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• 'World-class' Scotland will provide Wallabies' sternest test – Skelton

  Australia will face their sternest test to date when they continue their autumn tour against a "world-class" Scotland team at Murrayfield on Sunday.

  That is the view of forward Will Skelton, who believes the Wallabies' victories in England and Wales have brought a new energy and confidence to their camp.

  Having crashed out in the pool stage at last year's World Cup in France before finishing last in the Rugby Championship, Australia have looked a team reborn in recent weeks.

  A first victory at Twickenham since 2015 and a 52-20 rout of Wales – their biggest-ever away win in matches between the teams – have made it an excellent tour to date for Joe Schmidt's side.

  But La Rochelle lock Skelton feels their toughest assignment is to come this week, saying: "We've won two games, we're very aware of that.

  "The Test against Scotland is going to be the hardest one yet. We're excited about this weekend and we're looking forward to ripping into it.

  "Physically they're up there with the top five in the world. I think set-piece wise they're really strong.

  "You've got a guy like Finn Russell who's a maestro at the back there. I think it's going be a close one and we'll be up for it.

  "There's some class players in the Scottish team and, when they're at it they're world-class, so we're going to have to be on top of our game."

   

• Scotland 'never lost belief' to get Nations League lifeline, says Clarke

  Steve Clarke says Scotland "never lost belief" as they secured a last-gasp 2-1 victory over Poland to give themselves a lifeline in the Nations League.

  Scotland needed a win to avoid automatic relegation and finished third in Group A1. They now face a relegation play-off to defend their place in the top tier of the competition.

  Scotland made a lightning-quick start in Warsaw as John McGinn, who was rewarded with a place in the starting line-up after scoring the winner against Croatia, cushioned in his 20th goal for the national team after just three minutes.

  Billy Gilmour and Scott McTominay both hit the woodwork as they attempted to double their lead before the break, while Craig Gordon produced some fine saves to protect their advantage.

  Kamil Piatowski's stunning strike pulled Poland level just before the hour-mark, but Andy Robertson, on his 80th appearance, proved the difference, rising high to send a towering header past Lukasz Skorupski in the 93rd minute.

  Robertson is the first player to score a 90th-minute winner for Scotland since McTominay against Israel in a World Cup qualifier in October 2021.

  It is the first time since March-September 2023 (a run of five) that Scotland have won back-to-back internationals, and Clarke was delighted to finish the Nations League group stage on a high.

  "A good way to end this Nations League campaign. You always believe. It was a very open game, a lot of chances," Clarke said.

  "We always felt one more chance would come, maybe not from the source it actually came from, but it was a fantastic cross from John Souttar, who was outstanding defensively, and a great header from the captain.

  "We started with three defeats, three narrow defeats, with good performances. The players didn't lose belief. I didn't lose belief in the players, and they end up taking seven points from the last three games, which gets us into the play-off.

  "The more you play at this level, the better you get. The players never lost belief.

  "There's been a lot of good moments over my five-and-a-half years, and this is just another step on the journey."

  The draw for the Nations League play-offs will take place on Friday, with the ties to be played in March.

• Clarke hails solid Scotland as Croatia win boosts Nations League survival hopes

  Steve Clarke credited Scotland's defensive resilience after they boosted their hopes of remaining in the top tier of the Nations League by beating Croatia 1-0 at Hampden Park.

  John McGinn came off the bench to score the all-important goal as Scotland took advantage of Petar Sucic's sending-off to claim their first win of the 2024-25 Nations League campaign.

  The result – coupled with Poland's crushing 5-1 defeat in Portugal – means Scotland will stave off automatic relegation to League B if they win in Warsaw on Monday.

  While Clarke felt Scotland could have done more with the ball, he was impressed both with their off-the-ball work and with the impact of super sub McGinn.

  "My first thoughts when I came off the pitch were that we could play better," Clarke said. 

  "We could be more clinical when we get to the final third of the pitch. The sending off changed the game, but we were due a little break.

  "This is a group of players that want to be successful, want to do well for their country. 

  "That's another clean sheet, two in a row. If you don't concede goals, you always have a chance to win the game.

  "It was nice to get John on the pitch and I thought his finish was really good because it wasn't easy. It was nice to be able to look at the bench behind and know we had people who could come on and affect the game. It's nice when we get everybody fit and available."

   

  The victory was Scotland's first in a competitive match since September 2023, when they beat Cyprus 3-0 in Euro 2024 qualifying.

  They had gone 10 games without a competitive victory since then, drawing four and losing six, including a return of just one point from three outings at Euro 2024.