Scotland clubs 13 - 9 France clubs: Determined Scots club French into submission

Donaldson saw his men produce a gritty performance to hold out for a well deserved 13-9 win over their French counterparts in front of more than 2000 spectators at Netherdale. And he pointed to the reaction of the players at full time as evidence of the importance of winning for their country.

"It's a massive thing for me and for the players", said Donaldson, who discovered the passion last season during his first year in charge. "The thing that got me was how important it was to the players. I think the club international is going to grow and grow. The importance of it is massive and that has been recognised by the SRU now."

And there was no hiding the delight of the Currie supremo as he reflected on an outstanding performance, adding, "At international level it's all about winning and we've done that. We showed a massive amount of guts and heart, particularly at the end. We were under a lot pressure in the last 20 minutes.

"We wanted to win and we achieved that. In the first 20 minutes, I thought we were magnificent but we just couldn't get into the right places or a platform to keep playing that way.

"Some of the rugby we played was great. These guys should be really proud of their efforts. To beat the French at any level is a great achievement."

The Scots had gone down by a single point in France last year and, while Donaldson had 14 of last year's squad at his disposal, the visitors had undergone a significant change of personnel.

Their coaching team, which included former international star Olivier Magne, organised a tour of Brazil last summer and subsequently carried out a wholesale change of personnel.

Last night's side, drawn from clubs in the Federal League – just below the two fully professional divisions – featured several players who looked capable of performing at a higher level.

However, the Scots matched their rivals for talent and eclipsed the French in terms of commitment, with man of the match Damien Kelly, the Ayr lock, epitomising the determination to avenge last year's narrow loss.

And the Scots were equally focused on playing attractive rugby. Their enterprise paid off after six minutes when Currie's Mark Cairns plundered ball inside the French half and released Calum Anderson, who scampered over. Scott Wight's conversion gave the hosts a perfect start.

The French struggled to match their opponent's early pace but they clawed their way into the game when Mathieu Maillard booted a penalty.

He and Wight exchanged kicks to see the Scots into a 10-6 interval lead, although both spurned further scoring opportunities – Wight being awry with three attempts at goal, while Maillard came close with an ambitious effort from inside his own half.

The French stand off was back on target with his next attempt, trimming the gap to single point before falling short with another long-range effort that would have edged his side into the lead.

Wight gave the Scots a little breathing space when he clipped over another penalty after the French were adjudged to have killed the ball – an offence that earned No.8 Fabrice Soldan a yellow card.

His colleague Anthony Frenet had also been sin-binned in the final minute of the first half.

The home side were also reduced to 14 men when Kelly was despatched to the sidelines for 10 minutes after committing a similar offence.

In his absence, the Scots were forced to defend desperately and they were still under pressure when he returned two minutes into injury time.

Another final effort by the Scots disrupted French ball and a timely interception by Boroughmuir centre Malcolm Clapperton allowed the Scots to hammer the ball into touch and spark celebrations. The victory was particularly pleasing for Clapperton, who had featured in last year's loss.

He said: "It was a bit nervy at the end but we held out and we managed to snuff them out.

"It was a bit of payback. It feels good to win and even the score. It was a great effort by the guys."

And echoing Donaldson's sentiments on the importance of the club international side, he added, "It's one of the best things to happen in recent years. There's nothing better than pulling on the Scotland jersey and opportunities to represent your country are few and far between."

Scorers:

Scotland: Try: Anderson; Conversion: Wight; Penalties: Wight (2). France: Penalties: Maillard (3).

Scotland: F Harkness (Selkirk); C Anderson (Melrose), M Clapperton (Boroughmuir), J King, F Thomson; S Wight (all Melrose), R Snedden (Currie) (J Hunter (Ayr) 69); A Dymock, (Heriot's (G Reid (Ayr) 46) S Burnett (Heriot's) (G Wood (Watsonians 75), A Brown (Dundee) (A Hamilton (Currie) 46) , D Kelly (Ayr), R McKay (Glasgow Hawks) (S Suherland (Ayr) 58), J Dalziel (Melrose) capt, M Cairns (Currie) (P Burke (Ayr) 52), R Weston (Currie).

France: S Mercier (ES Catalane); G Lavergne (Bobigny), A Frenet (Bourg-en-Bresse), J Lesgourgues (Tyrosse) (J-B Lafitte 40), S Sarthou (Saint Etienne); M Maillard (Valence d'Agen), G Dulay (Valence D'Agen) (B Lombarteaix (Monteux) 68); A Falieres (Montlucon), R Escudier (Perigeux) (F Cazalot (Lourdes) 49), N Mateos (Marmande-Casteljaloux), (N Kwarazfelia (Lavaur) 49) S Pinet (Orleans), M Ameur (Leucate) S Lassiasz (Montmelian 49), J Matheron (Monteux), L Lafitte (Tyrosse) (A Biscay (Niort) 63), F Soldan (Valence D'Agen).