Scotland

With 13 medals between them, Alex ‘Tattie’ Marshall and Paul Foster lead the Scotland bowls team for the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow this summer.

The vastly experienced duo will link up in the men’s pairs event, which they won at Glasgow 2014.

Marshall, who has seven Commonwealth Games medals in his collection, said of his eighth selection: “It is always such an honour and privilege to be selected to represent Team Scotland at the Commonwealth Games.

“To have another opportunity to be a part of a home Games is also not lost on me, and I know that Paul and I will give it our very best to try and win a medal for the team.”

Marshall’s niece Beth Riva, who won 2025 World Championship mixed pairs gold with Jason Banks last year, joins Caroline Brown in the women’s pairs.

Banks will make his Team Scotland debut in the singles event.

Bowls Scotland announced the host nation’s squad on Tuesday, with the Commonwealth Games bowls events running from 24 July to 2 August.

For the first time in Commonwealth Games history, all of the bowls and para bowls events will be played indoors, taking place at the SEC Centre.

In the para team, Pauline Wilson, Garry Brown, Robert Barr and his director Sarah Jane Ewing are all aiming for repeat golds after topping the podium at Birmingham 2022.

The best oysters of my life arrive on a polystyrene tray, eaten elbow-to-elbow with strangers at a table littered with empty shells and damp paper napkins. We huddle beneath a tarpaulin, sheltering from the fine spray of rain rattling on the roof, the wind whipping around the hulking CalMac ferry moored metres away, and the beady-eyed scavenging gulls.

“Have you tried this? You have to,” says a woman who has driven from Glasgow just to eat here, pressing a rollmop herring into my hand. I take a bite, the thick skin giving way to sweet and salty flesh, juices running down my chin. Elegant dining this is not, but all the better for it. This is Oban Seafood Hut, tucked beside the ferry terminal for boats heading into the Sound of Mull. Diners shuffle around a shared table, listening for order numbers, with plates piled high with langoustines, crab and oysters. It’s cash only. In the back room, a team of women butter thick slices of soft white bread for crab sandwiches, wrapping them in clingfilm without ceremony, to be sold within minutes.

Often on Scotland’s west coast, it’s the least assuming places that are worth seeking out. The hotel down the road may have a wholesaler on speed-dial, while a shack in a car park is serving seafood brought ashore just hours before. Though west coast seafood is rightly lauded across the world, it’s here, eaten metres from the water, that it tastes the best. For years Scotland’s best seafood went directly to top restaurants in major cities, but now more of it stays local. Whether enjoyed in a shack, a windswept croft or cosy dining room, there’s a commitment to getting the freshest fish and shellfish to the most people, in a way that honours the produce, people and landscape.

And a new generation of cooks is making the most of local produce, cooking it simply and letting the quality speak for itself. In a small car park in Scourie, a village strung along the road between Lochinver and Durness, is Crofter’s Kitchen. Grant Mercer was previously head chef at the nearby Kylesku hotel, but became convinced local seafood shouldn’t be reserved for fine dining. With his wife, Heather, he opened the modest shack on their working croft by the beautiful sandy beach, and started cooking it for everyone. The ethos is a 30-mile menu, built entirely around what is landed locally, so it changes constantly, “sometimes daily, sometimes mid-afternoon if the catch dictates it”, Heather says. The house special is hand-dived scallops from around Handa Island, about a mile from the kitchen, served with chorizo risotto and chilli black pudding. No white tablecloths required.

In Ullapool, Kirsty Scobie and Fenella Renwick started The Seafood Shack trailer above the harbour, determined to keep more of the local catch in the town. Both from fishing families, their close-knit supplier connections guarantee the best of the day’s catch, and the menus are built around it. Think lobster macaroni cheese, crab claw salad and haddock tacos. After years of cooking through Highland weather, they are finally building a permanent restaurant on the same site. Whether this means the season (usually April-October) will be extended, we’ll have to wait and see.

I also love the Creel Seafood Bar in Fionnphort, on Mull, beside the Iona ferry. I confess I skipped touring Iona Abbey to make sure I didn’t miss last orders, but the langoustine and chips were worth it.

