MEMORIES fade fast in a sport where so many international fixtures are played. Right now we may recall every try, every controversy, every success and failure from the 2017 Six Nations, but in a few years’ time our collective recollection of it will be reduced to a few bullet points.

So what will be our abiding memory of this year’s Championship? From a Scottish point of view, two facts will last above all others, with one hopefully being seen as of greater lasting significance than the other. One is the three home wins - something last achieved more than a decade ago. The other is the loss to England, where the record margin of defeat was equalled, and a new record for points conceded was set.

Vern Cotter did not set out a target before the tournament started, but last week before the Italy game he mentioned that two wins had been the basic aim. The thinking was probably that, given how poorly the team has started the tournament in previous years, winning first up against a side as strong as Ireland could be a tall order. Beating Wales and Italy once everything and everyone was up to speed was a more realistic prospect.

In the end, then, that basic aim was surpassed, and the three wins that were achieved represented an improvement on the previous season. The England game was a nadir, of course, emphasising in the most painful way possible that the squad which Cotter will soon hand over to Gregor Townsend still has a lot of maturing to do. Conversely, the loss in Paris, in a game which was the most physically punishing Scotland have played in for some time, showed how much character the side can show in adversity - and on another day they might have won it. As it was, the 22-16 defeat gave the team their first ever bonus point in the tournament.

The introduction of bonus points will of course be something for which this year’s Six Nations is remembered from a more general perspective, and it is certainly curious, after decades in which Scotland ended up with two points or four points or very occasionally 10, to see them finish fourth in the final table with a grand tally of 14.

Just as curious was the fact that in the end, after all those arguments about how their introduction would produce more attack-minded rugby, bonus points had minimal influence on the final table. Scotland, Ireland and France all finished with three wins and 14 points apiece, with their final standings being determined by points differential. The new system perhaps encouraged more interest in the latter stages of games, and it is almost certainly here to stay for all that the organisers insisted it has been introduced only on a trial basis, but it has been far from the resounding success which its proponents were so sure it would be.

While the Scottish men’s team went from two wins last year to three wins this, the women’s team had a more marked improvement, albeit from a far lower base. Having last won a Six Nations match back in 2010, they claimed two victories this year, beating Wales and Italy at home as well as losing out in time added on to Ireland. Those two wins and a losing bonus gave the women fourth place, the same as the men - and, incidentally, in a final table which also saw no impact from bonus points.

Like the men’s team, the women’s squad is relatively inexperienced at international level. Prop Tracy Balmer has just announced her retirement at 34, but otherwise the team is a very young one, with many of its key players being several years away from their peak.

Back-row forward Jade Konkel, the only professional in the squad, is 23. Second-row Emma Wassell is 22, and winger Chloe Rollie, who scored both tries in the win over Italy, is 21. The midfield trio of captain Lisa Martin, Helen Nelson and Lisa Thomson are 26, 22 and 19 respectively.

Rollie grabs the headlines with her elusive running and electric turn of pace, but it is Thomson who may well mature into the most influential member of the side. Phenomenally strong, she has an excellent mix of skills, being as reliable in defence as she is adept in attack. A more than decent international player already while still in her teens, she could be a fixture in the team for the next decade or more.

The men’s under-20 side did not fare so well, winning just one of their games to come fifth ahead of only Italy in their Six Nations. In their case, of course, it would be futile to predict what will happen in the seasons to come given how quickly their squad changes - but for the men’s and women’s senior sides, the future looks very bright. In fact, while standout results tend to be the details which everyone remembers, we may in time look back on both teams’ 2017 campaigns not for a big win here or a heavy defeat there, but as the beginning of a very special period in Scottish rugby.