The Scotsman's David Ferguson looks at the ramifications following Edinburgh's epic win over Racing Metro.
"The big debate has begun again of how a gulf has developed between Scottish and Irish rugby, especially among those of us who remember when our players would beat Irish provinces comfortably.
The second weekend of Heineken Cup rugby provided the perfect illustration of why Scottish rugby has the right to be hopeful of closing the gap, as around 5,000 people return to work this week still full of the excitement of Friday night at Murrayfield and how they witnessed the most dramatic game of rugby, great skill, try-scoring and commitment, many may ever have seen. And on Sunday in Dublin, we saw evidence of where work is needed for improvement in Scottish rugby to happen.
The defeats suffered by Melrose, Ayr and Currie in the British and Irish Cup are relevant too, because in a rugby community as small as Scotland’s, the game from club to international remains bound so tightly that success in one area affects others and, similarly, limits placed upon one has a limiting effect elsewhere."
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