Northern Edition

Select Edition

Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
New Zealand New Zealand
France France

Scotland player ratings vs Fiji | Autumn Nations Series

Scotland's wing Darcy Graham (C) celebrates after scoring his third try during the Autumn Nations Series International rugby union test match between Scotland and Fiji at Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh on November 2, 2024. (Photo by ANDY BUCHANAN / AFP) (Photo by ANDY BUCHANAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Scotland player ratings: Scotland launched their autumn campaign with an ultimately rousing eight-try victory over Fiji at Murrayfield after cutting loose in the final quarter.

ADVERTISEMENT

Returning wing Darcy Graham grabbed four of them to move into second on Scotland’s all-time try-scoring list on 28, one behind Duhan van der Merwe after the giant flier scorched over for one of his own late on.

Bigger tests await Gregor Townsend’s side with the world champion Springboks hitting town next weekend, and Australia later this month, but a 40-point victory over an in-form Fijian side was a satisfactory start to the month.

Video Spacer

Immanuel Feyi-Waboso – the hype is real

Sizzle reel for England and Exeter star, Immanuel Feyi-Waboso.

Video Spacer

Immanuel Feyi-Waboso – the hype is real

Sizzle reel for England and Exeter star, Immanuel Feyi-Waboso.

Here is how the Scotland players fared:

15. Kyle Rowe – 5.5
Starting his fourth Test at full-back, the Glasgow wing looked composed under the high ball and elusive in attack, showing some nifty footwork to score his third Test try. He won’t enjoy watching back his attempted tackle for Fiji’s first score though. Hobbled off just before half-time with a hamstring injury.

Fixture
Internationals
Scotland
57 - 17
Full-time
Fiji
All Stats and Data

14. Darcy Graham – 8.5
The prodigal son returns. Back in Test rugby for the first time in 13 months, the fleet-footed Borderer looked like he’d never been away. Four tries – the second time he has managed the feat after a quartet against Romania at last year’s RWC, took him to 28 in his 40th Test, now only one adrift of Van der Merwe on Scotland’s all-time list. A nifty one-two with Ashman down the right brought his opener, showed presence of mind to grab his second from Hastings’ penalty cross-kick. Third and fourth were typically sharp finishes. Back with a bang.

13. Huw Jones – 7.5
The Glasgow centre looked razor-sharp in attack. Held short early on, he intercepted a crazy pass from Ravula to race over for his 18th Test try, surpassing Alan Tait as Scotland’s most prolific try-scoring centre, and grabbed his 19th near the end, as well as playing a part in several more. Not always so sure-footed defensively, but a solid outing.

12. Sione Tuipulotu – 6
A relatively quiet game to mark his first outing as sole captain – having twice been a co-captain on the summer tour. Neat interchange with Jones early on and continued to put others into holes rather than make big dents himself. Showed a ruthless side to his decision-making when he opted to kick for goal at 26-5 up. Satisfactory first 80 in command though.

ADVERTISEMENT

11. Duhan van der Merwe – 6.5
Came off his wing looking for work and nearly escaped the clutches of the Fiji tacklers on a couple of occasions. In general he was well contained and struggled to find space to cut loose until the final quarter, when he thundered over for his 29th Test try, to stay just ahead of Graham at the top of the charts. Denied a second in the final play by a Jones foot in touch.

Attack

185
Passes
181
126
Ball Carries
141
440m
Post Contact Metres
327m
12
Line Breaks
5

10. Adam Hastings – 7
Making only his second Test start since facing the same opponents at Murrayfield two years ago, the Glasgow fly-half enjoyed an excellent return to the frontline. Put Rowe over for the opening try and his deft cross-kick from a penalty – assuming he meant it – gave Graham his second. Also involved in several other tries and landed eight out of nine kicks at goal.

9. Ali Price – 5.5
Restored to the starting line-up for the first time since last year’s World Cup, Price didn’t wholly endorse his surprise selection. Tidy enough in his service and used the box-kick well at times, but didn’t offer any great threat with ball in hand himself.

ADVERTISEMENT

1. Pierre Schoeman – 7
The Edinburgh loosehead wasn’t as much in evidence with his ball carrying as usual but he helped earn four scrum penalties from the first four set-pieces and got through a bundle of work in defence with 21 tackles before departing after 49 minutes.

