Emma Wassell says tough conversations need be had in the Scotland camp this week after they fell to defeat against Italy on Saturday.
Italy captain Manuela Furlan scored a hat-trick at Scotstoun to steer her side to a 41-20 win that means they will face Ireland in the third-place play-off on Super Saturday.
Scotland will host Wales in the fifth-place play-off after two Pool A defeats – they lost 52-10 to England in Round 1 – and second row Wassell admits they are disappointed with the result and performance, although believes there are some positives to take.
“It is good to still be here because we can look at it together. We can have some tough conversations, which need to be had,” she said on The Nick and Mo Show on Instagram.
“We are disappointed but there are things we can take from it. We had two players winning their first caps, which is big for them and us in terms of building our depth.
“Evie Gallagher got the start and played brilliantly, considering it was only her second cap. Italy were a totally different challenge to England and we knew that was going to be the case.
“How we reacted to it was not out how we trained. We have a game next week and we will look forward to that.”
Scotland fell 12-0 down to Italy but rallied impressively, with Lana Skeldon scoring a try and Helen Nelson kicking both a conversion and penalty to cut the gap to two points.
But Italy hit back before half-time through Ilaria Arrighetti, whose score allowed the visitors to stretch clear again, 19-10.
Vittoria Ostuni Minuzzi’s try early in the second half secured the bonus point for Italy with Furlan getting her second just before the hour-mark.
Rigoni completed her double and despite Wassell’s late score, it was Furlan who had the final word to seal her hat-trick.
“It is not about blaming anyone or creating a bad environment,” Wassell added.
“We can have an honest conversation and people will put their hands up and say it’s their fault, others will chip in and say they could have helped.
“It is hard because there are small fixes. That try before half-time was big and we need to manage those changes in momentum.
“It’s why times like this hurt. It is for Scotland, it is all about putting on the jersey and then also about playing for each other.
“We have a good environment and we know what we have been through in the past. There has been a steady build over a period of time, we expect more of ourselves.”
