Praise, where praise is due: for the third game running Scotland looked in trouble with 10 minutes to go; and for the third game running they found a way to win.
Compare and contrast that with the seven defeats that preceded the full house of victories on this tour.
Yet it is not carping to point out that, in terms of the rugby they played, this was among the Scots' worst performances of the season.
This success was a triumph of will and determination, aided by a certain amount of naivety from the hosts, and a demonstration that whatever sucked the spirit out of the side towards the end of the RBS 6 Nations has been overcome.
When it mattered, Scotland found the moment of brilliance to get the try they desperately needed and they found their heroes. Step forward Mike Blair, discarded from the starting XV, but who came off the bench at half-time to provide the spark when the Scots were on the edge of the abyss of defeat.
It was his charge-down of a defensive kick that gave his side one last chance; it was his tap penalty that wrong-footed the defence. That set the stage for an even more unlikely hero to step up, Glasgow's Rob Harley, who has spent two years as the nearly man of the Scotland squad.
As Blair drifted away and pulled the defence with him, Harley, finally making his debut off the bench, came charging up on his shoulder to take the inside pass and steam through a gap as big as the Grand Canyon.
Greig Laidlaw converted to put Scotland in front by a point, less than a minute before the hooter sounded. Harley said: "I have to give the credit to Mike. He called the play but it wasn't necessarily going to me. The idea was to hit up quickly and for him to have the option of hitting whoever he liked.
"He saw the hole and drew two players on to him to put me through. He made my job very easy. I think scoring the winning try on your debut is every kid's dream. I guess it will sink in eventually but just now it is just unbelievable."
The celebrations at the end were a more muted response than had been seen, for example, in Australia. This was partly due to pure exhaustion, especially for those who had played the full 80 minutes under the tropical sun.
Partly it was that in their heart of hearts, the players knew they could easily have lost and thrown away all the momentum the tour had built up.
You have to feel sorry for Samoa. They had thrown everything they had into the game. Fly-half Tusi Pisi had scored a full house of try, conversion, drop goal and penalty but still ended up on the losing side.
Flanker Maurie Fa'asavalu and wing Paul Perez both thought they had scored only to be called back for tiny infringements in the build-up.
More to the point, Samoa held on to the ball, which Scotland didn't, and, with time slipping away, they really thought they had done enough, after centre Paul Williams slipped his tackler on the blindside of a ruck to put Pisi in for his try. Perhaps the ambition went out of their play at that stage. Instead of trying to get even further ahead, they became cautious and started defending so that, after 70 minutes of having the initiative, they were on the back foot. It was enough to revive Scotland's spirits and set up the finale.
What was frustrating about the performance was that when Andy Robinson's side did hang on to the ball, they looked dangerous. Matt Scott, who had an assured game at centre, had created the first try with a scything break.
A couple of rucks later, Richie Gray crashed over the line but was struggling to ground the ball until Joe Ansbro, a late inclusion at centre, nipped in to do it for him.
Pisi kept Samoa in the game, kicking a drop goal and two penalties, while Laidlaw, who had converted Ansbro's try, also put over a penalty and it was all to play for in the final quarter, with Pisi's try seeming to win it for Samoa and Harley's then winning it for Scotland.
Head coach Robinson said: "I thought if we held on to the ball we had them in trouble but we couldn't do that and that is the frustrating part for us. Of course I am pleased with the win, but I am not going to get carried away, although I am pleased for the players.
"That is what we do: we play to win and our whole focus is about winning. We said we wanted to put right the spirit and the confidence of the players and that has happened on this trip.
"Credit to the players, the management, the backroom guys who have worked tirelessly, I am pleased for all of them."
Samoa: F Autagavaia; P Perez, F Otto (L Lui, 28), P Williams, D Lemi (C); T Pisi, K Fotualii; S Taulafo (C Johnston, 75), T Paulo (O Avei, 65), C Johnston (L Mulipola, 41), F Lemalu, D Crichton (I Tekori, 41), B Masoe (A Aiono, 58), M Faasavalu, K Thompson.
Scotland: S Hogg (Glasgow); S Lamont (Glasgow), J Ansbro (London Irish, M Evans, Castres, 58), M Scott (Edinburgh), T Visser (Edinburgh); G Laidlaw (Edinburgh), C Cusiter (Glasgow, M Blair, Brive, 44); R Grant (Glasgow), R Ford (C) (Edinburgh, S Lawson, London Irish, 65), E Murray (Newcastle), A Kellock (Glasgow, T Ryder, Glasgow, 70), R Gray (Sale), A Strokosch (Perpignan), R Rennie (Edinburgh), R Vernon (Sale, R Harley, Glasgow, 63)
Referee: J Peyper (South Africa). Att: 15,000