2. Ewan Ashman – 6
A mixed bag from the hooker. Only one missed dart at the lineout and played his part in a strong scrummaging display. Denied an opening try by Schoeman’s obstruction, he laid on Graham’s opener but was sin-binned for a cynical infringement. A tad fortunate not to collect a second yellow after a head on head tackle. Replaced after 49 minutes.

Set Plays

7
Scrums
2
86%
Scrum Win %
50%
18
Lineout
13
94%
Lineout Win %
77%
10
Restarts Received
3
90%
Restarts Received Win %
100%

3. Zander Fagerson – 7
Scotland’s most capped prop – and probably their most important player given the lack of elite back-up – helped earn four straight penalties from the first four scrums in his 68th Test. Also got through 16 tackles in just under an hour before being wrapped in cotton wool for the Boks.

4. Grant Gilchrist – 6.5
The veteran Edinburgh lock was his usual solid self, taking the majority of Scotland’s throws at the lineout and putting in a big shift in defence with 16 tackles.

5. Scott Cummings – 6
Another industrious outing for the Glasgow lock, who matched his second-row partner in the tackling department, played his part in the set-pieces and and made a nuisance of himself in the tight exchanges before trooping off on the hour.

6. Matt Fagerson – 7
Got through his usual power of work on both sides of the ball, carrying hard – one late break showing his stamina – and contributing his usual high quota of tackles in defence. Jamie Ritchie has a battle on his hands to get back in the side.

7. Rory Darge – 7.5
Another who shined in the nuts-and-bolts stuff, the vice-captain topped Scotland’s tackle count with 23 and worked hard to disrupt Fiji flow’s at the breakdown. Not so evident with ball in hand, but very rarely falls below a 7-out-of-10 in his overall output.

8. Jack Dempsey – 6.5
The No.8 was not quite his barnstorming self with ball in hand but was still Scotland’s leading carrier with 14 and also a useful source of lineout ball at the tail – after one early lapse in communication. Attempt to meet a Fiji kick-off with his foot almost backfired, but Tom Jordan’s brilliant cover tackle bailed him out.

Replacements:
16. Dylan Richardson – 6
The versatile Sharks hooker, who can also play flanker, came on nine minutes into the second half and built on the good impression he made on Scotland’s summer tour. Tidy at the set-piece and plenty of energy in the loose.

17. Rory Sutherland – 5
The Glasgow loosehead rumbled around to good effect after coming on for Schoeman and kept his end up at scrum-time.

18. Darcy Rae – 5
Only his second cap for Scotland, five years after his first, after giving Zander Fagerson a breather for the final quarter. England-based alternatives will be available next week, but enjoyed his outing as Scotland ran away with it.

19. Max Williamson – 5
The emerging Glasgow lock replaced club-mate Scott Cummings for the final quarter, adding his heft and athleticism to proceedings. May well shake up the established order with more game-time.

20. Gregor Brown – 5
The versatile young Glasgow forward appeared for the last 13 minutes at blindside, adding further energy to the final knockings as Fiji wilted.

21. Jamie Dobie – 6.5
Replaced Price at scrum-half early in the second half and added plenty of pace and snap at the base of the ruck, keeping Fiji on the back foot.

22. Tom Jordan – 7
The New Zealand-born fly-half, who has completed five years of residency in Scotland, came on for his debut just before half-time, replacing the injured Rowe at full-back. Never look flustered and showed his aggressive side with a thunderous try-saving tackle on Karawalevu.

23. Stafford McDowall – 5
Entered the fray with 15 minutes left and one half-break helped create the platform for another late score.

Related

In this episode of Walk the Talk, Jim Hamilton chats with double World Cup winner Damian de Allende about all things Springbok rugby, including RWC2023 and the upcoming Ireland series. Watch now for free on RugbyPass TV

ADVERTISEMENT

LIVE

{{item.title}}

Trending on RugbyPass

Comments

1 Comment
W
Willie 18 days ago

Scottish Barbarians!

Were any of them born in Scotland?

Join free and tell us what you really think!

Sign up for free
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest Features

Comments on RugbyPass

J
JW 3 hours ago
'Passionate reunion of France and New Zealand shows Fabien Galthie is wrong to rest his stars'

Ok, managed to read the full article..

