Greig Laidlaw believes the current Scotland squad is the best he’s known in four years on the international scene, which bodes well for a crucial 12 months ahead.
The 29-year-old earned his 34th Scotland cap when he led the team to victory over Tonga earlier this month – almost exactly four years after making his debut in a bruising 49-3 defeat to the All Blacks at Murrayfield.
And Laidlaw believes coach Vern Cotter has now built a team capable of challenging at next year’s RBS 6 Nations and World Cup to make it a 2015 to remember.
“Scotland is a very positive set up to be in at the moment and it’s probably the best squad I have ever been involved in,” said Laidlaw, who played in all five RBS 6 Nations matches earlier this year.
“I think this autumn that has shone through in our performances and we played really well in all three games, but unfortunately came up short against the All Blacks.
“There are a lot of things to take away from the autumn and bring into the 6 Nations, but we’ve been here before with Scotland and everyone needs to keep working hard at their respective clubs.
“We can absolutely catch a few sides unawares at next year’s tournament – it’s a huge competition and one we desperately want to do well in.
“We’ve now got a core of really talented players for Vern to pick from and a settled team, so although it will be a huge challenge we’re aiming to do something great in the 6 Nations.”
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