Blair Kinghorn hopes his best form in a Scotland shirt is still to come as he prepares to win his 50th cap in Saturday night's box-office World Cup showdown with Ireland in Paris.
The 26-year-old Edinburgh back made his debut in February 2018 and will bring up his half-century in the Stade de France in a match the Scots must win either with a bonus point or by denying their opponents a losing bonus if they are to reach the quarter-finals.
"It's cool," he said of the prospect of making his landmark appearance in the biggest game of his career to date.
"I'll be very honoured to get my 50th cap at the weekend. It was something I probably felt wouldn't come. Then all of a sudden it has crept up on me so I will certainly enjoy the experience."
Kinghorn has scored 14 tries since making his Scotland debut five-and-a-half years ago.
His versatility has meant he has been deployed on the wing, at stand-off and at full-back throughout his international career, although he now appears to be settling into the number 15 jersey vacated by Stuart Hogg, who retired earlier this year.
Kinghorn admitted he has not yet hit the heights he expects of himself on a consistent basis for the national team.
"Peaks and troughs, I think," he said when asked to reflect on his Scotland career so far.
"When I got my debut in that first Six Nations, I was having a really good time and covering maybe just wing.
"That summer tour I moved maybe more to full-back, then found myself starting on the wing for a little period of time then Duhan (Van Der Merwe) came along and kind of ruined that for me!
"There's been up and downs. I've moved position a couple of times. I went to 10 for a bit but I feel like I'm really at home now back in that 15 jersey.
"I feel like I have not really showed how good I can be in my first 50 caps. I don't take any cap for granted but I'll certainly be looking to prove what I can do for the next wee while."
Kinghorn is confident Scotland can get the result they need to prolong their World Cup campaign beyond this weekend.
"We don't have a choice, it's win or go home," he said. "Everyone is pumped for it.
"You want to be playing in the biggest games possible and this is one of the biggest game possible for us.
"It's a great opportunity. There are nerves about it, but it will be great atmosphere, great evening.
"We have got to be defensively sound as we know Ireland have a very good structure the way they play. We have got to get our attack clicking as I feel when we do, we can beat anyone.
"We need to do our thing and what better place to do it if we do?"
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Meanwhile, Grant Gilchrist has called on Scotland to draw on memories of Paris 2021 as they bid to keep their World Cup dream alive.
Given they have lost their last eight matches against the Irish and have not defeated them by the required margin since 2007, Gregor Townsend’s team are likely to require an epic performance.
Asked if there were any particular displays in recent years that showed Scotland can achieve their objective this weekend, second-rower Gilchrist recalled their last win at Stade de France, when they overcame a red card for Finn Russell to end a 22-year wait for victory in Paris by defeating France 27-23 in March 2021.
"There are a few games, one of them was in this stadium when we beat France in 2021, the way we defended in that game, being a man down at the end and came back and went through multi-phases, that’s the levels of effort we will require," Gilchrist said.
"Big games we’ve had recently against England, away at Twickenham where we have had bad records, there are similarities there.
"This Irish team has done things that this Scotland team haven’t done, and we know that beating Ireland on a big stage is something that we have not done, but that is what excites us.
"That is why we need to go out and give our all for our country and for ourselves to get into the quarter-final."
Gilchrist has warned the Irish that Scotland will be charged with passion as they bid to pull off one of the biggest victories in their history.
"There has to be an increase in emotion as this is as big a moment as you will get in your career," said the 33-year-old lock. "It’s all or nothing.
"The challenge is hugely exciting, it’s the stuff of dreams for the players to go out into an arena like this with everything on the line.
"It’s about bringing that emotion. It’s about not being scared of it, we are going to embrace it. We are going to put absolutely everything we’ve got into this game. We believe that is going to be enough to win.
"The motivation and emotion is all there. Can we deliver that nine out of 10 performance against the world’s best team?"
Gilchrist outlined Scotland’s plan to assert themselves early in the game but – having mounted some stirring fightbacks in recent years – he is adamant they will not be fazed if they fall behind.
"A fast start will be important, against any of the best sides in world rugby you don’t want to be chasing the game," he said.
"We always believe the next moment is the most important. If we do concede a try in the first minute, the game is not lost.
"It’s our response to things going wrong that will be more important than things actually going wrong.
"We are playing against the best team in the world so of course things are going to go against us. It’s about getting more things for us than against us. The mental side will be just as important as the physical side."
Listen to live commentary of Ireland v Scotland on Saturday on RTÉ Radio 1, or follow a live blog on RTÉ.ie and the RTÉ News app.
