Wilco Louw praised Scotland's set-piece, spearheaded by British & Irish Lions player Pierre Schoeman, whom Louw is close with.
Springbok Prop Wilco Louw expects a tough forward battle against Scotland at Loftus. Picture: Floris van Schouwenburg/Gallo Images
Springbok prop Wilco Louw said he expects a challenging scrum battle in their Nations Championship match against Scotland on Saturday, with the visitors improving in the set-piece over the years.
That facet helped Scotland secure third-place finishes in this year’s Six Nations in March and in 2023 – matching their best result in the modern era.
Louw highlighted Scotland’s scrum and forward dominance in their 47-38 win over Argentina in Córdoba last weekend, which lifted them to second on the Northern Hemisphere table after the first Nations Championship weekend.
There, South Africa-born Pierre Schoeman, Ewan Ashman and Zander Fagerson produced strong performances in the front row, with Schoeman scoring a try to boot.
Scotland’s formidable scrum
Louw said competing against these players for the Bulls in the United Rugby Championship had given him respect for their talent.
Edinburgh star Schoeman was also a “good friend and incredible rugby player”. Louw said it didn’t matter who came off the better between them in the past, Saturday’s contest at Loftus at 5.40pm was all that mattered.
“Pieter de Villiers is a good scrum coach,” Louw said of the Scotland staffer.
“And they’ve got proper boys in their front row and pack. They are a physical pack. If you look at their tries against Argentina, a lot came from the forwards and direct play.
“They had a good weekend scrumming and they are a good pack to scrum against.”
The Springbok prop said Schoeman, who played for the British & Irish Lions against Argentina last year, epitomised the quality in Scotland’s front row.
“They have stepped up, though they have never been easy to scrum against. It’s going to be a tough one.”
Louw praises Porthen
On South Africa’s own prop depth, Louw said 22-year-old Zach Porthen had come a long way since his Test debut against Japan in November.
“Zach had an incredible game [against England]. He scrummed really well, throwing some bodies around.
“It’s lovely to see that he is 22 years old and playing incredible rugby. I’m looking forward to joining him at the Stormers and learning from him.”
