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Hadden hails physical Scots

Saturday 22nd November 2008

Scotland brace: Nikki Walker

Scotland coach Frank Hadden was delighted with the physicality of his side as they swept aside Canada 41-0 in their final autumn Test at Pittodrie.

Nikki Walker crossed twice and Ben Cairns, John Barclay, Alasdair Strokosch and Rory Lamont added further tries as Scotland ended their November series in style.

It was a much-needed victory for Hadden after the meek surrender against New Zealand's second string and the failure to convert a 10-0 half-time lead into a win against South Africa last weekend.

"There's no doubt there was a time when that could have been a very awkward encounter for us," said Hadden.

"The combination of the narrow pitch and the weather conditions which made it very difficult to handle the ball, and it might have been a very difficult day for us had it not been for the platform we created in the scrummage and in the contact area.

"Ultimately we were too physical for the Canadians and with the ball that we got we were efficient and deserved to get the scoreboard ticking over the way we did.

"It was an opportunity for the players to vent some of the frustration of the past two weeks and we were delighted to set the record straight after two tough matches.

"It was good to win this week, put away a few tries and play with a bit of freedom to put ourselves in a good position for the forthcoming Six Nations.

"I think we've made some progress in these November Tests. It would have been easier for people to understand that we had made progress had we beaten South Africa but I certainly feel a lot happier in certain areas of the game.

"That's certainly true of the competition for places in so many positions and I think we were especially physical in all three weeks. People are going to find a different Scotland team these days. That physicality made it difficult for the Canadians."

Hadden was left to lament the injuries to key Argentina players Juan Hernandez and Felipe Contepomi prior to the Pumas' match with Ireland.

Scotland will go into the draw for the pools in the 2011 World Cup in the third tier and face the prospect of playing two rugby powerhouses after Ireland defeated Argentina to maintain their place in the second group of seeds.

"When we heard Hernandez had pulled out just before kick-off we knew it would be difficult not to have him and Contepomi in there and go to Ireland and win," said Hadden.

"When we heard it was 3-3 at half time we thought they might do us a favour but it wasn't to be and perhaps we'll have the good fortune to draw Ireland a week on Monday."

Canada coach Kieran Crowley agreed that the physical nature of the contest had taken its toll on his players.

As they had been in their matches against Ireland and Wales in the previous two weeks, Canada were outmuscled up front.

"It was disappointing for us. We gave Scotland too much time to attack and we were having to scramble all the time in defence," the former All Black said.

"A couple of things didn't go our way and we were made to pay. Scotland certainly kept the pressure on us all day and deserved their win.

"Last week we were outweighed a stone a man against Wales and it must have been the same today. That takes its toll eventually.

"Our guys showed lots of heart but if you get a big man on a small man and they have the same skill level the big man is always going to win.

"We also had some positives because we had three 20-year-olds out there and hopefully they'll go home after this taste of action and we'll work with them to keep progressing.

"We've lost a lot of ground since the game went professional because we have no professional leagues in Canada. But we have made a lot of progress in terms of the training systems that are in place.

"There are a lot of players playing to First Division standard in England but we need to work on physicality and presence to get us to be able to compete with the tier-one countries."