Greig Laidlaw has issued a rallying call to his team-mates and demanded a final push to clinch a Rugby World Cup quarter-final slot. Victory over Samoa in Newcastle on Saturday will send Scotland into the knockout stage for the first time since 2007.
Scotland kicked off their campaign with victories over Japan and USA but were bulldozed by a rampant South Africa. However, Laidlaw insists his colleagues are ready to complete the job at the second attempt when they face the Pacific islanders, whose hopes of escaping Pool B are already over.
The Scotland captain said: “We are extremely motivated. We are desperate to win this match as we want to be in the World Cup quarter-finals. We’ve worked very hard to come from where we were to get to where we are.
“Now we need one more push. We need to put the fact we are regarded as favourites to one side and just look at Samoa. I still think they are a dangerous team. Maybe the fact they have nothing to play for will make them slightly loose but if we defend properly we feel there will be opportunities for us to attack.
“They have dangerous individuals and we will be on guard to make sure we cover up. We’ll give respect to Samoa but I feel if we get our part right we’ll put ourselves in the best position to win.”
Scotland know it is likely to be win or bust. On Sunday Eddie Jones’ vastly improved Japan will take on an American side coming off the back of a 64-0 thumping by South Africa and could snatch second place from Cotter’s men if Scotland fail to beat Samoa.
But Laidlaw insists his side will not be overawed by the task. “It’s different to the Six Nations because it’s now knockout rugby,” he said. “But if you look through the squad, the Glasgow boys clearly know what that’s about.
“They have been to the Pro12 play-offs a few times recently. I won the Challenge Cup with Gloucester last season and the Edinburgh boys got to the final.
“So all the little things add up within the squad. The Glasgow boys can fall back on their experiences, so can the Edinburgh boys and myself. That can only help when it comes to a game like Saturday.”
Vern Cotter’s worst injury fears did not materialise after he named Finn Russell, John Hardie, Ross Ford and Matt Scott in his starting XV.
The influential playmaker Russell has shaken off the ankle knock that kept him out of the 34-16 defeat to South Africa to be named at stand-off. The flanker Hardie, who has not featured since the opener with Japan, has recovered from a head knock, while hooker Ford and Scott are set to play after the concussions both sustained in the Springbok defeat.
Cotter, who has made four changes to his pack and three in the backs, said: “We were mostly concerned with guys coming back from bumps and bruises. It was just about waiting to see who would be ready and who wouldn’t.
“After looking at the way [Scott and Ford] trained I’m positive as best I can be that they will be fine to start. We know there are always little things that put a stick in your spokes but we’re hoping they will come through OK.
“We’re playing this game like it’s a qualifying game. We’re enjoying being in the position to qualify. We know it’s going to be really tough – we don’t anticipate anything else.
“We’ve got 80 minutes to put in a very good performance. We need to perform in certain areas perhaps better than we have done but it’s a great challenge for these guys.”
Asked if the match would be the defining moment of his 15-month reign, the former Clermont Auvergne coach said: “I’m sure you can make a story out of it if you want to. But it’s not about me. It’s about us as a group enjoying this situation.”
Scotland Hogg; Maitland, Bennett, Scott, Seymour; Russell, Laidlaw (capt); Dickinson, Ford, Nel, R Gray, J Gray, Wilson, Hardie, Denton.
Replacements Brown, Reid, Welsh, Swinson, Strauss, Pyrgos, Horne, Lamont.