Practice makes perfect for James Lowe's defensive game

One of the enduring images from Ireland's 13-8 win against South Africa a couple of weeks ago was the sight of James Lowe picking Eben Etzebeth up off the ground in the tackle early in the second half.

The 6ft 8in Springboks lock may have thought his was luck in when he took a pass down a narrow blindside and found the Irish winger as the main resistance between himself and the tryline, but Lowe had other ideas, getting in low under the second row's legs to pick him up, before the backup arrived to force a turnover.

For a man whose defence was so often questioned in the past, it's been a while since that element of Lowe's game was exposed.

"It's funny how the world works, and it probably proves that if you work on something long enough, the fruits of the labour will come through," Lowe said about his improvements in defence.

"I pretty much fell into a position where I had to make a tackle and that was the end product. Josh [van der Flier] had the brunt of him there."

And while both Lowe and Ireland were impeccable in defence last time out, holding the Springboks to just eight points, the Ireland wing believes they'll need to step it up even more against a Scottish side who like to play fast and wide, with Finn Russell pulling the strings of their attack.

"A ten who likes to play wide, a 12 and 13 who take the ball to the line, then two wingers who are exceptional, and a full-back who plays on an axis with Finn [Russell]. So it's going to be another challenge but something we're definitely looking forward to," he added.

Robbie Henshaw was the only member of the 33-man squad who didn't take a full part in this morning's session at the Stade de France.

The centre was ruled out of this weekend's game due to a hamstring injury, and