Same name, different island, The Creel in Elgol on Skye sells freshly cooked cold seafood from their horsebox near Elgol beach, ideal if you’ve booked a wildlife tour nearby. The “Elgolian” squat lobster rolls are the best seller, for very good reason. It’s a wild spot, making opening hours very weather dependent, so check their social media first. The Oyster Shed at Carbost, also on Skye, is another gem. Run by an oyster farmer, it’s a simple setup with picnic table seating and the quality is sky-high.

On the mainland, Blas na Mara Seafood Shack in Fort William is a brilliant addition to the town, and the “lunchbox” with Loch Linnhe langoustines, mackerel paté, salad and oatcakes makes a very special picnic.

Growing up in the Lochaber region, to me Crannog was the definition of fancy. When it opened in Fort William in 1989, it stood as a rare beacon of fine dining in the Highlands. Lochaber should always have been a gastronomic haven, its west coast and sea lochs producing Europe’s finest seafood. It wasn’t. Instead, refrigerated lorries thundered through the villages, carrying Mallaig’s catch south without stopping. Fisher Finlay Finlayson helped change that, transforming a bait shed on Fort William pier into a distinctive red-roofed restaurant. The ethos was simple: serve the freshest seafood possible. It’s where I had my first oyster, saw lobster served and discovered the quiet magic of restaurants – setting a standard for the Highlands, and for me.

Today the original lochside restaurant is storm-battered and awaiting repairs to the town pier, so it has relocated to the safe haven of Garrison West on the High Street. Here, chef Philip Carnegie runs a tight ship, with beloved staples like mussels, oysters and Cullen skink still in place. Portions are hearty, and they need to be: often diners arrive after a day on the hill or celebrating the end of the West Highland Way. Try the Mallaig cod with mussels, and always check the specials board.

Another favourite is The Pierhouse hotel by the Lismore ferry in Port Appin, which offers a welcome refuge, with cosy fireplaces and warm service. The menu tells you who caught your supper and from which nearby loch. The best tables overlook the pier, where you may see the catch arriving. Order fresh Loch Leven rope-grown mussels cooked in cider, Loch Creran oysters, or push the boat out and share The Pierhouse platter.

Loch Leven Seafood Cafe (on the north shore) is a perfect casual pit-stop if you’re heading west, or after a day in Glencoe. Freshly cooked and simply served, there’s often more unusual seafood here, such as fresh razor clams and surf clams with garlic butter. The shellfish soup with aioli is superb.

Some meals require more of a trek. Until last year, Gareth Cole ran Café Canna, raising the profile of food on the eponymous pint-sized island, and giving it a forager’s twist with dishes such as dulse seaweed croquettes and kelp miso ramen.

He has now moved on to a new culinary adventure on the Isle of Coll (a 2hr 40min ferry ride from Oban) that promises to be worth the journey. The Urchin is named after one of Cole’s favourite ingredients. “There is an unbeatable larder on this island,” he says. He has recently started a brewery too. The Boathouse on Ulva is also worth travelling for – it requires a ferry to Mull then a tiny passenger boat to Ulva, but the seafood, welcome and views make up for the journey.

As a food and travel writer I’m lucky to have eaten all over the world, but it’s here, where I grew up, I’ve had my best meals. After years eating my way around the Highlands and Islands, it’s a delight to have discovered so many more places – and to see more creative chefs succeeding.

Back at Oban Seafood Hut, I watch a creel of live langoustines being hauled out of a small boat and sent straight to the kitchen. Perhaps I’ll stay just a little longer …

Bothy on Loch Torridon, Wester Ross

With its cheery, cherry-red tin roof, you can’t miss the sturdy stone bothy on the Ben Damph estate. The family-owned 5,868-hectare (14,500-acre) estate nudges up to Loch Torridon, and the bothy, constructed from the ruins of an old black house (a traditional thatched home), has views over the loch to the mountains beyond. Restored by a team of stonemasons, it has two rooms (each sleeping two) warmed by log burners. The furniture has been made from the estate’s timber by a local cabinet maker. Between the two rooms is a “sitooterie” with picture windows framing views over to Ben Alligin. There’s no electricity, but there is running water and a gas-powered hot shower next to the bothy; a compost loo is in the garden.
Sleeps 4, from £342.50 for two nights, bendamph.com