... New Zealand’s has only 14 and the professional season is all over within four months. In France, club governance is the responsibility of an independent organisation [the Ligue Nationale de Rugby or LNR] which is entirely separate from the host union [the Fédération Française de Rugby or FFR]. Down south New Zealand Rugby runs the provincial and the national game.

That is the National Provincial Championship, a competition of 14 representative union based teams run through the SH international window and only semi professional (paid only during it's running). It is run by NZR and goes for two and a half months.


Super Rugby is a competition involving 12 fully professional teams, of which 5 are of New Zealand eligibility, and another joint administered team of Pacific Island eligibility, with NZR involvement. It was a 18 week competition this year, so involved (randomly chosen I believe) extra return fixtures (2 or 3 home and away derbys), and is run by Super Rugby Pacific's own independent Board (or organisation). The teams may or may not be independently run and owned (note, this does not necessarily mean what you think of as 'privately owned').


LNR was setup by FFR and the French Government to administer the professional game in France. In New Zealand, the Players Association and Super Rugby franchises agreed last month to not setup their own governance structure for professional rugby and re-aligned themselves with New Zealand Rugby. They had been proposing to do something like the English model, I'm not sure how closely that would have been aligned to the French system but it did not sound like it would have French union executive representation on it like the LNR does.

In the shaky isles the professional pyramid tapers to a point with the almighty All Blacks. In France the feeling for country is no more important than the sense of fierce local identity spawned at myriad clubs concentrated in the southwest. Progress is achieved by a nonchalant shrug and the wide sweep of nuanced negotiation, rather than driven from the top by a single intense focus.

Yes, it is pretty much a 'representative' selection system at every level, but these union's are having to fight for their existence against the regime that is NZR, and are currently going through their own battle, just as France has recently as I understand it. A single focus, ala the French game, might not be the best outcome for rugby as a whole.


For pure theatre, it is a wonderful article so far. I prefer 'Ntamack New Zealand 2022' though.

The young Crusader still struggles to solve the puzzle posed by the shorter, more compact tight-heads at this level but he had no problem at all with Colombe.

It was interesting to listen to Manny during an interview on Maul or Nothing, he citied that after a bit of banter with the All Black's he no longer wanted one of their jersey's after the game. One of those talks was an eye to eye chat with Tamaiti Williams, there appear to be nothing between the lock and prop, just a lot of give and take. I thought TW angled in and caused Taylor to pop a few times, and that NZ were lucky to be rewarded.

f you have a forward of 6ft 8ins and 145kg, and he is not at all disturbed by a dysfunctional set-piece, you are in business.

He talked about the clarity of the leadership that helped alleviate any need for anxiety at the predicaments unfolding before him. The same cannot be said for New Zealand when they had 5 minutes left to retrieve a match winning penalty, I don't believe. Did the team in black have much of a plan at any point in the game? I don't really call an autonomous 10 vehicle they had as innovative. I think Razor needs to go back to the dealer and get a new game driver on that one.

Vaa’i is no match for his power on the ground. Even in reverse, Meafou is like a tractor motoring backwards in low gear, trampling all in its path.

Vaa'i actually stops him in his tracks. He gets what could have been a dubious 'tackle' on him?

A high-level offence will often try to identify and exploit big forwards who can be slower to reload, and therefore vulnerable to two quick plays run at them consecutively.

Yes he was just standing on his haunches wasn't he? He mentioned that in the interview, saying that not only did you just get up and back into the line to find the opposition was already set and running at you they also hit harder than anything he'd experienced in the Top 14. He was referring to New Zealands ultra-physical, burst-based Super style of course, which he was more than a bit surprised about. I don't blame him for being caught out.


He still sent the obstruction back to the repair yard though!

What wouldn’t the New Zealand rugby public give to see the likes of Mauvaka and Meafou up front..

Common now Nick, don't go there! Meafou showed his Toulouse shirt and promptly got his citizenship, New Zealand can't have him, surely?!?


As I have said before with these subjects, really enjoy your enthusiasm for their contribution on the field and I'd love to see more of their shapes running out for Vern Cotter and the like styled teams.

287 Go to comments
TRENDING
TRENDING Michael Hooper reacts to Scott Barrett’s controversial late-game call Michael Hooper reacts to Scott Barrett’s controversial late-game call
Search