Wales scrum coach Adam Jones insists the pressure is on Scotland for Six Nations clash

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Scrum coach Adam Jones admitted that all the pressure is on Gregor Townsend's Scotland side, ahead of their Six Nations clash with Wales at Murrayfield on Saturday. The former Wales prop insisted on this, despite Wales' 15 consecutive Tests defeats. 

Wales come into the contest in the Scottish capital on the back of an impressive performance against Ireland last timeout, under new interim head coach Matt Sherratt. Jones' Wales side head to Edinburgh at the foot of the table having lost to France, Italy and Ireland. Their last outing at Principality Stadium has brought back some belief in Welsh Rugby albeit after a 27-18 defeat. 

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However, they will head up to Scotland without winger, Josh Adams as Jones stated: "Josh can't play, he's out." On the other hand he did confirm that outside half, Gareth Anscombe is fit after passing a HIA. 

The last time Wales had tasted victory at Murrayfield was back in 2023 and since the 2023 Rugby World Cup they have failed to record a Test win. "There's no pressure on us, there's pressure on Scotland," said Jones.

"This is probably one of the best sides they've ever had, if not the best side they'll ever have. They'll be expecting to beat us pretty comfortably at home, against a team that's lost 15 times.

"We haven't put much of an underdog tag on us, but results probably dictate we are. They'll relish being favourites. They'll expect to win. They've got good coaches. My old friend Steve Tandy has done a brilliant job with the defence. But we'll certainly go up there to put the frighteners on them a bit. You can rattle good players and get stuck into them." 

Despite being on a run of defeats, Jones stated: "We showed we can go toe-to-toe with one of the best teams in the world and rattled them a bit.  We didn't get across the line, but we'll keep building on that with the confidence we've got.

"There's no point going up there and being in awe of them. They've got a good side with some standout players. You've just got to rip into them as much as you can and I'm sure the boys will. I know I said they're the best Scottish team ever, but there's a bit of confidence and feel-good factor now with us.

"We want to get the monkey off our back, we're going up there to win. We're not going up there to make up the numbers." 

One of the positives from the encounter with the Irish in Cardiff was how strong the Welsh scrum was. The standout performance came from, WillGriff John who was playing his first Test since November 2021 and put up a great fight against Andrew Porter, as Wales won four scrum penalties. 

On the performance of the 32-year-old who plays for Sale Sharks in the Gallagher Premiership, Jones stated: "He was excellent. Will is someone I was aware of years ago, coming through. 

"He did a good job with Sale. He came back to Wales to further his chances. It didn't work out but he's a big, strong boy. He's probably the strongest in the squad, apart from myself. 

"Going up against Porter, with how he scrummages, he was probably the guy to go against Porter. He's pretty square. But not even that, he was pretty good around the field. He made tackles. He ran over (Dan) Sheehan once which gave us the gainline for Tom Rogers to score in the corner. 

"I was pleased for him. He works mega hard. I've seen him for Sale recently. He was good for Sale in the Champions Cup against the Stormers. They lost but the scrum went well. So I'm pleased for him. He's a lovely kid. He's been around a bit now to find his mojo. No doubt he'll do a good job this weekend," added Jones.

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QUIZ: Can You Name EVERY Player in England’s 2016 Six Nations Grand Slam Squad?

England last won the Six Nations Grand Slam back in 2016, in what was Eddie Jones’ first Championship in charge. Taking over from Stuart Lancaster, Jones appointed a new captain to his side, in what was the start of a record equalising 18-test match winning streak.

Jones named a 33-man squad for the 2016 Six Nations, and we’ve laid out the challenge for you to name each and every one of the players. Due to the extra toughness of this one, we’ve given a slightly longer time limit for you to rattle off the answers.

Your time starts… now!

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