Gastropub and bunkhouse, Cairngorms national park

Squirrelled away among the trees on the banks of the River Spey and on the edge of Aviemore, the Cairngorms’ outdoor activity capital, the Old Bridge Inn is a gastropub with a handful of hip hostel rooms. The dogs-under-the-table inn has a roaring fire and is famous for its folk music sessions. By the riverside beer garden, paddle boarders, canoeists, wild swimmers and anglers make their way on to and into the river; while for climbers, hikers and mountain bikers, the forests and hills of the Rothiemurchus estate are on the doorstep. The bunkhouse has a vintage chic vibe, with seven en suite rooms and dorms and a kitchen – although if you don’t fancy cooking, head next door to the pub and tuck into Strathspey venison samosas with carrot and cumin sauce and roast hispi cabbage.
Dorm beds from £30, double rooms from £85, family rooms from £95, oldbridgeinn.co.uk

Hotel and bunkhouse perfect for exploring Glen Coe

Not much can match Glen Coe for jaw-dropping grandeur. This majestic glen is hemmed in on one side by the jagged peaks of the challenging Aonach Eagach ridge, and to the south, the buttresses of Bidean nam Bian. In 1692, one of the most infamous massacres in history took place here, government forces slaying the MacDonald clan as they slept. Today, it’s a giant outdoor playground, its bleak beauty drawing Munro-baggers, hikers and mountain-bikers. The West Highland Way also passes through the glen, with walkers bedding down in Kingshouse hotel and bunkhouse, a smart wooden hostel with charcoal-grey tin roof. The hotel’s glass-fronted restaurant gives panoramic views of the valley.
From £44 for a bunk, £54 for a bunk and breakfast, kingshousehotel.co.uk

Remote cottage on the car-free island of Ulva

Anyone who binge-watched Banjo and Ro’s Grand Island Hotel will know how picturesque the little community-owned, car-free Hebridean island-off-an-island of Ulva is. A short boat ride from Mull, it’s just 7½ miles long by 2½ miles wide. A 5-mile tramp from the pier (next to the excellent Boathouse restaurant) through dappled woodland and along a coastal track, brings you to Bearnus bothy. Perched above a beach where you can go swimming, this little off-grid cottage has been thoughtfully kitted out by Andy and Yvette Primrose, who also run the island’s hostel. Battery-operated fairy lights are strung around the bathroom – fill the old tin bath with water heated on the wood-burning stove. There are games, stacks of novels, guidebooks and maps, and Crocs and wellies to borrow for island yomps.
Sleeps 2, from £121 for a two-night stay, airbnb.co.uk

An inn with rooms and fresh seafood on the Isle of Skye

Charlie Haddock fell in love with the Stein Inn on her way to the Outer Hebrides years ago. In 2019, she packed up her life in London and moved her family to the remote Waternish peninsula to run this whitewashed waterfront hostelry dating from 1790, the oldest inn on Skye. Charlie works front of house and in the kitchen, preparing the langoustine, lobster and crab landed just a few feet from the door (her son and daughter help out in the holidays). The five rooms, all with sea views, were spruced up in 2024 with dove grey tongue and groove, burnt orange headboards and modern artworks.
From about £80 B&B, thesteininn.co.uk

Eco-hostel on Rannoch Moor

Originally a timber-clad boathouse and stables, the old-school Loch Ossian hostel was built around 1895 on the eponymous loch’s shores by Sir John Stirling Maxwell, the owner of the Corrour estate. A passionate environmentalist, in 1931 he handed the building over to the Scottish Youth Hostels Association. Today, the ivy-green and white-trimmed award-winning eco-hostel, hunkered into the windswept wilderness of Rannoch Moor, is powered by a wind turbine and solar panels. It has compost toilets, a reed bed grey-water drainage system and non-toxic, bat-friendly paint. There is no access by car; catch the train to Corrour station then hike (20 minutes) or bike in.
Beds from £25 a night, hostellingscotland.org.uk

