PETER Horne says Gregor Townsend’s rampant Scotland side are determined to transform BT Murrayfield into an impenetrable fortress at next year’s Six Nations.
The Scots completed their Autumn Test series by obliterating Australia for their biggest-ever win over one of the Southern Hemisphere’s big three.
The ruthless eight-try 53-24 triumph over Michael Cheika’s team had the Edinburgh crowd in raptures, with the volume levels even managing to top the deafening roar generated by last week’s thrilling clash with New Zealand.
That pushed head coach Townsend to claim there is no other ground in world rugby that can match the Scots’ home ground for atmosphere.
Now Glasgow centre Horne has said his side plan to harness the buzz generated by their supporters and use it to supercharge their bid for the NatWest Six Nations title.
“It’s giving me goosebumps just thinking about the last couple of games,” the 28-year-old said. “At the start of the game the anthem last week felt like it was just vibrating through the whole stadium. It was incredible and it was the exact same this week.
“It’s hard not to get emotional when you’re singing the anthem but it’s really, really special. It’s something Barcs [captain John Barclay] has spoken loads about, making this place a fortress so that teams don’t want to come here.
“I think we’ve laid down another marker with Saturday’s result. It’s great. We showed we weren’t just a flash in the pan last week, running New Zealand close.
“We’ve come out and produced the goods. We want to make this place a fortress going into the Six Nations.”
With Scotland scheduled to play just twice in Edinburgh – against France on February 11 and then England a fortnight later – Horne knows their Championship chances could hinge on them making the most of their home advantage.
He said: “The crowd really did make it special the last couple of weeks and hopefully we can keep playing like we’re playing going into the Six Nations.
“I think we’ve made a statement with Saturday’s win. I think everyone has probably got to take us seriously now.
“England will still fancy themselves, they’re flying at the moment. It’s certainly a challenge we can’t wait for.
“As soon as the final whistle went last week against the All Blacks we just wanted to play them again the next day. That’s certainly the feeling in the camp. We want to take on the best in the world and test ourselves.”
Having also seen off Samoa before taking the All Blacks to the edge during the past three weeks, Horne admitted Scottish confidence is soaring after walloping the Wallabies.
But he insisted no-one in Townsend’s camp is fooled into thinking their work is done.
He said: “It’s about kicking on from here. We don’t want to just be a team that has a few good games now and again.
“We want to get some real consistency into our game. It’s going to be challenging, but it’s certainly something we’re all up for.”
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