Humphreys: Scots biggest threat to Irish Grand Slam dream

So far, so good for Ireland in their quest for another Guinness Six Nations Grand Slam.

Three from three after comfortable wins against Wales and Italy, together with a dominant victory over France in what was one of the highest quality international matches I've watched live.

The top two ranked teams in the world produced a game of rugby to counter much of the negativity around the sport and provided a timely reminder of the beauty and intensity of Test match rugby.

Before the Six Nations kicked off, like almost everyone else, I saw France as our biggest threat to winning the Grand Slam, followed closely by a potential championship decider against England at the Aviva Stadium on St Patrick’s weekend.

England's bid was completely derailed yesterday evening, but what about Scotland?

Not too many people predicted a Scotland victory at Twickenham and I thought their performance against France, where they could easily have won the game, was another warning shot to anyone underestimating the challenge Ireland face.

I’m not suggesting that Scotland will beat Ireland, but I do think they currently pose much more of a threat than England to another Irish Grand Slam triumph.

History and statistics point to an Irish win this weekend – seven consecutive victories over Scotland, 12 out of 14 Irish wins over the last decade during which time Scotland have only finished higher than fourth once, that in 2018, and Gregor Townsend is still to experience victory as a coach over Ireland.

Your Scotland team to take on Ireland this Sunday