The precarious balance in Test rugby between keeping a cool head and being up for the fight is one which Scotland have not always been able to find come Calcutta Cup time, according to Gordon Reid.
The London Irish loosehead prop believes that being emotionally overwrought was one reason his team lost so heavily at Twickenham last year, and that, when they welcome England to Murrayfield on Saturday, they will need to find a better equilibrium between passion and rationality than they did in that 61-21 defeat.
“It showed the importance of keeping a lid on things the last time we were down there,” said Reid, who is expected to hold on to the No 1 jersey when Gregor Townsend announces his team at lunchtime today. “Last year we let our emotions get to us a little bit too much and that resulted in them beating us by a hefty amount.
“So it’s a huge thing for us to keep level-minded and keep our heads strong going into the game. It’s a massive game, especially for Scotland, and we’re playing a side that, with Eddie Jones as coach and all the players they’ve got to call on, I think is the best team in the world just now.
“The game against New Zealand [in November] was also a massive game, but we just need to step up to these games and not play the occasion. I just feel that we need to forget about how big a game it is and just go in there with clear heads.”
Away from the pitch at least, Reid is invariably able to remain clearheaded and lighthearted, as was shown by his answer to a question about the tests he had to undergo this season after a couple of concussions. “They identified that I had a brain, so that was quite good. I tried to get a dodgy doctor so he could just sign me off, but there was none of them kicking about so I had to go and see a specialist, who identified that I was totally crazy and that I had to have a couple of months off.”