We can perform against All Blacks, says Lamont

EDINBURGH, Monday (AFP) Scotland winger Sean Lamont nursed his battered body and admitted Scotland will need a major miracle to go even close to beating the All Blacks.

But despite his side's jittery and narrow 18-11 victory over Samoa at Murrayfield on Sunday, the winger insisted: "Weird things do happen in sport - and we honestly believe we can pull off something special."

Northampton Saints hero Lamont was voted man-of-the-match, however he stressed he would gladly have forfeited the personal prize for a more convincing and clinical team display.

He said: "Samoa made it incredibly tough for us - and we probably did underestimate how strong they could be. They pushed us all the way and in the end we had to scrape out the result.

"They were unbelievably physical and they came at us harder than we maybe expected." Coach Frank Hadden tried to put a brave face on the shaky performance by declaring: "I am absolutely delighted with the win against a very, very tough set of opponents.

"The down side was that we did not capitalise on the chances we created and there is no way we will get away with that against New Zealand on Saturday.

"From a physical point of view, it was undoubtedly the ideal rehearsal for that game - but in terms of accuracy in contact, we will have to be much, much more accurate. "We will have to step up, but I expect this team to take a step up with every match they play. At the moment we are moving towards the Six Nations Championship, and from there we will be seeking to progress on the path to the World Cup in two years."

Hadden admitted the Scots had committed a spate of unforced errors - but explained: "The type of game we want to play is high risk.

"We could easily just kick the ball downfield all afternoon and probably wouldn't make so many mistakes. But we want to get the ball out wide and perform in an exciting manner. It is all about control - and I am convinced that the more we do that, the better we will become.

"In the end, it was an outstanding try that decided the contest and I believe we deserved the victory."

Samoa skipper Semo Sititi pointed to Scotland's superior fitness levels as the main reason for his team's defeat. The Borders star said: "Rugby-wise, I don't think there was much between us - but they wore us down when it mattered.

"We also had opportunities to perhaps sneak a very important win, but we couldn't turn possession and pressure into points."

Sititi added: "Scotland have to be congratulated for sticking to their tempo. They were strong throughout the 80 minutes and they are definitely an improving unit."

Samoa surged ahead during their first raid into the 22-zone. Scrum half Garrick Cowley totally deceived the Scotland back-ranks with a delicate bu perfectly-weighted chip. And with only tiny Chris Cusiter in a position to mop up, burly winger Alesana Tuilagi had a simple task to outreach him, claim the catch and plunge to the deck for a simple touchdown.

Scotland responded in positive fashion, but another series of turnovers and basic slips prevented them from hitting back quickly.

They began to discover their composure, however, and they levelled the contest in the 17th minute through Ally Hogg. The pack clicked into full power to drive the Samoans back over their own line with a well-drilled rolling maul - and back-row man Hogg pounced.

But Samoa maintained the momentum and they edged back in front with an angled penalty by Roger Warren with Paterson replying in identical style to bring the teams level again.

Dangerman Alesana Tuilagi was back on the rampage on the stroke of the interval as he latched on to a chip by Rory Lamont, however Marcus Di Rollo dashed in to rescue the Scots with a timely tackle on the touchline. Samoa earned the opportunity to re-gain the lead two minutes after the restart, but Warren's long-range penalty dipped under the crossbar.

Scotland then produced their most thrilling raid so far. Brothers Rory and Sean Lamont combined slickly before the former dived over in the corner - only for the referee to rule a forward pass from Andy Henderson.