Rugby: Black day for Scots

Coach Andy Robinson's so-called revivalists haemorrhaged seven tries all to opposition backs while failing to cross the All Black line. Simon Webster (2005) remains the only Scot to touch down against these tourists during five meetings in Edinburgh this decade.

Jacobsen said: "I'm gutted with the way the first half went. We let ourselves down, we let each other down and we let the fans down."

Scotland trailed 28-3 at the interval and the full-time whistle came just over a minute early due to an injury requiring Max Evans to receive extensive treatment on the pitch although, thankfully, this proved mainly precautionary.

With the second period not being too clever from a Scottish perspective either, statistically at the very least, Jacobsen added: "We got blown away. In physicality, pace and directness we just did not match them.

"The next thing we knew we were 20-odd points adrift and staring down a barrel.

"What hurts is I think we are better than that but we just didn't turn up.

"They are a great team and up there with the best I've faced but I think we are a good team as well.

"We were way off what we wanted to do and didn't do our job."

In a match where Jacobsen's 48 previous outings did see him give the lead to be expected from the most capped Scottish forward in the starting line-up and Hugo Southwell, too, show flashes of enterprise along with efficient substitute debutant Greig Laidlaw, there was perhaps only one real saving grace.

"We didn't give up," insisted Jacobsen and if that, of course, can be taken as a given at least, too, there is a general willingness to face up to shortcomings so that they can be more quickly addressed.

"Hopefully we'll get another chance because there has got to be a reaction."

"We have to step it up - or else," added the man nicknamed "Chunk".

Or else there may be another hiding from South Africa as Scotland go from facing the world No.1s to the reigning world champions on successive weekends?

Don't underestimate that possibility with Jacobsen hinting that lacerated, laid-bare Scotland were powerless to prevent the onslaught while at the same time reckoning that there is a lot of rust stemming from a collective five-month lay-off out of the system now.

"New Zealand were getting over the gain line and into our first and second line defence," he said.

"We knew what was coming but could not do anything about it. What made it worse was the fact I really thought we'd do well.

"By not meeting their pace or physicality we got found out. Now we have to get right back into it and start working hard straight away."

At least the Scottish scrum functioned adequately enough for New Zealand to concede five penalties in their own 22 during roughly as many second-half minutes and Jacobsen added with some justification: "We pride ourselves on our scrum and ought to be able to use it as a weapon.

"It's not perfect by any means but it is something to build on."

Scotland could not say they were not warned with SRU president Ian McLauchlan using programme notes to remark: "We are under no illusions and are well aware we are in for a very tough battle against a determined All Blacks side."

It was a battle all the tougher for disintegration in certain areas.

Andy Robinson acknowledged the line-out fell apart in the second half and while the coach also made the point in advance that penalties often come because of pressure that is being applied, it has to be a worry that this was Scotland's fourth tryless encounter out of six in all fixtures.

The Scots haven't toured New Zealand since 2000 and they have to ask themselves if this was a performance that would have Kiwi fans clamouring for their presence.

Decidedly not as the way they were swatted aside was akin to the sort of hammerings Scotland have themselves handed out against makeweights such as Romania, Japan and the USA. Is that really what it has come to for once-proud Scottish rugby?

After the opening quarter, the only thing that could have brought Scotland back into contention was five or six simultaneous All Black sin-binnings.

Cue widespread donning of hair shirts afterwards with coach Robinson claiming the nation had been "let down" and acting captain John Barclay, who took over when Mike Blair retired with a head knock, referring to "an embarrassment". It is only eight years since Scotland defeated next-up rivals South Africa and just over two years since the Springboks were allowed to escape with a 14-10 win.

So, with a game under their belt, Saturday's clash will maybe be the truer test of where Scotland are at.

What's certain is that not since David Narey allegedly toe poked into the top corner to give the football side a 1-0 lead against Brazil as a prelude to a 4-1 world cup defeat in 1982 has there been such a trenchant response to a Scottish side taking the lead. That Scottish edge came with a Dan Parks penalty in three minutes.

So far, so good.

But there was something ominous about winger Isaia Toeava's pace given his first touch and deep fears were confirmed by tries from Hosea Gear, Dan Carter, Mils Muliaina and Gear again between the ninth and 26th minutes. With Carter converting all four plus a second-half effort from Muliana which followed an initial eight minutes of keep-ball where all Scotland could do was chase shadows, he finished with a haul of 15 points before withdrawing to allow Stephen Donald to convert further touchdowns from Conrad Smith and Andy Ellis.

All that remains to see is whether suitably chastened Scotland can walk the walk as well as talk the talk in so far as pledging atonement to a crowd of 56,807, who were described as by Jacobsen as "awesome".

"When you are away from Murrayfield for so long you don't forget but it was still an amazing support we had," he said. What they particularly witnessed was a display of sublime class from the All Blacks - a 29th minute knock on was so rare it prompted one observer to gasp "they're human" - and being virtually a club side in the number of times they play together were overwhelming favourites anyway. Therefore it is too early to completely write off a Scotland side who showed variety at times and had little option, either, in gambling with the sort of off-loading did, after all, bring Edinburgh tries against Northampton recently.

Going from facing world No.1 s to reigning world champions could be the ultimate frying pan to fire job, or the chance to demonstrate the comeback of all comebacks?