There was a real sense of bullishness from the Scotland camp heading into Sunday morning's World Cup opener against Ireland. That included talk of winning the tournament from Stuart Hogg.
That optimism from Gregor Townsend's side was blown away in Yokohama as Ireland won easily, restricting the Scots to just a single penalty and also claiming a bonus point win.
"Make no mistake, Ireland were an awesomely impressive sight," wrote Duncan Smith for The Scotsman.
Ruthless, clinical and carrying out a simple but effective gameplan with passion, power and purpose.
Scotland, in contrast, once again looked like rabbits in the headlights. Panicked, disjointed and seemingly surprised by what everybody knew was coming - a physical onslaught.
Even Ireland boss Joe Schmidt, one-time assistant to former Scotland coach Vern Cotter at Clermont Auvergne, must have been surprised just how easily it was all falling into place.
In the Herald Scotland, Lewis Stuart said that the Scots were guilty of over-confidence.
"The more Scotland build themselves up, the more they believe their own hype and the worse they seem to play. The hubris was there and the comeuppance was waiting to strike all week."
He continued: "...they got bullied up front and reacted by trying to swing the ball wide before they had done anything to tie down the Irish defence. No wonder there were few gaps for the star runners to exploit."
David Barnes, also of the Herald Scotland, said that the loss could cause them to fall apart.
The big question now from a Scottish perspective is: how will Gregor Townsend’s team recover from this physical and psychological battering before taking on Samoa? What happened here will have shaken them to their core and there is now a very real danger that this World Cup campaign could unravel. A big week lies in store.
In The Courier, Steve Scott put the blame firmly at the door of Gregor Townsend.
"The coaching team seem to be at a loss to explain it. Time and again we’re told that preparation has been detailed and thorough, primed to help the team hit the ground running at tournament speed. Too often they’re so off the pace that the game is already gone before they’ve had a chance to regroup.
"This is on Townsend. It’s his preparation plan, carefully compiled for months beforehand and executed on the training camps to the letter, and it’s his attention to detail that everyone is so impressed by. If it’s in any way off the mark it’s his responsibility."
Photo by Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile
