Source :- PERTH NOW NEWS
While the Wallabies try to fix their porous defence, their Scottish hosts are trying to shore up their own rearguard as Murrayfield prepares for a battle royal between two “wounded” sides in urgent need of a boost.
The problems faced by Les Kiss’s leaky outfit were highlighted in the 45-22 thrashing at Twickenham by England, which meant they have now conceded 176 points in their last four Tests, the most ever over any equivalent quartet of matches in the Wallabies’ annals.
Yet while Kiss and defence coach Scott McLeod continued to try to find solutions to their increasingly apparent defensive weaknesses, the same urgent exercise is being undertaken in the Scottish camp after Gregor Townsend’s side shipped 43 points to the All Blacks at their Edinburgh fortress last weekend.
The moments that made a match we’ll never forget 🖤 #Altrad || #MiniMatch https://t.co/8n0hrIQjZz— All Blacks (@AllBlacks) November 9, 2026
That meant the Scots had conceded 38 points or more in five of their last six Tests.
It left their South African-born winger Kyle Steyn insisting they must tighten up and deliver “a real physical defensive performance” against the Wallabies in Australia on Sunday as they bid to bounce back from their own chastening 43-21 defeat to New Zealand.
Asked whether, like the Australians, they had been examining their defensive structures this week, Steyn admitted: “Yes, massively, especially because a few of them were first phase, which is definitely something we want to improve on and make a big step up on this week.
“There’s an element that the game is becoming more open and high-scoring, but I think that puts even more emphasis on the defence because you can’t beat a team if you’re conceding 43 points.
“The big challenge is to bounce back this week and make sure that we put a real physical Scotland defensive performance out there.”
As disappointing for Scotland, who pride themselves on attacking brio, was their inability to score a point in the second half against the All Blacks, with Steyn admitting: “It’s been a tough few days to be honest.
“To be dead honest, the leaders have taken a good, hard look. New Zealand’s leaders in big moments came up with some really big plays and probably beat our group of leaders in that respect.”
His laments seemed to echo the concerns in the Wallabies’ camp.
“You’ve got two teams that are wounded that are both looking to bounce back,” said Steyn. “That makes the weekend really exciting.
“The match-up of styles should also make it a really exciting game. If you let them get going, they’ve got a really potent attack.”
With PA
