Leah Bartlett: England game lit a rocket for us
Ahead of Scotland’s second round match of the Six Nations, loosehead prop Leah Bartlett has described the impact the defeat to England has had on the squad.
Against a Red Roses team that was ransacked with injuries, Scotland conceded 58 points, a scoreline that would leave many teams shellshocked and searching for excuses.
Bartlett explained this was not the case for Scotland: “It puts a bit of a rocket up is to go into the rest of the championship and I know that all of us are very focussed on what is coming next rather than what’s already happened.
“There’s no better way to challenge yourself and see where you are in terms of development than going up against arguably the best team in the world. I wouldn’t necessarily say it was a reality check but it gave us a really good platform to say ‘this is where we fell down but this is really pleasing in comparison to previous performances.”
Bartlett was part of a front row unit that was humbled at the first scrum of the game at Kingston Park but insists this Scotland side did not resort to panic stations as they may have done in previous encounters. This Scotland squad has evolved into a professional outfit, one which is now in a position to run 15 on 15 games in training, developing players at every position.
“Maybe a few seasons ago if that had happened at the first scrum of the game we all might have lost our heads a wee bit but we’re all pretty good at having those small chats between us, taking accountability and being like, ‘I didn’t get that quite right there,” she said.
“So instead of it being a continuing problem throughout we can make those small changes and fix as we’re going along which is a really cool development for us.
“As I said, a few years ago we probably wouldn’t be able to make those changes at the time so we’re all able to put our hands up and say that it wasn’t anywhere near as good as what we wanted it to be and that’s become a focus for us throughout the game to give a good platform for the backs to play off,” she added.
Unlike other combinations on the pitch, the front row did not require the same period of transition that is needed when shifting from club to country.
Both of Scotland’s first choice props, unchanged from round one like the rest of the starting 23, do their work in the trenches for Loughborough Lightning, alongside a contingent of Scots.
Bartlett described the relationship with her teammates in the East Midlands: “I really enjoy playing with the girls week in week out and we get to know each other really well, we know how each other work, know each other’s super strengths which is great to bring into this environment.
“In terms of scrummaging with CB [Christine Belisle] we know how each other works and it’s really enjoyable going from club to country with a lot of the girls.
“[Rachel Malcolm] is a natural leader and she’s very good at taking the reins of whatever environment she’s in and it’s a really nice dynamic with both Loughborough and Scotland and she very rightly so has the respect of everyone in both teams.
“But in terms of continuity it’s great because I always have the consistency of her being the leader which is nice always having someone to turn to at every opportunity,” Bartlett added.
After taking a beating against an England front row which had over 100 caps between Amy Cokayne and Sarah Bern as well as three Canadian caps for Mackenzie Carson, there’s no respite for Scotland who go up against a Welsh side that bullied Ireland last week at Cardiff Arms Park.
Despite Wales’ ability to control just about every element of the game against the Irish, Bartlett is not daunted by the grudge match. Over the last eight games, the average winning margin is less than five points and most recently, Wales snatched victory in the 84th minute after some Keira Bevan heroics.
“We’ve all watched it [Wales v Ireland] probably multiple times, I know from my perspective I have and in detail,” the 24-year-old said.
“Yes they played well but I wouldn’t say it was anything that we were not expecting and from a personal viewpoint I’m super excited for tomorrow and I think we’ve got a really good opportunity to go out and showcase where we’ve been developing.
“We know what to expect off them, we know who runs the shows. They like a big ball carry that kind of thing. I wouldn’t say anything particularly new was found from it.
“Playing at the DAM is class. The environment is second to none the atmosphere is so loud and playing in front of a home crowd is my favourite thing,” she added.