Hotel with panoramic loch views

Sipping your morning coffee in the sleek wooden extension of the Kylesku hotel, a 19th-century coaching inn in the north-west Highlands, you can watch the fishers unload their catch on the slipway through picture windows. Right on the water’s edge, overlooking Loch Glendhu, this gourmet bolthole on the North Coast 500 route has 11 rooms – four in the modern annexe, Willie’s Hoose, next door; two with a sea loch-facing balcony. The rugged Assynt landscape is a Unesco-designated geopark, and the hotel offers a range of activities, from guided storytelling walks to sea kayaking and photography workshops.
From about £109 B&B, highlandcoasthotels.com

New architect-designed bothies in Argyll

A derelict croft was the first property to be turned into an off-grid, hillside hideaway on the Lochnell estate. It is lit by hurricane lamps, and outside there’s a wood-fired, sycamore-shaded, hose-filled vintage bath with views over the bay. Now, the Croft Collective’s next batch of bothies is about to be completed. Three architect-designed boltholes, named after birds you can spot along the shoreline – oystercatcher, curlew, kittiwake – will open in June. Just a pebble’s throw from the beach, wide-angled views over the Lynn of Lorne to the Isle of Mull in the west, and the Ardnamurchan hills and the mountains of Morvern, are framed by vast windows. Each bothy has a Japanese-style sunken bath, also with dreamy sea views, hammocks, and binoculars to scour the bay for seals, otters and eagles wheeling above.
From about £220 a night, thecroftcollective.com

Lochside conservation village, Wester Ross

On the shore of Loch Carron, Plockton is a 19th-century conservation village that’s picture-postcard pretty, with yachts bobbing in the bay and palm trees fringing the waterfront. The Plockton Inn has recently had a jaunty revamp – blowsily colourful rooms with floral feature walls, crimson chairs and navy paintwork are split between the old inn, Sorley’s House over the road and The Haven next door. After a day spent visiting nearby attractions such as Eilean Donan Castle, one of the most photographed in Scotland, tuck into creel-caught langoustine or “Plockton prawns” landed on the pier.
From about £170 B&B, highlandcoasthotels.com

Cabin with brilliant sunset views on the Isle of Lewis

Watch the sunset from your bed in this cute cabin by working coastal croft Croft 10. The smallholding is grazed by a flock of Hebridean sheep, the ground scratched by hens (farm-fresh eggs for breakfast). The wooden cabin faces west for spectacular sunsets and an ever-shifting seascape. Scour the water for whales and dolphins, and the sky for birds of prey soaring above Broad Bay. Just under 8 miles from Stornoway on the remote Hebridean isle of Lewis, it’s walking distance to the restored Shulishader Steps. Clamber down to the cove, a wild swimming spot, for a dip. Or head out along the recently completed coastal path, the Point and Sandwick Trail.
Sleeps 2, from £120 a night , hostunusual.com

So what to make of a day which delivered history for Scottish women’s sport, as well as a 12-try demolition?

It is true, England are not the benchmark for Scotland.

Victory away to Wales last week was a solid start, and now it is all about the response in Italy next week and trying to beat Ireland in the final game, either side of a home game against France.

But all performances are crucial to building momentum and keeping the fans coming back, as Malcolm herself said.

Just ask the Scotland women’s football team, who have seen crowds shrink back at Hampden amid a struggle to qualify for major finals.

The Scotland captain, as ever, got the tone spot on when summing up a strange day.

“Today was about so much more than just the game,” Malcolm said. “For those of us that have been around 10 years plus – we’ve come from back pitches with a couple of people in stands.

“To even arrive today and get the reception we got was phenomenal. It’s a result of the work we’ve done as players on the pitch to put in performances that make people want to come back.

“Today wasn’t one of them. But that doesn’t take away from what we’ve created over the last 10 years to make this happen.

“We’re at the beginning of a new journey. We’re going to keep pushing to get back to that point to put in a performance in that stadium that fans can be proud of.”

Some 8,000 years ago, behind the retreating glaciers, a remarkable environment was born on the western fringes of Scotland’s Outer Hebridean islands, forged by the wind and waves. It began with rising sea levels and sweeping Atlantic gales depositing crushed shell-sand inland; this settled over glacial sediment to form a coastal belt of lime-rich soil. Buffered from the sea by mounting sand dunes, this winter-wet and summer-sunned substrate produced one of Europe’s rarest habitats: the “machair”, Gaelic for “fertile grassy plain”. Abounding in diverse, colourful wildflowers and an array of associated wildlife, coastal machair is a precious, globally important outpost of biodiversity, supporting everything from purple orchids and nodding blue campanulas to endangered birdlife, otters and rare bumblebees.

