Scotland v France: 'Attitude and aggression' need to be better at Murrayfield, says Matt Taylor

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Media caption,

'I'm probably the most gutted person in the country'

World Cup warm-up: Scotland v France

Venue: Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh Date: Saturday, 24 August Kick-off: 13:10 BST

Coverage: Listen live on Radio Scotland & online; text commentary on BBC Sport website & app

Scotland will need cooler heads and greater intensity as they look to avenge last weekend's mauling in France, says defence coach Matt Taylor.

The 32-3 defeat left Taylor the "most gutted out of anyone in the team, or probably in the country".

With France visiting Murrayfield for another World Cup warm-up Test, he is demanding a big improvement.

"We need to make sure that under stress and duress that guys are sticking to systems," said Taylor.

"All the best teams in the world are the best teams defensively, and we didn't show that on the weekend. The performance wasn't anywhere near where it needed to be.

"Now we've got an opportunity now to turn that around."

Scotland have lost on their last 12 visits to France but are aiming for a hat-trick of home wins following Six Nations successes in 2016 and 2018.

And Taylor is taking heart from Scotland's strong Murrayfield record as well as recent recoveries from New Zealand and Wales.

The All Blacks bounced back from defeat in Perth to trounce Australia 36-0 at home, while Wales beat England 13-6 in Cardiff after losing out at Twickenham.

"We put a lot of time and effort into it and that wasn't the performance we expected," said Taylor of the five-try hammering in Nice. "I was surprised and very disappointed.

Media caption,

Highlights: Scotland thrashed by France

"We've spoken about it and used the example of New Zealand getting beat by Australia by 46 points then the next week they turned it around and got a nil-result.

"Wales against England was very similar this week. England put 33 points on Wales but they turned it around and that's what we've got to do.

"It's a little bit about making sure we have the attitude and aggression first and foremost, particularly away from home.

"I'll take that upon myself in that I didn't get the boys pumped up like we should."

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