British and Irish Lions tourist has been such a pivotal figure for Scotland since his debut back in 2020, becoming one of the best Test wingers in the game as a result.
Scotland will be hoping this isn’t the first major milestone he hits in a Scotland jersey, but it was a really fitting performance on the day of his 50th cap.
Home of the brave
The USA are set to embark on an ambitious ‘Project Moonshot’ ahead of hosting the 2031 World Cup, with an aim to reach the semi-finals of that tournament, and while this defeat will sting, it’s something they can build on.
Playing against a Tier One nation away from home is an experience a lot of these players simply wouldn’t have had before.
It will hurt, of course it will, as they were well-beaten by the full-time whistle, but they didn’t give up and looked to play right until the end. These experiences will only serve as a positive moving forward.