Townsend says Scotland now 'better equipped' to end Cardiff hoodoo

Scotland coach Gregor Townsend believes his side have the tools to end their 20-year wait for a win in Cardiff as they look to build on their positive start to this season's Six Nations.

The Scots beat Wales in Llanelli in 2020 in a match played behind closed doors because of the coronavirus pandemic but have not tasted victory in the Welsh capital since 2002.

Scotland's last Six Nations visit ended in a heavy 34-7 defeat in 2018 but Townsend believes his side have what it takes to win in front of a sell-out crowd on Saturday after a series of morale-boosting victories.

Townsend's side won away in England and France last year in empty stadiums and started this year's tournament with a hard-fought 20-17 victory against England last week.

"We should be better equipped to deal with the challenge of going to Cardiff," said Townsend, Scotland's fly-half when they last won in Cardiff in 2002, after naming his side on Thursday.

"We've not been there for four years so a lot has happened in those years to this team. We've had some experiences against some top sides both home and away, and we've shown resilience in those games.

"We've not won them all but I believe the tests we had at Twickenham and in Paris last year set us up this week for what will be a great challenge in a full stadium at one of the best venues in the world."

Townsend said it would be hard to top the win in Paris but the challenge this weekend could be even bigger because of the team's poor history in Cardiff and the return of crowds.

Wales are the reigning Six Nations champions but they made a woeful start to their title defence, slipping to a 29-7 defeat against Ireland in Dublin.

Townsend, however, expects to see a much-improved performance this weekend

"Normally,