Six Nations 2016: Duncan Taylor comes in as Jamie Roberts threat looms

The centre is Vern Cotter's one change to the side that suffered an eighth successive tournament defeat against England last Saturday

Duncan Taylor, right, will line up as part of a new centre pairing for Scotland against Wales (Reuters)

Scotland must find a way of limiting the wrecking-ball effect of Jamie Roberts if they are to stand any chance of beating Wales and bringing Vern Cotter a belated and desperately needed first Six Nations victory, according to Scotland’s coach.

The 6ft 4in, 17st centre was a pivotal figure as Wales fought back from a 13-point deficit against Ireland in the opening match last Sunday and his ability both to suck in defenders in attack and break up opponents in his role as Wales’ defence captain poses a huge threat to Scotland’s reshaped midfield at the Principality Stadium on Saturday.

Cotter has made one change to the side that suffered an eighth successive Six Nations defeat against England last Saturday, Duncan Taylor replacing the injured Matt Scott. It means Scotland line up a new centre pairing in Saracens’ Taylor and Mark Bennett against a Welsh partnership in Roberts and Jonathan Davies, who will play together for the 41st time. There is no more experienced 12/13 combination playing the international game and, as Sunday afternoon in Dublin amply demonstrated, nor is there a better one than the two Lions centres.

“We have to get in [Roberts’] way as much as we can,” said Cotter. “He’s a big, powerful player and they base a lot of their attacks around him. We had a couple of rucks that we didn’t manage to slow down against England and they scored from them. This is exactly the same, we have to work hard in the tackle and post-tackle.

“Duncan Taylor has a bit of a job on his hands. But he knows that. Wales are capable of playing a power game through their forwards, in close with Jamie Roberts. And they can move it wide, as they did against Ireland, with their back players. They can find space after tightening it up with players like Roberts. So, if it comes back to strategy, when Roberts starts hitting us, we’ve got to make sure we keep our width and keep our eyes up.”

If Scott had been fit, Cotter would have named an unchanged side for the trip to a venue where Scotland have not won in 14 years. The sustained failure in the Six Nations, despite an encouraging World Cup, is increasing the pressure on Cotter. Even by his stern standards, he was in a prickly mood as he faced the media before the squad flew to Cardiff, where they will train beneath the roof this afternoon, Cotter having agreed it should be shut.

“We know it’s a tough ask to go to Wales and win that game,” said Cotter, who seems to believe his side have been unfairly maligned in the media. “But within the team there is a real desire – the players have said we’re fed up with bits and pieces that have been thrown at the team. We’re going to stick tight and work our way through this.”

Cotter was asked whether he has sought to foster that “backs to the wall” mentality this week. “It’s just a fact,” he said. “There’s been a six-point loss against England at the start of the competition. We got out of shape a couple of times and they took advantage of it. That’s a fact. A fact you can’t change. You can’t make things up, I’m not going to sit here and try to whip up a story – that’s just the way it is.

“It was a pretty quick decision, after the England game, to pick the same team,” he added. “It always is a collective failure. We win together, we lose together.”