Edinburgh hooker praises front row colleagues

The 2009 British & Irish Lion was impressed with what he saw from youngsters Moray Low and Kyle Traynor, as well as veteran Allan Jacobsen, during the clash with Fiji last Saturday.

A solid scrummaging performance set the platform for a comfortable 23-10 win over the Islanders and Ford is hoping for more of the same against the Wallabies as the Scots target a first victory over Australia since 1982.

Low stood in for injured Lions star Euan Murray in what was his first start for his country, while Traynor made his Test debut as a replacement at Murrayfield less than a year after making his first Magners League start for Edinburgh.

"Moray had a cracking game. It made it a lot easier for me and the rest of the pack," Ford told The Scotsman.

"Moray was up there with Euan Murray in the way he was scrummaging.

"It's a big ask this week but I'm sure he'll be able to make it happen.

"Kyle also did the basics really well and in both scrums and line-outs did everything right."

And Ford, who, despite being just 25, is now one of Scotland's most-respected internationals, believes that a similar performance from the front row as a unit could help secure an historic result on Saturday evening.

A Scotland XV featuring 12 Magners League starters may go into the match as heavy under dogs but Ford knows that there is more than enough talent among the squad to cause an upset.

"If we hit our potential and play for the whole 80 minutes we are fully capable of beating Australia - I believe that 100 per cent," added Ford, who made his Scotland debut against the Australians in 2004.

"It is just about getting on the pitch on the day and making sure everything is accurate, done at pace and with a real aggression."