Scots must match Ireland up front and hope Finn has his day of days
LEADING MAN; Scotland's Finn Russell.
It's all to play for in Paris on Saturday night.
Six Nations rivals Ireland and Scotland will face off in Saint-Denis with World Cup progression on the line.
Gregor Townsend's side can unlock the permutations by beating Ireland well and dumping the top-ranked side in the world out of the tournament. It's a huge challenge, according David Barnes, Scottish rugby writer.
"We've talked a lot about the permutations and being at a World Cup - from a Scottish point of view, you've got to figure out what you need to do to get through," he told the Rugby World Cup podcast.
"But by doing that there's been a wee bit of an oversight in Scotland; you know, actually just beating Ireland is no easy matter.
"And I kind of worry a wee bit that we've kind of lost focus of the fact that all these permutations are pie in the sky really unless Scotland produce the best performance of the Gregor Townsend era probably.
"They've never beaten the No 1 team in the world, they've never beaten a team ranked higher than them at a World Cup.
"It would be typically Scottish if we managed to scrape some kind if positive result against you and still don't get through. But I don't see Ireland doing that either - it's just not in their DNA. They'll want to go out and put out a statement before the quarter-finals."
If the Scots are to pull off a shock win that'll burst many predicted tournament brackets, one man will be at the centre of the drama.
"It's all about Finn Russell," says Barnes. "If they can live with Ireland up front and Finn Russell has his day of days, then we could put the frighteners on Ireland."
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