The undermanned and inexperienced Tongan side that ran onto Murrayfield on Saturday afternoon, proved (as expected) prime meat for Scotland’s return to the test arena. Following the cancellation of their Summer series with Romania and Georgia, the men in tartan blue made up for their eight month absence from the international area with a 60-14 walloping of the Ikale Tahi on home ground. Missing some of their best men themselves (although nowhere near to the extent of the Tongans), Scotland overpowered their opponents through the clinicality and evasiveness of an inexperienced, yet lethal back three. Kyle Steyn would be the one to come away with the headlines, becoming the first man in such colors to notch four tries in a test match since Gavin Hastings did so against the Ivory Coast at the 1995 World Cup.
This result was one to be expected, Tonga missing the nous of the majority of their coaching staff, particularly Toutai Kefu in the hot seat. Piecing together a mish-mash of men from all around Europe, many of whom hadn’t put on the red jumper for some years, the team’s lack of fluidity and cohesion showed. Whilst the Scots lined up with eight debutants themselves (four entertaining starting roles), a repeat of the Ikale Tahi’s famous victory at Aberdeen in 2012 was never to be on the cards.
For the first time since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, a buoyant Murrayfield crowd greeted Scotland upon their entry to the field. Led out by Ali Price and Jamie Ritchie, the first time that the home nation had officially named co-captains in a starting test side, there was a sense of focus from those in blue. And with far sterner tests to come against Australia, South Africa, and Japan, they set straight to work from the off.
While Steyn would take a lot of the plaudits come the final whistle, his opposite, Rufus McLean, got the scoreboard ticking with the test’s first try. It came just seven minutes into the contest, the winger picking up a loose ball in front of the posts to dot down rather fortuitously following what had been a spirited start from the Tongans. That would set the Scots in motion, and following a couple of penalties off the boot of James Faiva to ensure the Ikale Tahi got on the board, McLean would secure his brace shortly after. The stage was then laid for Kyle Steyn, and he duly stepped up. The right-winger touched down for his first just after the quarter mark, scything through the opposition line for a well-worked third Scottish try off the back of a midfield scrum.
With Blair Kinghorn running the show from flyhalf, a position he’s only suited in a handful of times previously for his nation (with his preferred option being fullback), the Tongans were at sixes and sevens when it came to their defense. All too easily, the likes of Faiva and Vaea Vaea, among others, parted like the red sea for the opening couple of strikes, and would then continue to do so for the majority. That would encourage Pierre Schoeman to get in on the act, the debutante loosehead powering over from close range for the hosts fourth. A quickfire double followed for Steyn as the half petered out, blowing the scoreline right out. The right-winger would secure his hat-trick, sending Scotland to the break with a 36-9 lead.
It was looking ugly for Tonga at halftime, but Grant Doorey’s decision to opt for fresher legs at the start of the second period would help their cause, ensuring the Ikale Tahi blunted a number of early Scottish attacks out wide. With McLean and Steyn now struggling for the space and room that had come so easy in the opening forty, Gregor Townsend turned towards his forwards to get the job done. George Turner would duly respond, the Scots highlighting the might of their pack with a try off the back of a driving maul. That would be the hosts seventh of the evening, but just as it appeared Scotland had it figured out, Tonga replied with their most impressive period of the contest. Joined by Onehunga Havili off the pine, Foto Lokotui and Tanginoa Halaifonua got to work in the loosies, driving their men up the field with numerous powerful runs. All of a sudden the tide had turned, Scotland now the ones who found themselves under the pump. That’s when the hosts' ill-discipline began to show, guilty of conceding consecutive penalties and slowing down the Tongan pack, all resulting in a yellow card for Rob Harley near the hour mark. With the man advantage, David Lolohea duly barged over to offer the Ikale Tahi some brief respite, the scoreboard now reading 41-14.
Scotland would retake the ascendancy not long after though, Aisea Halo joining Harley in the bin for the visitors. Up until the final ten minutes of the second half, Doorey’s side had held firm relatively well (of stark contrast to their first half defensive efforts), but with the pressure mounting and the legs beginning to give way (evidenced by Loni Uhila’s slip against Zander Fagerson at scrum time), the gates opened once more, Scotland profiting from a final flourish. Haining and Kebbie would cross as Townsend’s forward replacements added some late fervour, before Steyn secured a piece of history with his fourth try of the test match.
Another daunting task awaits the Ikale Tahi at Twickenham next weekend, Grant Doorey’s inexperienced side expected to provide cannon fodder once more for the English. Devoid of their core men and a settled group of players, all alongside a makeshift coaching set-up, it’s hard to see the Tongans making much progress across their tour. Whilst such tests will offer up invaluable experience, many of the men put together may not ever pull on that red jersey again, ensuring the combinations put in place may in fact prove meaningless come World Cup time. We saw Manu Samoa cancel their European tour for those same reasons, the inability to fly out their coaching staff and main men from Australia and New Zealand proving too difficult a task. Whilst the Ikale Tahi have found a way around such problems, somewhat miraculously, many may question whether cancelling the tour and joining their near neighbours may have been the better option instead.
You flip the coin however, and the Scottish will have been very pleased with the takeaways from their performance. Having made considerable progress in recent times, their last test match being a famous away victory in Paris to conclude the Six Nations, this encounter may prove the perfect warm-up for sterner challenges to come. Such a showing will also have given Gregor Townsend plenty to think about when it comes to selection, McLean, Steyn, Kinghorn, Graham, and Tuipulotu all having put their hands up for appearances in the Autumn tests to come. Watch out for this Scotland side, a well-rounded blend of experience and youthfulness promising an exciting few weeks in Edinborough.
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