Cotter relishing England-Scotland showdown after overcoming Wales

Vern Cotter is relishing Scotland’s trip to England in a Calcutta Cup clash that now has added spice following his side’s superb win over Wales.

Having lost to France in round two, Scotland needed a big performance at Murrayfield to keep their Six Nations title hopes alive but were trailing 13-9 at the end of a disappointing first half for the hosts.

However, towards the end of the opening 40 minutes there was a momentum shift, and Tommy Seymour and Tim Visser scores in the second half, coupled with Finn Russell enjoying a flawless day with the boot, saw Scotland overturn the deficit.

Scotland now have two wins from three and Cotter is excited by what he considers one of the toughest fixtures in world rugby when they visit Twickenham to play the defending champions in round four.

“Yeah [we are relishing playing England], I think so,” he told BBC Sport.

“The boys will obviously enjoy the evening, it’s been a few years since we have beaten Wales so the players can have a couple of cold beers then it’s back to work.

“England at Twickenham is one of toughest fixtures you can get, but we head there with confidence, we will work on things we do well and hopefully we head there with not too many injuries.”

Today’s winners… Scotland! Watch the post match reaction right here! #OurDay pic.twitter.com/BuTu88Kuf9

— Scottish Rugby (@Scotlandteam) February 25, 2017

Cotter felt Scotland made life difficult at times against Wales, but was pleased with the way they fought back in the second half.

“It was nice to be able to turn around a deficit at half-time and work our way to the win,” he added. 

“We didn’t make it easy for ourselves and we complicated the issue, but we showed real guts and desire and can see the boys threw their bodies into it. 

“We were competitive at the break down, which eased the pressure and I’m happy to come away with a win.”