Scotland 23-26 Wales
Gatland relieved after stiff Scotland test
ESPN Staff
February 15, 2015
Jonathan Davies went over to set Wales on their way to glory © Getty Images
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Warren Gatland says he was relieved after Wales came through a hard-fought victory against "the toughest Scottish team they have faced in a long time".

It was Wales' eighth win in a row against Scotland as they revived their title hopes following last week's defeat to England, and Gatland was full of praise for his side's defeat.

"There's satisfaction and relief," he told the post-match press conference. "We've taken a lot of criticism after last week - particularly our second-half performance.

Marginal gains guide Wales to glory

© Getty Images
  • In the end it was hard not to feel sorry for Scotland; so much fire and enterprise in their first two matches and so little to show for it.
  • That least desirable of near-annual events, a potential wooden spoon decider against Italy, looms again. Both teams have played some excellent rugby in losing four matches between them, so it will probably be a shocker.
  • Read the full verdict from Murrayfield here

"Today we've gone and deserved the result and deserved the victory. It was a tough game out there. The players said afterwards that it was the toughest Scottish team they'd played in a long time.

"It's always difficult to get a result in this competition away from home, so we're pretty happy with that. Both teams fought really hard to the end.

"The big thing today was that our kick and reception stuff was outstanding. We got dragged into a game we didn't want last week. It was very slow.

"We got dragged into a dog-fight last week and we didn't want that to happen today. We defended exceptionally for a number of phases."

Wales captain Sam Warburton sang Scotland's praises after his team bounced back from losing 21-16 at home to England last week.

"My first game against Scotland was in 2010. I have played against them five times, and that was the toughest match they have been involved in," Warburton said.

"They were powerful at the breakdown and their driving lineout was effective, although we managed to deal with that as the game went on.

"They were impressive, and it's going to take a big performance for anyone to come up to Murrayfield and win, because it's extremely tough.

"It was really important to grind the win out. Every game becomes a must-win game, and there is a lot of pressure on every game now.

"It would take a mathematical miracle to win the Six Nations with three wins. We came up here knowing if we lost, that was the championship race over for us, so we were under a lot of pressure to deliver the win.

"That's why I am so delighted. Murrayfield is a tough place to come, and we got the win."

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