Scotland insist Grand Slam and World Cup glory are still targets
‘Anything is realistic if you believe in it’ – Murrayfield chief Mark Dodson
Scottish Rugby chief executive Mark Dodson is sticking by his target of World Cup glory next year despite the side’s awful start to this season’s Six Nations.
Dodson unveiled a four year plan in 2012 that involved winning both a Six Nations Grand Slam and the World Cup, with each of those targets looking a long way off given Scotland’s current form.
“Of course it’s the target or else we wouldn’t have stated it in the first place,” Dodson told BBC Scotland.
“We realise many have been saying it’s an insane target, but we were making a call to people in Scotland to realise that they had to raise their sights.”
Scotland are currently bottom of the Six Nations table after defeats by Ireland and England, with the Scots failing to register a solitary point in the most recent Calcutta Cup defeat
That 20-0 loss to England at Edinburgh’s Murrayfield ground led to Scotland coach Scott Johnson coming under huge fire, especially as the Australian coach tried to explain away the loss by citing the “naivety” of a team who were, on average, older and more experienced than their opponents.
Former Scotland and British and Irish Lions forward Peter Wright labelled Johnson, who will give way for New Zealand’s Vern Cotter at the end of the season when he moves to become director of rugby, a “joker”.