Scotland open their World Rugby under-20 Championship campaign against the four-times champions New Zealand tonight at Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi, Parma in the first of three matches in Pool C.
Sean Lineen's youngsters have the chance to create history by becoming the first Scottish side to defeat the formidable All Blacks.
New Zealand have never finished lower than fourth in the global under-20 championship but it was their four titles from 2008 to 2011 that marked them out as world beaters. Since 2012, however, South Africa and then England have emerged as champions, knocking the junior All Blacks off their prime perch.
Despite this marginal decline, New Zealand are still expected to be in the mix for overall honours when the competition reaches its conclusion on 20th June. And quite simply because the young men who will wear the black shirt have come through a system that is competitive in the extreme, which has big numbers and which hones talent from an early age.
Scotland are playing catch-up in this respect but there are encouraging signs that improvements in youth rugby are showing results, not least in the under-20 Six Nations where Scotland finished in a highest ever third position.
The challenges of the Junior World Championship, however, are different to the Six Nations, mainly because of the problems posed by playing five games in 19 days with a squad of only 28.
For players already in a professional environment coping with this punishing schedule is not as great as for those plucked from the amateur ranks.
"We will come up against players who are playing a level of rugby that we can't dream of," said Lineen, Scotland Under-20s' head coach.
Scotland will have only four days' rest before facing Ireland on Saturday and the same gap ahead of their final pool match with Argentina a week tomorrow. Scotland have finished either in ninth or tenth position, a reflection of depth and of the small number of professional players in the squad.
What the under-20 championship is really all about is developing players for the next level. And in that context Scotland have done rather well, recent graduates including Mark Bennett, Johnny Gray, Adam Ashe and Sam Hidalgo-Clyne
Ahead of tonight's matchNew Zealand-born Lineen was realistically honest. "There's alway a first time to beat New Zealand. But for that to happen we would have to produce our A game and they would have to have an off-day," he suggested.
"The boys are looking forward to the game, however. They've had a good look at videos of them playing in their quadrangular tournament with Australia, Samoa and Japan."
For tonight's match Lineen has rested several front-line players and has handed under-18 winger Robbie Nairn a first taste of action at under-20 level.
Scotland under-20 (v New Zealand under-20): R Howarth (Edinburgh/Gala); R Nairn (George Watson's College/Currie), A Russell (Stirling County), T Galbraith (Melrose), A Coombes (London Scottish); R Hutchinson (Northampton Saints), B Vellacot (Gloucester/Hartpury College); D Elkington (Watsonians), S James (Wasps), C Sheldon (Edinburgh/Watsonians), S Cummings (Glasgow Warriors/Glasgow Hawks), L Carmichael (Melrose), L Wynne (Stirling County), J Ritchie (Edinburgh) captain, A Miller (Edinburgh/Watsonians) Replacements R Graham (Hawick), M McCalllum (Aberdeen Grammar), Z Fagerson (Glasgow Warriors/Glasgow Hawks), N Irvine-Hess (Melrose), M Bradbury (Edinburgh/Boroughmuir), G Horne (Glasgow Hawks), B Kinghorn (Edinburgh Academy/Edinburgh Accies), R Galloway (Birmingham University)
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