As a wildflower fanatic, visiting the Outer Hebrides in peak machair bloom has long been an aspiration. Over the years, I’d read accounts of its arresting, vibrant seasonality – its shifting blankets of red and white clover, yellow trefoil and creamy eyebright, bold against the sky. Although remnant machair is also found in north-west Ireland, its greatest extent lies on this Scottish archipelago, notably the islands of Barra, Uist and Harris.

The PFA Scotland Premiership Team of the Year for the 2025-26 season is dominated by Motherwell and Hearts players.

Fourth-placed Motherwell lead the way with five, while table-topping Hearts have four.

Celtic midfielder Benjamin Nygren, who has scored 19 goals in all competitions, and Rangers defender Emmanuel Fernandez make up the XI voted for by footballers through their union.

Motherwell goalkeeper Calum Ward, defender Paul McGinn, midfielders Elliot Watt and Elijah Just plus forward Tawanda Maswanhise, the league’s top scorer with 17 goals, have all been selected.

They are joined by Hearts defenders Craig Halkett and Harry Milne as well as forwards Lawrence Shankland and Claudio Braga, who have 33 goals between them in all competitions.

The individual PFA Scotland nominees will be revealed later this month, with the winners announced on 3 May.

PFA Scotland Premiership Team of the Year for 25-26: Calum Ward (Motherwell), Paul McGinn (Motherwell), Craig Halkett (Hearts), Emmanuel Fernandez (Rangers), Harry Milne (Hearts), Benjamin Nygren (Celtic), Elliot Watt (Motherwell), Elijah Just (Motherwell), Tawanda Maswanhise (Motherwell), Lawrence Shankland (Hearts), Claudio Braga (Hearts).

Winning tip: Bothies and a fogbow in the northern Highlands

After trekking in from near Oykel Bridge, our group stayed the night at Choire Mhoir and Magoo’s bothies (conjoined Mountain Bothies Association and non-MBA bothies, both free) in the northern Highlands. Emerging from the bothies come morning, a fog hovered between the mountains leading up to the summit of Seana Bhràigh, peaking out above, and Loch a’ Choire Mhóir below. As the sun rose, the fog steadily lifted, but not before creating a magical fogbow above the loch and bothies.
Rory

Stone age on two wheels in Orkney

We took our bikes on the ferry from Scrabster on the mainland to Orkney (worth the trip on its own for the views of the Old Man of Hoy) for a spin round the island to take in some of the most impressive neolithic sites in Europe. Starting in Stromness, we headed north to Skara Brae, then looped round to Kirkwall via the must-see road sign for Twatt. The next morning we spent exploring the majestic Ring of Brodgar and nearby standing stones of Stenness. The setting, where the lochs of Harray and Stenness meet, is spectacular. These neolithics clearly had an eye for the dramatic! We finished with Maeshowe burial chamber before catching the ferry back to the mainland.
Matt Lunt

Total escape on Harris

I had a child-free week last summer and for my first solo trip chose the Outer Hebrides. The adventure began on the ferry from Ullapool to Stornoway where I spotted minke whales and acrobatic dolphins. I stayed in one of Wigwam Holidays’ cosy shepherd’s huts on a croft in Harris, painted the colours of a Hebridean sky with rich tweed blinds and a wood-burning stove. Storm Floris hit while I was there and I had endless windy beach walks seeing otters, sea eagles, grey seals, my mind clear to write poetry and daydream. I have never struggled to return to normal life so much after a trip; a total escape.
Lynda Gairns

West coast campervan epic

We did a campervan trip along Scotland’s west coast and ended up loving the quieter spots most. Kinlochewe, a village in Wester Ross, is stunning in good weather. I climbed 981-metre Slioch from there, which has incredible views over Loch Maree (with a bit of scrambling near the top). We then stayed near Gairloch and enjoyed the huge beaches and views out to Skye and the Outer Hebrides. My favourite stretch was near Mallaig: walking along Loch Morar to tiny Tarbet, then getting the boat back, it felt so remote. Ardnamurchan was also a highlight with Sanna beach, a quick climb up Ben Hiant on the drive over, and watching an otter one evening. Campsites were £10-£33 per night.
Hannah

