A couple of 8s: How the Scotland players rated in agonising defeat by France in Saint-Etienne

Scotland suffered a last-gasp loss in Saint-Etienne, going down 30-27 to France in their penultimate warm-up match for the Rugby World Cup.

Scotland's captain Jamie Ritchie is tackled by France's Bastien Chalureau and Paul Boudehent during the World Cup warm-up match at the Geoffroy-Guichard Stadium in Saint-Etienne. (Photo by JEFF PACHOUD/AFP via Getty Images)

Gregor Townsend’s side fought back from 27-10 down to make it 27-27 before Thomas Ramos kicked a 78th minute penalty to win the match for the hosts. We give each Scotland starter a mark out of ten for their performance in the match at Stade Geoffroy-Guichard:

Pierre Schoeman: A couple of good carries but guilty of dropping the ball which led to Damian Penaud’s try early in the second half. 6/10

George Turner: The first-choice hooker’s return brought improved throwing-in at the lineout and he also won some key turnovers. 7

WP Nel: In for the suspended Zander Fagerson and tried manfully to hold the scrum together during a first half in which ref Nic Berry was constantly resetting. Replaced by Javan Sebastian after 55 minutes. 6

Richie Gray: Key to an improved lineout after some tricky moments against the same opponents last weekend at Murrayfield. 6

Grant Gilchrist: Part of a massive defensive effort during the first half as France threw everything at the visitors. May have conceded the odd penalty as the Scots struggled to keep them at bay. 6

Jamie Ritchie: Towering performance from the returning captain, particularly at the breakdown. Had ongoing dialogue with Berry as penalty count threatened to get out of hand. 8

Rory Darge: See above. Huge contributor with his turnovers and alert to score Scotland’s third try after good work by Finn Russell and Stuart McInally. 7

Jack Dempsey: The third member of the back row was equally effective and would be a surprise if this trio didn’t start Scotland’s World Cup opener against South Africa next month. 7

Ali Price: Solid performance from the experienced scrum-half who was unlucky to be yellow-carded for not retreating 10 metres at a penalty. 6

Finn Russell: Relished his return to France and was Scotland’s most creative force. Varied his game with a nice mix of passing and kicking, and his quick tap penalty led to Darge’s try. 7

Duhan van der Merwe: Frustrated at times but scored his 18th Scotland try, moving him ahead of greats Gavin Hastings, Gregor Townsend and Alan Tait on the all-time list. 6

Sione Tuipulotu: Slotted in at first receiver while Price was in the sin-bin and performed well in a congested midfield without setting the heather on fire. 6

Huw Jones: Ran a great line in lead-up to van der Merwe’s try but should have offloaded to George Horne. 6

Kyle Steyn: Not easy to replace Darcy Graham but rose to the challenge magnificently and scored Scotland’s first and last tries. Effective contributor in defence, too. 8

Blair Kinghorn: Played in Steyn for his first try and was lively in broken field. One misplaced pass almost led to an interception but ref whistled for earlier infringement. 6

Replacements: The bench made a huge contribution to the Scotland comeback which saw them score three tries in the final quarter. Stuart McInally brought fresh energy, Horne surely booked his place in the World Cup squad and Ollie Smith put in a try-saving tackle on Gabin Villiere. Skinner was sharp and set up van der Merwe for his try shortly after coming on.