- Winger spilled the ball just short of the tryline under pressure from Cam Roigard as Scotland had New Zealand under the cosh last time out
- Edinburgh star believes that the miss will haunt him for the rest of his life
- The 28-year-old now turns his attention to Argentina as he earns his 50th cap for Scotland
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Darcy Graham admits he’s still haunted by his missed chance against New Zealand last weekend as he prepares to celebrate a half-century of Scotland appearances against Argentina.
The Edinburgh winger looked set to add to his side’s thrilling second-half comeback with a try in the corner only to spill the ball following a remarkable covering tackle by All Blacks scrum-half Cam Roigard.
The visitors went on to make the most of that let-off by scoring late on through Damian McKenzie to retain their undefeated record in this fixture.
Graham revealed he’s played that moment over and over in his head but knows that the only way to atone for it will be by defeating the Pumas in what is shaping up to be another stiff challenge for Gregor Townsend’s side.
‘I think I’m going to have nightmares about that try – or disallowed try – for the rest of my life,’ said the Edinburgh winger. ‘It’s one of those that’s going to haunt me for a while.
‘But it’s next job now, it’s Argentina. They’re a bloody good team. Coming here they’ve obviously beaten the Lions, beat Australia, beat the All Blacks, and came within two points against South Africa. So, they are a really good team just now.
Graham spills the ball under pressure from Roigard as the Scots were in the ascendancy
The winger admits the miss still haunts him a week on from the titanic tussle with the All Blacks
Graham will bring up his 50th cap against Argentina and will look to move clear as Scotland’s record try scorer
‘They’ve got a lot of rugby under their belt so we’re going to have to go up another level from the All Blacks. And it’s going to be a tough outing.’
Graham follows his Edinburgh team-mate Duhan van der Merwe by winning his 50th cap during this Autumn International series.
It is a moment he has been dreaming about since he was a young boy growing up in Hawick, watching his uncle Scott MacLeod play for Scotland.
And the 28-year-old hasn’t ruled out the possibility of going on to rack up a century of appearances.
He added: ‘As a young boy, you dream of playing for your country. To do it one time is a dream come true but to do it 50 times is very special.
‘I’ve got half of Hawick coming up so it’s going to be an awesome atmosphere and a special day. Growing up my whole life when I first picked up a rugby ball, that’s all I ever wanted to do was play for Scotland.
‘I looked up to my uncle and he played for Scotland. I can always remember a photo of him in his house against the All Blacks, facing the haka. And I was like, ‘That’s pretty cool’.
‘It was so special. He had that up in his house and I always just wanted to recreate that. So that was pretty special last Saturday to play against New Zealand again.
‘I could play for another maybe six years hopefully so I’m going to have to rack them up pretty quickly [to get to 100] and that would be so special.
‘It’s crazy that I’m up to 50 already and really in another four years’ time it could all be over. So, now it’s just really about enjoying every moment, enjoying every cap, every game, especially at Murrayfield – there’s no better place to play.’