Exploring Scotland’s longest peninsula

Last year we opted for Kintyre for our Scottish break and found it wonderfully unspoilt. As the country’s longest peninsula it has west coast island scenery all around, without the hassle of ferries. As well as the Kintyre Way coastal path, we enjoyed fish and chips at Tarbert harbour and explored the region’s whisky capital, Campbelltown. A final highlight was a peaceful picnic on Saddell Bay (location of Paul McCartney’s Mull of Kintyre music video), where Anthony Gormley’s GRIP sculpture now looks out over Kilbrannan Sound towards Arran.
Moira B

A city break in Glasgow

Arriving in the city for the first time ever at Glasgow Central, it seemed to me that’s exactly how a station should look. Off I went in search of the handsome Kelvingrove museum, Billy Connelly’s banana boots (currently at St Enoch shopping centre) and the small and thoughtful tenement house run by the National Trust for Scotland that tells the poignant story of an independent, single woman who lived there virtually all her life. Glasgow tells the history of its people as it is, and nowhere more so than the Barras flea market. The Mackintosh tea rooms proved an excellent pit stop. It’s so sad to think that Charles Rennie Macintosh died in obscurity and relative poverty at the age of 60 but his legacy is everywhere, including the Glasgow School of Art, diminished after the fire, but it will in time rise again.
Liz Owen Hernandez

Community-owned Hebridean island

We spent an unforgettable week on the Isle of Eigg at Cleadale Bothy (£80 a night, two-night minimum). Cleadale is one of the most northern settlements on the island, surrounded by wild and windy beaches, views to the south of An Sgùrr (the island’s single peak) and the Mordor-esque hills of the island of Rùm, native bluebells everywhere, and screeches of manx shearwaters at night. The island, which is 12 miles off Mallaig on the mainland, is community owned and very welcoming – while we were there we were invited to a free film night. There’s a shop, a bar, a brewery, a tiny museum, and a watersport equipment and bike hire outlet (no cars can be brought on to the island by visitors).
Margherita

Rewilded Southern Uplands

Carrifran Wildwood in the Moffat Hills is a landscape shaped by care and determination. Volunteers have returned native trees to the once-bare glen, and the scale of what they have achieved brought a lump to my throat when I first saw the valley open out from the viewpoint. It is a hopeful place, showing how collective effort can heal the land and create something enduring for future generations to experience. At the wood, there are paths and information boards for visitors, and nearby Moffat has independent shops, a museum and a park with a fantastic kids’ play area.
Hannah Price

Castles and lidos in Aberdeenshire

Coastal Aberdeenshire might not be as popular as the Highlands and islands, but Stonehaven is a great place and one of my favourite Scottish seaside towns. A nice shingly beach, a (heated!) seawater lido and a fantastic seafront ice-cream shop called Aunty Betty’s are a few of the town’s attractions. But it’s nearby Dunnottar Castle that is the biggest draw for me. Views of the coastal medieval fortress are, for my money, some of the best and most dramatic in Scotland. Then there is Aberdeen, a 20-minute train ride away from Stonehaven, with its lovely art gallery and striking granite architecture. Some day, I hope to go up for Hogmanay to experience the Stonehaven fireball festival.
Emma R

Shelter from a storm on Tiree

Camping on the island of Tiree amid Storm Dave, I needed an indoor activity to stay warm, so I went to Screen Argyll in Crossapol. This was the truest form of tourism; feeling like you’ve accidentally stumbled into someone’s living room where everyone knows everyone, and being welcomed in. As the snow storm raged outside, I laughed with 30 locals and watched a silly movie, for the price of a pint down south (£7.50). My outdoor adventures were cut short, but it meant I had the best evening of the trip.
Calum

Scotland fly-half Helen Nelson, who ranks fourth highest for the number of kicks out of hand in the English top-flight, may well look to exploit space around Kildunne, while Rhona Lloyd, who will line up opposite Kildunne, has scored 11 league tries for Sale so far this season.

Elsewhere prop Maud Muir wins her 50th cap for England as she starts at tighthead in place of Sarah Bern, who is part of a set of replacements which includes 112-cap Marlie Packer and Gloucester-Hartpury’s Mia Venner.

