STUART Hogg, the Glasgow Warriors full-back, has insisted that Scotland can challenge at the top of the table in the forthcoming Six Nations Championship, a year after they lost all their matches to end up with the Wooden Spoon.
Vern Cotter, the national coach, will this morning announce his squad for the build-up to this year’s tournament, which begins with a home game against England on 6 February. Asked if this could be Scotland’s year, Hogg said he believed it could, and argued that the key was to build on the momentum generated during the Rugby World Cup, when the team only lost out to Australia in the final minutes of their quarter-final.
“I believe so,” he said. “There’s a lot of hard work to be done along the way, but the boys are up for that. Our focus is on winning the Six Nations.
“We've been enjoying our rugby for Scotland. We just need to pick up where we left off in the World Cup.We put in an incredible performance against Australia - it was coming throughout the tournament, and I would have backed us to beat Argentina [in the semi-final] and get to the World Cup final.
“When the squad is named, the boys who are fortunate enough to get selected will put their hands up for that England game and will work incredibly hard to get the victory. It's the biggest game any Scotsman can play in. I've been fortunate to play in a few, but have never had a victory. So here's hoping this year will be the one.”
Last night the Warriors had yet to announced the results of Mark Bennett’s shoulder scan. The centre is a doubt for the start of the Six Nations after picking up the injury against Racing 92. His team-mate Fraser Brown is also due to have a scan on an ankle injury.
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