Friday 21st September 2007
Scotland flank Allister Hogg is optimistic about his team's prospects in the much anticipated Pool C decider against the All Blacks at Murrayfield on Sunday.
Hogg, told the NZPA that the critical factor on Sunday would be for Scotland to believe they could beat the world's No. 1 ranked team.
While many pundits might be willing to debate whether Scotland will come close against the All Blacks, Hogg feels that there is sufficient reason to believe the Tri-Nations champions could falter.
He firstly argued that the final result in the 29-10 defeat to the All Blacks the last time the two teams met at Murrayfield, in 2005, wasn't a true reflection of the match.
Hogg added that he thought that match was a lot tighter than it looked.
However rugby followers will recall that particular match had already been secured by the All Blacks in the first-half, something which Hogg may or may not acknowledge.
The Scot added that there was a disallowed try in the dying moments of that game, which could have changed the complextion of the game. He said the effort showed the character that existed within the Scottish team nonetheless.
"And we ought to have had a pushover try awarded, while [replacement wing] Simon Webster went over near the end to show what we can do in what was probably the best home nations performance against them on that tour," Hogg explained.
Hogg said that same fighting spirit needed to be displayed on Sunday.
Hogg said it would all boil down to being assertive at the start of the match, making particular reference to Italy's early capitulation against the All Blacks in the opening Pool C game a fortnight ago.
"I think losing early scores against them caused Italian heads to go down, so Scotland aim to be the first team to really test these All Blacks," added Hogg.
Former Scottish flank John Jeffrey, who incidentally was the last Scottish flank to score three tries also against Romania believes Scotland's whitewash over Romania on Tuesday was crucial for the team's confidence ahead of the All Black clash.
"Romania really was an ideal victory; it was morale boosting, particularly through the clean sheet, yet with sufficient means of keeping feet on the ground," said Jeffrey.
He also commented on the possibility that Frank Hadden would rest his star players against New Zealand.
"As for the remainder of the tournament, what is important for Scotland is that they qualify for the knockout stages and if that means mixing and matching the lineup to face New Zealand, I have no problem."
The Scottish team will be announced at 16.00 on Friday.
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