The last time Jamie Ritchie played in the Principality Stadium in Wales it was overshadowed by personal grief, but this time the Scotland flanker’s focus will be squarely on getting that first win in Cardiff since 2002.
Ritchie’s grandmother had died just before he played there in November 2018, in what was his first start for his country – and the former Madras Rugby junior from St Andrews has gone on to make himself a regular for Scotland in the 15 months since.
Scotland will be headed to Wales as scheduled, after the Six Nations confirmed yesterday that the game would be on. Ireland’s visit to France was postponed in the light of restrictions on mass gatherings as part of the French government’s response to the coronavirus outbreak.
The third game of the scheduled Super Saturday to close the 2020 tournament, England’s visit to Italy, was postponed last week. Italy’s visit to Ireland in the fourth round of games to be played last weekend was also postponed due to the extent of coronavirus cases in the north of the Italy, the rugby heartland of that country.
For Ritchie, his first time in Cardiff was a bit of a whirlwind due to a family loss, but he remembers the celebrated atmosphere in the Principality.
“It’s such a cauldron in Cardiff,” he said. “It was my third ever game and first proper test, in the autumn, but my grandma had actually died the day before I played there, so my mind was on other things. I don’t remember too much about that time.
“But it’s somewhere, as a kid, I would watch games there and think: `I really want to play there, one day.’”
Ritchie had another eventful day on Saturday, with an all-action performance which meant he edged the man of the match award from his friend and fellow backrower Hamish Watson.
But he also had a central role in the tipping point of the game, when Mohammed Hauoas was sent-off after landing a punch on a specific part of Jamie’s face, which had been surgically enhanced after the injury he suffered before the Rugby World Cup in Japan.
“It was just rugby handbags, I saw Nick Haining surrounded by three guys so I ran in, and then got punched in the face. He actually punched me in the metal plate in my face I got after the injury against Georgia before the World Cup.
“I don’t know what was going through his head. I just caught the brunt of it.”
Scotland got their strategy right for France, but it’ll still need to be better for Wales, added Ritchie.
“I think we need to be better than we were today,” he said. “We’re looking to improve every week, not just for Wales but for ourselves.
“We had a game plan going in about holding on to the ball and looking for space. We knew what they were coming with, we knew they would be physical. They’d made the least amount of passes in the tournament.
“It’s a mindset we’ve built in defence. We worked on staying square on (French scrum-half) Antoine Dupont, because he is an exceptional player, and I think we pretty much nullified him today, with the exception of that one really outstanding kick he got away for their first try.”
Scotland have just six days rest before Cardiff, although Wales were also fatigued by the effort in defeat to England at Twickenham, but Ritchie thinks Scotland will be ready.
“The core principles are in place, which is a good thing for us. It’s about getting the body ready, getting the learning right,” he said.
‘It’s all about detail and clarity, with only six days to get the body ready. It’s more learning than physical exertion.
“Wales are obviously a dangerous side who have run teams close. They’re looking to play a bit more than they have in the past – but there’s an opportunity there to go and cause an upset.”