Scots tell Leslie: We'll beat France for you

Scotland’s beleaguered squad have rallied round disgraced flanker Martin Leslie and vowed "We'll beat France for you".

Leslie has apologised to skipper Bryan Redpath and the rest of his former team-mates for the incident against the United States on Monday which landed the 31-year-old with a massive 12-match ban which will end his international career.

Although the Kiwi-born back-row has continued to insist the knee which caught Jason Keyter in the side of the head at Suncorp Stadium was accidental, he will be forced to watch tomorrow’s vital Pool B clash with France on TV as Scotland try to come to terms with his absence.

But Redpath insisted Leslie has nothing to apologise for and he continues to be one of the most popular members of the Scottish squad.

“I went to see Martin yesterday,” admitted the Sale scrum-half.

“He apologised because he feels he has let us down but every single player is right behind him. He has been, and will continue to be, a great friend to us all. If that really is the end of his international career, it is a desperately sad way for it to happen.

“He has been a great asset to this team. He came across from another country to play for Scotland and has never shirked a thing. He has had an enormous input into the way we play and he will be a great loss.”

Redpath’s comments emphasise the defiance within the Scottish camp after a miserable series of off-field incidents during the competition, which include being forced out of their team hotel in Brisbane by a local bikers’ convention.

In addition, the elder statesmen in the squad, such as Redpath himself, fly-half Gregor Townsend and winger Kenny Logan, have been criticised for their performances, while coach Ian McGeechan has seen his tactics condemned.

It has all resulted in a siege mentality, which Redpath admitted could actually help his team in their attempts to overcome the French for only the second time in seven outings.

“The players accept they didn’t play as well as they could against the USA but some comments have been personal and others have nothing to do with the game.

“In a sense, it has made us stronger. We are aware of the comments being made outside the camp but we have to stick together and trust each other.”

Redpath is one of only seven members of Scotland’s starting line-up which has experienced the elation of victory over the French.

Although he was not in the side which swept to that famous 36-22 win at the Stade de France in 1999 which helped seal the final Five Nations championship, the 32-year-old Borderer was part of the Scotland sides which won in Paris and Edinburgh in successive seasons in the mid-90s.

In addition, Redpath has the experience of two winters in the French league with Narbonne to fall back on and he is aware of just how much Bernard Laporte’s side have improved in the four years since they were beaten by Australia in the last World Cup Final.

“Their discipline is incredible now,” he said.

“They used to give away lots of silly penalties, but not any more. They play a very wide game and they are pretty quick, so our back-row will need to stay alert to stop them.”

With international retirement looming at the end of the tournament and a quarter-final against hosts Australia almost certain should Scotland lose, Redpath knows victory is vital to prolong his international career beyond the next fortnight.

He does not think it is a bad thing that Townsend and Logan will be alongside him against the French, although he revealed precocious young winger Simon Danielli is almost certain to be called off the bench at some stage.

And he will spend the final few minutes before kick-off forcibly reminding his team-mates to have enough confidence in their own ability to take the French on.

“We have to believe in ourselves,” he said.

“There will be times when we are the only 15 people in the stadium who think we can win the game.

“In order to achieve that we have to keep the error count down and lift our individual performances.

“This is the biggest game of my life and I don’t want to lose.”