Hunter-Hill: We showed we’re ready to compete

Scotland U20 captain Callum Hunter-Hill praised his side’s efforts in the opening game of their World Rugby U20 Championship campaign.The lock and his colleagues suffered a 42-20 loss to New Zealand, yet showed they are more than capable competing with any team in the competition.The Dark Blues scored three superb tries through Fraser Renwick, Darcy Graham and Josh Henderson, and displayed attacking impetus throughout the contest.  However, a poor period early in the second-half allowed New Zealand to open up a gap that proved too great to close, and Hunter-Hill believes that consistency is a key focus ahead of Sunday’s match against Ireland.”I’m really proud of the boys,” he said.”We gave a really spirited performance and showed we’re ready to compete at this level. I think a lot of people had us written off before the game.”We now need to look at putting together a full 80-minute performance, as we were right up there for 50 minutes of the game.”The second-row, who will join Edinburgh Rugby ahead of next season, also highlighted the need to make amends around the contact area and close to the opposition line.  “Our physicality [was one of the areas in which Scotland lost the game]. I think our rucks as well. Sometimes we weren’t getting passed the ball and we got penalised a few times. “On top of that, composure is an area we can improve, and being clinical when we’ve got [scoring] opportunities as well.”