England are hunting their eighth successive Women’s Six Nations title, but are attempting to maintain their streak without a host of names who helped them to the World Cup last year.

Number eight Alex Matthews will miss the meeting with Scotland with a shoulder injury, while earlier on Thursday it was announced that prop Hannah Botterman had joined those sidelined for the tournament with an ankle injury.

Head coach John Mitchell will hope that the enforced changes will prove the making of a next generation of players, while maintaining the Red Roses’ grip on the tournament.

However Scotland, who will play in front of a 25,000-plus crowd at Scottish Gas Murrayfield in the biggest stand-alone women’s sporting fixture in their country’s history, will be primed to exploit any wobbles.

England: Sing; Breach, Jones (capt), Rowland, Kildunne; Harrison, L Packer; Clifford, Cokayne, Muir, Burton, Ives Campion, Short, Kabeya, Feaunati,

Replacements: Powell, Carson, Bern, Lutui, M Packer, Robinson, Aitchison, Venner

Should Lynn need any inspiration, he need not look far across the office.

Wales men’s head coach Steve Tandy helped his side end a three-year Six Nations losing streak with a final-round victory over Italy last month, while performances in defeat offered plenty of encouragement.

It is hoped the women can turn a similar corner in their campaign.

“I’ve worked really closely with Steve Tandy, I’ve been into his camp, it’s an open environment,” said Lynn.

“That’s what we’re about, supporting each other as a nation.”

Wales captain Kate Williams said: “We can be inspired by them [Wales men], but we’re not limited to what they’re doing as well.

“We’re looking internally about what we can do and finding confidence in ourselves to then be able to put out our own performance and write our own story.”

Inspiration has also been drawn from other Welsh sporting stars, including boxer Lauren Price who retained her world titles in Cardiff last weekend.

“Something like Saturday night inspired me massively,” Lynn said.

“We are one Wales and we are such a proud nation, that for me was who we are and what we’re about.”

At the start of a new World Cup cycle and with a new coaching team in place, there’s a sense of a new page being turned in this Scotland set-up.

Bryan Easson departed after five years following that quarter-final exit to England, with former United States head coach Sione Fukofuka taking over.

Captain Rachel Malcolm says Scotland want to get to the stage of “fighting in that top four, top five in the world”, but warns with a new coach and a host of new players, the team may have to endure a step back to take a few forward.

Thankfully the build-up to this Six Nations has been less stressful than prior to the World Cup, when the squad were angered by a perceived lack of respect over contracts that left several players facing unemployment after the tournament.

Malcolm was in the thick of it as captain and spokesman, in negotiations with the Scottish Rugby hierarchy and in outlining the players’ position to the media.

Clearly not all the scars have healed – especially for those players left without a contract – but the mood music sounds a lot better than it did a few months ago.

“There is no-one in a position right now as stressful as those girls were put in, which is exactly what I want as a captain. I really want our focus and our energy to be going into the rugby,” Malcolm told the BBC’s Scotland Rugby Podcast.

Scotland supporters will be hoping that the prices for their games against Haiti and Morocco will come down.

But the final group game against Brazil is likely to be in high demand.

Like England, Scotland are expected to have a high number of travelling fans who will look to secure tickets late.

For now, the price of the 2,937 tickets listed is broadly in line with the England matches.

The cheapest resale ticket is for the first match against Haiti in Boston. A $400 (£304) ticket is listed for a total resale cost of $690 (£524).

Again, the category four tickets are hugely inflated. Only one is available, with an asking price of $2,875 ($2,185) from an original price of $70 (£53).

Morocco is slightly more expensive, with a category two ticket priced at $805 (£612) from a face value of $430 (£327).

The resale prices for the Brazil fixture in Miami are eye-watering.

The cheapest available is in category three and has an asking price of $1,150 (£874), when it cost just $310 (£236) at the ballot stage.

For category one, the lowest listed is at $2,253 (£1,713) from a face value of $700 (£532).

The price of one ticket goes as high as £143,750 (£109,250).

After the China tie, Team Whyte, who are ranked in the world’s top five but are making their debut at this level, continue the round-robin against Norway (02:00). They conclude it with matches against the Swiss and Czech Republic on Thursday, with the tie with Switzerland available to watch on the BBC Sport website and app.

