Scotland need a “10 on 10” match if they are to beat the Springboks, according to former scrum-half Rory Lawson.
It is fourteen years since the Scots defeated South Africa at Murrayfield – a match in which Lawson was captain – and the Boks have won the World Cup twice since then.
“When you welcome a team that has not just done it once, but has done it a record number of times, you know it’s a challenge,” Lawson told BBC Radio Scotland.
“For anyone in a high-performance environment you want to challenge yourself against the best in the world and that is exactly what Gregor Townsend and his crew will be doing this weekend.”
Rassie Erasmus’ side added a fifth Rugby Championship title to their trophy cabinet this summer, but enter the autumn internationals as number two in the world rankings.
“Scotland’s defense will have to be very good. Under Steve Tandy you know what will happen with South Africa, even though they have developed their game to play a bit more now.
“Scotland need to get their attacking game right. Assuming they do all the other things well, you should be able to score points against South Africa because they are scoring points.
“I believe that, on the whole, Gregor Townsend will believe that Scotland’s game – if they score a ten out of ten game – with the way they plan it, they will win the game. I would be surprised if he hadn’t done.” a few little tricks up your sleeve.”
The Scotland attack looked to be at its best in a record 57-17 win over Fiji – and that was without first-choice halfbacks Ben White and Finn Russell.
“We saw a few set pieces against Fiji last week that just showed the creativity, he has picked out all the aspects of the Springboks’ game that he thinks there is even the slightest chance of trying.
“They can have days off. They can have six days out of 10. Some of that you can create yourself by asking questions of them that puts pressure on them. That’s exactly the way Townsend will have looked this week. .”
Leaving aside the hope that South Africa have an off day, Lawson believes Scotland will have to match South Africa in the biggest asset of their game: physicality.
“Every match you know you have to be emotional. Emotion is so important because it is directly related to being physically ready for the challenge.
It’s different against South Africa. You know within their DNA it is physicality. They love body-to-body contact. They generally seek physical dominance.
“That’s the core of what’s important to South African players. It’s what’s important to South African people. Physically, mentally and emotionally you have to be ready for the challenge and know what’s coming.”
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