Scotland please their coach but few others are impressed

IT WAS easy to wonder if Ian McGeechan had been watching the same game, so generous was the Scotland coach in praise of his team’s efforts at Murrayfield on Saturday.

Despite Scotland’s dismal overall record since his return to the job in 1999, McGeechan remains a highly respected coach. Maybe then it is best to believe what if he says.

On Saturday, though, he glossed over the inadequacies of a performance in which winger James Craig showed no sign he has overcome the problem of being unable to catch the ball with clear ground in front of him.

McGeechan’s view was not altered either by the fact outhalf Duncan Hodge proved again he is not dynamic enough to open up games at international level, while Gregor Townsend fluttered in and out of the game in his new role at outside centre.

The bare facts indicate Scotland struggled to overcome an Italian side whose only previous Six Nations victory came when the two teams clashed in Rome last year and who conceded 80 points to England last month.

No one could accuse the Italians of being unlucky — Scotland’s dominance of territory and possession meant they were worthy winners.

But equally, few in the 60,000 crowd would have been surprised if the visitors’ late flurry had brought them the try required to overturn a four point deficit. ‘‘I would be unhappy if we weren’t opening teams up,’’ said McGeechan. ‘‘It is easy to look at the score and say you didn’t finish them off, but we created plenty of opportunities.

‘‘If we had managed to get ourselves a few more points ahead Italy would have been forced to play in a different way. But the longer the game goes on and the scores are still tight they will always have a chance because of Diego Dominguez.’’

The Italian outhalf threatened to inflict more misery on the Scots following his match winning efforts of 12 months ago with a perfect five from five goalkicking record which nosed his side in front with less than 15 minutes remaining.

Fortunately for Scotland, Hodge proved almost as reliable.

Scotland’s early momentum was brought to an abrupt halt when Mauro Bergamasco broke down the blindside from halfway, skipped through Townsend’s tackle and then outpaced Bryan Redpath and Chris Paterson for the first half’s only try.

Italian coach Brad Johnstone heaped praise on his 21-year-old flanker after the game, while Paterson could only comment: ‘‘He is quick, very quick.’’

Relations between the Italian federation and their coach have been strained for some time, but Johnstone brushed off the effects another defeat will have on his position.

‘‘I don’t think losing this game has put any more pressure on me.”