Memories of Scotland: Four Irish players look back

Noel Mannion (Ireland 1988-'93)

Played Scotland: 3 times.

Memories: "They were always hugely enjoyable occasions and that sounds a bit strange given that I never finished on a winning team. There was great camaraderie between the teams: they never rubbed in their victories. Once the game finished that was it. The third time I played them was in '93 when injuries brought me back into the national side. I played horrendously and a few of us finished our careers that day. I enjoyed the matches and have great respect for their players, some of whom I still keep in touch with."

Best moment: "I can state quite categorically that there was no highlight.

Worst moment: "John Jeffrey hit me from a kick-off in the 1989 game, I'm not sure whether by accident or design. There was a clash of heads and the game was stopped for about four minutes. I stayed on but don't remember much.

Scottish strengths: "The Scots play the game at a frenetic pace that appears totally gung-ho and disorganised but nothing could be further from the truth. They were probably the most aggressive team I ever played against, more so than France or England. If you got on the wrong side of a ruck, you certainly felt it. It was fair but sore and made you think twice the next time. They were a great rucking side, under Jim Telfer's influence, and the sum of the parts was much greater than any one individual. They started a game at 100 miles an hour and then increased the tempo. They sucked you into playing that game and then destroyed you because no one played that style better than they did."

Scottish weaknesses: "They would be vulnerable to the bigger packs. If you kept the ball in tight and mauled it, keeping the pace of the game slow, you could get them frustrated but this was easier said than done. If you got in behind them they didn't defend too well."

John Fitzgerald (Ireland 1988-'94)

Played Scotland: 3 times.

Memories: "The tempo of the matches. It was almost impossible to catch your breath. You'd be going from one ruck to another only to find that it had moved off somewhere else. They had some very fine individual players but also a knack of introducing players who would suit their style of play and would be totally at home." Best moment: "It has to be winning at Lansdowne Road in 1988. It was my first cap and that feeling of running out was very special. To win the match just capped a great occasion."

Worst moment: "The unknown. Even though I had played for Munster for a couple of seasons prior to winning my first cap, nothing prepares you for that day. International rugby is so far removed from any other kind."

Scottish strengths: "They have a simple, fantastically effective gameplan based on fast rucking. They always produce good half-backs and a very mobile pack. They play at a pace that can unnerve the opposition and drag a huge number of errors. If teams try and match the way they play, particularly Ireland, it generally ends in disaster."

Scottish weaknesses: "They don't have a Plan B. At times it can be a case of that fast rucking style either works or it doesn't, as was the case against Italy recently. If you keep the ball in hand, hidden from them, then they get frustrated. A big, strong pack can cause them serious problems."

Ralph Keyes (Ireland 1986-'92)

Played Scotland: 2 times.

Memories: "I played against them twice, once in the World Cup match of 1991."

Best moment: "Out of the two matches, I don't have one. I'm serious, I can't think of one memorable thing."

Worst moment: "Losing the two matches and the Jim Staples-Finlay Calder incident in '91. I suppose it's the fact that it went unpunished."

Scottish strengths: "It's got to be their rucking technique. Jim Telfer had a huge influence on their style. He was an exceptional coach and I remember the Scottish players telling me that he ruled with an iron fist. Scotland have a style of their own, have mastered it and have no desire to change even when the lose a couple of matches on the spin. Their style would probably suit Ireland but we seem to prefer a more mauling type of game at club and provincial level. It's not inherent in our game at lower levels."

Scottish weaknesses: "If a pack can take them on up front, the Scots tend to struggle when other teams maul against them, ala New Zealand in the recent World Cup. The Scots tend to fan out so if you can drive the ball up through the middle you can make inroads. If you can turn them then they are not the best side going backwards."

Reggie Corrigan (Ireland 1997-)

Played Scotland: 1 time.

Memories: "It was the last match in that season's Five Nations Championship and we had already lost one narrowly. Scotland beat us by a point so the Five Nations finished on a bit of a disappointing note. We should have won the match, were leading for a long time and ended up chucking the game away. The pace of the game was the other abiding memory. You barely got a chance to catch your breath."

Best moment: "I suppose it was the craic afterwards. The Scots are a good bunch and if you had to lose to one country then they are the one that most Irish players would pick."

Worst moment: "The final whistle and the realisation that we had lost."

Scottish strengths: "They are a very strong rucking side who recycle the ball very quickly. You think that you are just about to get a hand on the ball in a ruck when suddenly it's gone. They are a very physical team that blows away defenders to secure the ball: there's no half measures. They have the ability to live off scraps and when they breach your front-line defence boast a similar ability to France in being able to finish ruthlessly. They usually make the most of turnovers."

Scottish weaknesses: "They can be a bit pedantic and predictable. If they get rattled then there is a tendency to panic and deviate from the normal gameplan."