Gregor Townsend is adamant that Scotland are equipped to take the fight to the formidable Springbok forwards after watching his side suffer a late loss to World Cup hosts France.
Scotland conceded a late penalty from a scrum to slip to a 30-27 defeat to France in Saint-Etienne, having fought back from a 27-10 second-half deficit to go into the closing stages of the warm-up match stalemated at 27-27.
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This came a week after the Scots defeated Fabien Galthie’s heavily-rotated side 25-21 at Murrayfield, after being reduced to 14 men.
Scotland are in Pool B at the World Cup with defending champions South Africa and current world No 1 side Ireland.
However, buoyed by his side’s performances against France, Townsend said Scotland are ready to battle the Boks for playoff qualification in their opening World Cup clash on 10 September.
“We’re fit enough, we’ve got the game and we’ve got the players to take on any team we come up against, and this was a preparation for what is likely to happen in the World Cup: noisy atmospheres, powerful forwards, especially when we play South Africa, and hot conditions,” said Townsend.
“Our players thrived in that environment. There were elements where we can improve and that will come, and it has come because we’ve seen improvement right throughout the season.
“Our belief has been shaken at times in games, but against France the belief was there. Whether it was as individuals or collectively, we knew we were coming back.
“It is a big disappointment that we didn’t get anything out of that game whether it is a draw or a win.
“We know if that was a World Cup match we’d be sitting here absolutely gutted, but it is a build-up to the World Cup so there are lots of positives out of that performance.”
Photo: Adrian Dennis/AFP