Scotland still have to play Italy, who they have a good chance of beating, but you wouldn't expect Wales to get anything from their final two matches against Ireland and France. For that reason, they desperately need a victory this weekend.

Teams get out of the habit of winning very quickly and, as important as the standard of performance was against England, the result is the crucial thing in Scotland. It definitely won't be the prettiest of games.

We mustn't dwell on Wales' defeat in Italy too much longer but the players were asked questions after that game and to a certain extent they were answered against England. Wales were never going to keel over against Clive Woodward's side because of the need to react to the criticism which had gone before and it was a much improved display.

In the end, England's class told but Wales had their chances and who knows what would have happened had Mark Taylor made the most of an excellent chance before half-time. It may not have affected the result but it would have put doubt in the minds of the English players, and I'm sure Woodward would have been interested in seeing how his team reacted to that.

Wales were destructive throughout the game and worked hard to slow the ball down at every breakdown. The tactics were correct but the team was picked to play against England, and a different approach will be needed at Murrayfield.

While the Welsh can be optimistic, they need to score tries against the Scots who will attempt to bully our players with their pack. That is Scotland's strength - even against France, number eight Simon Taylor was one of the best players on the pitch - but their backline is perhaps the weakest of all the six nations.

Ian McGeechan is chopping and changing players, which is strange for a coach who is usually very reserved, but I don't believe the decision to play Brendan Laney at fly-half against the French worked. His injury means McGeechan will now have to consider other options, but the Scots lack both flair and cutting edge, with the exception of Gregor Townsend. If there is one area Wales can exploit, it's the pace and ability of their backs who are undoubtedly better than those at McGeechan's disposal.

The big loss to Wales is that of captain Jonathan Humphreys, whose willingness to be 'in the trenches' was so important against England. His absence through injury means Wales will have their third different captain in as many games, although I think it was the right decision to hand the armband to Martyn Williams. He's a strong character, but much will depend on his ability to get the players going as Humphreys did so well.