How Scotland are moving in right direction after Six Nations

 The veteran Edinburgh Rugby lock is better placed than most to give his verdict on the difference between this Scotland side and teams of the past, considering he has been part of the national team set-up for 13 years. 

 And Gilchrist believes Scotland are on an upward trajectory despite ending their campaign with a 12th consecutive defeat to Ireland in Dublin on Saturday.   

“I think you get caught up too much in our record against them,” he said. 

Grant Gilchrist reflected on the campaign (Image: PA)

"They don't lose a lot of games here against anybody – they are a quality side.  

“In years gone by, 19-7, we wouldn't have got ourselves back into the game. We fought back into the game, gave ourselves that opportunity to go and grab it. They came back off the ropes better than we did.  

"I just think this is about us just heading on the same path now. Keeping looking for those improvements, keep having experiences like Saturday.  

“In some of the games, we were able to do it. We were able to do it in Cardiff when we were behind. We weren't quite able to do it on Saturday.  

“The more we put ourselves in those positions, get used to winning them, that's the next step for us." 

In that 12-match, nine-year losing run, Gilchrist has been part of Scotland sides that have been blown away by Ireland. That was most noticeably the case at the 2023 Rugby World Cup when Ireland were 36-0 up before Scotland rallied with two late tries.  

But despite another defeat on Saturday, the former Scotland skipper believes they are closer then ever to ending their miserable run against the Irish.  

He added: “You don't have to be too much of an expert to watch us play over the Six Nations and see that this is a better team. This is a team that is going somewhere. I believe that." 

And Gilchrist is desperate to be part of the Scotland side that does end their Ireland hoodoo.  

The lock lost his place after a poor display in the opening round against Italy, but bounced back well off the bench against Wales and France before saving his best to last, with a towering showing at the Aviva.  

“I'm determined to keep doing that until I'm not good enough,” he said.  

“That will come for me one day. Until that day, my sole focus is becoming a team that can go and win things. We have to look at this as a stepping stone towards something else. It's a big step up from where we were in the autumn.  

 "There's a lot to build on. I think that's got to be the focus now.” 

And Gilchrist believes there is a chance to take another step in the right direction when Scotland open their Nations Championship campaign against Argentina on July 4, before travelling to Pretoria a week later to take on world champions South Africa.  

Gilchrist was on the field as Argentina ran riot at Murrayfield in November, scoring five tries in 23 minutes to stun Scotland, who were booed off the field at full-time. And he wants to avenge that defeat when the sides meet in Cordoba.   

"We've got some exciting [summer] fixtures for the first time in a while, getting opportunities to play the best team in the world in their own backyard,” he said. 

“It’s a real opportunity to take another step, go into the autumn and take another step.  

I hope we're sitting after the fifth game of the Six Nations next season, that we've taken that step and we've gone and won something.” 

Saturday also marked a special day for Gilchrist, who overtook former Edinburgh man Scott Murray as Scotland’s most capped lock as he earned his 88th cap in Dublin.  

Gilchrist overtook Scott Murray's caps record for a Scotland lock in Dublin (Image: Colorsport/Shutterstock)

The 35-year-old from Alloa admitted he grew up watching Murray and never expected to surpass his cap tally. 

“It's not something I ever really imagined possible, even relatively recently. I never thought I would reach guys like that so it's a huge honour and I'm really proud.  

“I remember coming to watch Scotland play when Scotty was playing. He sent me a nice message this morning and he probably won't remember this, but I was ball boy for game against Italy way back when and he actually gave me his shirt after the game.  

“At that time, if you'd told me I was going to play for Scotland, I wouldn't have believed you. It means a lot to me.” 

For now, though, rugby can wait. Gilchrist will return to Edinburgh and wife Chloe, who gave birth to their third child, Maggie, in the week of the France match.  

 “I'm definitely due a lot of night feeds and a lot of fronting up at home, so I'm buzzing for that as well. 

“It'll be nice next week to hopefully take a little bit of pressure off my wife [Chloe] and let her relax a little bit and just enjoy having a wee one.” 

Gilchrist will hope to keep adding to his Scotland cap tally as he closes in on joining Scotland’s list of centurions.  

However, rather than thinking about reaching three figures, Gilchrist is focusing on delivering his best performances.   

“I love playing for Scotland, so I'm going to keep trying to get on the pitch and be good enough. If I'm playing professional rugby, I'm going to be fighting to try and play for Scotland. I'm not setting myself any targets like that.”   

 “You're a long time retired, I'm just going to keep trying, keep putting my best foot forward and see where it takes me."