Six Nations: Scotland overrun by France at Murrayfield
Scotland's championship hopes were dashed in a 17-36 loss to France
Rampant France remain on course for the Grand Slam after cruising to a six-try 36-17 destruction of Scotland in Saturday's Guinness Six Nations clash at Murrayfield.
Les Bleus took command early on with a couple of magnificent tries by Paul Willemse and Yoram Moefana.
Scotland responded in spirited fashion and looked to be right back in the match when Rory Darge marked his first international start by touching down just before the half hour to bring the hosts within two points.
A try by Gael Fickou right at the end of the first half gave France breathing space once more before further scores from Jonathan Danty and Damian Penaud (twice) after the break ensured a chastening afternoon for the hosts.
Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend, already without Jamie Ritchie, Rory Sutherland, Matt Fagerson and Jonny Gray through injury, lost another key man on the eve of the game after Hamish Watson tested positive for coronavirus. His place in the XV was taken by Nick Haining, with Andy Christie added to the replacements.
France, backed by a large travelling support on a pleasant late-February afternoon, had Danty back from injury in the only change to the XV that started the victory over Ireland a fortnight previously.
Les Bleus made a strong start and scored two brilliant tries in the opening 13 minutes but the home side looked to be in the ascendancy towards the end of the first half as a try from Rory Darge just before the half-hour mark helped cut the deficit to 12-10.
However, France scored a third try against the run of play in the very last action of the half and then scored again two minutes into the second half to go 26-10 ahead and seize full command of the match.
Asked about the loss of those tries, Townsend said: "It was tough on the players, particularly the try after half-time.
"We were disappointed not to have gone ahead when we had a couple of opportunities to score before half-time.
"We were frustrated to concede from a lineout on the half-way line when the momentum was with us (at the end of the first half). The belief was still there at half-time and we had learned a lot from the first half that we discussed at half-time.
"That French try (at the start of the second half) came from an attack around the 22 when we had the ball so you can class it as a breakaway try. That must have been a blow for the players on the field."
The French scored six tries while Scotland mustered just two, and Townsend - while pleased with the spirit his team showed - admitted they were beaten by the better side on the day.
"France won more moments than us in the game and we didn't put them under enough pressure over the 80 minutes," he said.
"We put ourselves under pressure at times and France put us under pressure. There were some positives. Our scrum was very strong and the effort was there for 80 minutes."
Scotland went into the match with high hopes but captain Stuart Hogg, who dropped the ball when he had a chance to put his side ahead at 12-10, admitted they did not do themselves justice.
"It's a horrible feeling because we wanted to give a true reflection of what we're about and at times we showed that but unfortunately not enough," he said. "If you let a team like France get on the front foot, it's very difficult to stop them.
"The first three tries they scored were very good but they were from our mistakes, which is very frustrating. We also let two try-scoring opportunities go in the first half.
"We spoke a lot about what's needed going into the last two games but it's a horrible feeling that we have to wait two weeks to go into the next game."
The French remain on course for a Grand Slam after winning at Murrayfield for the first time since 2014.
Scotland will next face Italy in Rome in two weeks time.