21 hours ago
10
Quilter Nations Series
Scotland 85 (45)
Tries: Richardson, Van der Merwe 2, Graham 3, Dobie 3, Rowe, McDowall, Horne, Smith.
Cons: Hastings 5 Horne 5
United States 0 (0)
Darcy Graham and Jamie Dobie both scored hat-tricks as Scotland dismantled the United States in a one-sided autumn Test to record their biggest win in Murrayfield's 100-year history.
Duhan Van der Merwe led out the team and helped himself to two tries on his 50th cap as Scotland ran riot against an under-powered and disjointed USA side.
It was 45-0 at half-time as Dylan Richardson started the scoring by crashing over after five minutes and Van der Merwe, Graham and Dobie all crossed twice each in a blistering 40 minutes.
Graham scampered in to complete his hat-trick and move level with Van der Merwe on 34 Scotland tries a few minutes into the second period, and player of the match Dobie was also able to grab a treble late on after moving to the wing.
Kyle Rowe, Stafford McDowall, George Horne, and Ollie Smith also scored in the second half as a late burst against a shell-shocked USA team took Scotland up to an 85-point winning margin.
It will be a different team and a completely different standard of opposition next week when New Zealand come to Edinburgh, with Scotland desperate to secure a first win against the All Blacks.
Nobody coming to Murrayfield expected any other outcome, though the scale of Scotland's victory - their third-biggest - was impressive.
With both sides shorn of some of their players due to the game being played outside of the Test window, it was a chance for others to shine.
Edinburgh back row Liam McConnell was one of those, having been pitched in for his debut after only a handful of club games, and his intensity was clear to see.
His blistering run and basketball delivery set up Van der Merwe for his first, and then his lineout steal eventually ended with Graham collecting Rowe's wonderful pass to score his second.
The 21-year-old made three other scintillating breaks and, had he kept his composure for one of them, would have teed up George Horne for a further score. It was a performance which hinted at great potential.
Dobie also excelled with a typically busy display, starting at scrum-half but then moving out to the wing when Graham was replaced after his hat-trick score.
His silky chip over the top allowed Graham to collect and return the ball to him to sprint under the posts, and his clever support line meant he profited again from McDowall's line break.
Dobie also had a hand in Rowe's second-half try before collecting Van der Merwe's pass off the floor to sprint in for a well-deserved hat-trick.
Graham and Van der Merwe's continuing battle to end their respective careers as Scotland's all-time top try scorer is another entertaining sideshow.
However, while Scotland have every right to take all the positives from a blistering display they know next week against the All Blacks will be a whole different level of Test match than against a USA team missing players and with a club game in crisis.
But with Finn Russell, Sione Tuipulotu, and other cavalry to come back into their side, too, Scotland will face the Haka next week with more confidence of a win than ever before.
Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend: "Straight away, the players were very cohesive which is hard to achieve in a week's training, with a brand new team, but it just shows you the togetherness this group has, but also how hard they worked.
"We asked for effort and physicality and we got that for most of the game, clearing the ball in contact, but also when we had to defend. We were aggressive, and disciplined in the main.
"The players really worked hard for each other. It's great there was such a big crowd tonight, and they got to see our strengths. We've obviously got a few very talented guys in our team."
Scotland back Jamie Dobie: "Fun is one of the words to describe that. It can be tempting to go off script, but we didn't do that and that's why we scored 80-odd points, because we stuck to the plan.
"The most pleasing thing is to keep them scoreless. It was a big focus point before the game, and even more so at half time.
"I'm loving my rugby at the moment. It's been a good start to the season, and that's the same for a lot of the boys in the squad."
Scotland: Rowe, Graham, Smith, McDowall (c), Van der Merwe; Hastings, Dobie; Sutherland, Harrison, Rae, Cummings, Sykes, McConnell, Richardson, Dempsey.
Replacements: Morris, McBeth, Walker, Samuel, Williamson, Bradbury, Horne, Thompson.
United States: Storti, Wilson, Besag, Boni, Fricker; Hilsenbeck, De Haas; Lindenmuth, Geiger, Davis, Redelinghuys, Damm (c), Helu, Daniel, Ryan.
Replacements: McNulty, Telea-Ilalio, Niuafe, Nawali, Alikhan, McVeigh, Lopeti, Carty.
