Scotland coach Andy Robinson has stood by the SRU's lofty aims © Getty Images

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Scotland coach Andy Robinson hopes that their lofty aims will galvanise players at domestic and international levels.

Scottish Rugby Union (SRU) chief Mark Dodson revealed in June that Robinson's side had been tasked with achieving a Six Nations Grand Slam by 2016 and winning the Rugby World Cup.

Rather than bow to press reaction at the announcement, Robinson believes that the challenge will bring out the best in Scotland's players.

"That's why you're in the sport - to achieve the very best. Everybody involved in Scottish rugby has to get behind the team and work with the Edinburgh and Glasgow teams to be as successful as possible," he told rugbyworldcup.com.

"It's for each player to really challenge themselves to raise the levels of how we want to perform. We want to improve our game understanding and technique, so it's right to have those goals. And with the team having beaten two of the top three sides in the world in the last couple of years [Australia and South Africa] it shows we have the ability to do it. It's about performing on the day."

After slipping to a Six Nations whitewash in March, Scotland produced the best effort of any northern hemisphere side in June - beating Australia, Fiji and Samoa on tour.

"We're really pleased with what happened in the summer," Robinson said. "One, it gave the players the rewards for the hard work they've been putting in. I didn't feel they got the just rewards in the Six Nations. Second, there was a real spirit. They were united about playing for Scotland.

"When you do lose games under the pressure of the Six Nations the confidence of the players gets tested. But there's been a reignition of the spirit and the confidence. And when you get the rewards of victory, that's what Test rugby is all about. It was pleasing they were able to win the games in different ways.

"We outscored Fiji with four tries, we scored three tries against Samoa and had a very good defensive performance against Australia. So we won it in different conditions. Extreme conditions. We went from the rain and wind of Newcastle to the searing heat of Nadi."