Whyte – along with Robin Brydone, Euan Kyle and Craig Waddell – are representing Scotland after world top-ranked rink Team Mouat elected not to compete after their silver medal at the Olympics in Cortina earlier this year.

The top six progress, with the top two going straight into the semi-finals and the other four teams competing to join them.

“We have two tough games [on Wednesday] in China and Norway,” said Whyte.

“Both teams seem to be playing quite well, so if we can try to come out firing and put in some good performances then that would be great to allow in the last stage to maybe get us two more wins and hopefully secure us the semi-final spot.

“However, there are a lot of teams around that area that could easily also get that semi-final spot, so there a lot of big games still to be played, but we are feeling positive.”

The booing, though. Silly, but also deeply annoying for the players, you’d imagine.

They tried to play progressive football against Ivory Coast, but they were undone too often by their own wastefulness, lack of accuracy, and a shortage of the kind of explosiveness and cleverness that Ben Gannon-Doak gives them on his best days.

The hope is that Gannon-Doak continues his recovery and is flying come Boston. The hope, too, is that Scott McTominay and John McGinn and the other totems of this team find their very best stuff on the biggest stage.

That’s a lot to hope for. The alternative is to mope and boo and there’s no future in that.

Scotland had 14 shots to Ivory Coast’s 12 and four on target to their opponents’ three. They created difficulties for a team that went through their entire World Cup qualifying campaign without conceding a goal.

Clarke’s side will never be as ruthless as they were against Denmark on that famous night at Hampden – an overhead kick from McTominay, a world-class finish from Tierney, a miracle from halfway from Kenny McLean.

Lawrence Shankland’s goal was a tap-in, but he admits Lewis Ferguson’s corner was probably going in anyway, before he made sure.

There was a freakishness about the four goals and the whole occasion. Reality is hitting home again now.

Scotland have to get back to what has brought them joy in the recent past – huge tempo, dangerous deliveries from wide, a flooding of an opponent’s penalty box, a creation of chaos, a flick-on, a ricochet, a breaking ball launched into a net.

They need McTominay and McGinn and Ryan Christie crashing into penalty areas and finishing.

They need Andy Roberton on one side and Gannon-Doak on the other whipping in crosses that spark mayhem.

As a central striker, Clarke has who he has. None of them are Harry Kane. The star quality lies elsewhere in this team. They all need to step up.

A second friendly defeat in four days was no calamity since it came on the back of an admirable performance, unworthy of booing.

Be fretful, be anxious, be a quivering wreck about what might be in America, but keep perspective, too. Scotland are there and they have a chance to do what none of their exalted predecessors have done.

Whoever’s booing them now must be the type of character that smiles at themself in the mirror in the morning, just to get it over with.

Whether it’s hiking in Glencoe, kayaking across a beautiful sea loch, wild camping on a mountainside, enjoying the freshest seafood in a waterside inn, a road trip on the North Coast 500, or a visit to the V&A in Dundee, we’d love to hear about your Scottish adventures.

The best tip of the week, chosen by Tom Hall of Lonely Planet, wins a £200 voucher to stay at a Coolstays property – the company has more than 3,000 worldwide. The best tips will appear in the Guardian Travel section and website.

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TV coverage is on the BBC Scotland channel from 19:15 BST, with the match also available on iPlayer.

Jonathan Sutherland is your host, with Rachel Corsie and Charlie Adam providing analysis, while commentary comes from Liam McLeod and a third former Scotland international, James McFadden.

Sportsound will also be on BBC Radio Scotland from 18:00 BST. Andy Burke is presenting, with former Scotland players Willie Miller and Leanne Crichton, plus BBC Scotland’s chief sports writer Tom English, in the studio.

Alasdair Lamont and former Scotland midfielder Stuart McCall are on radio commentary duty.

As ever, you can follow everything on the BBC Sport website and app, including text updates on the action, in-play clips, and have your say as it happens.

The truth about this contest is if it wasn’t a World Cup year the entire thing would be largely irrelevant, but it’s deeply irrelevant because Scotland are on the clock now.

Time is ticking. Ivory Coast on Tuesday, Curacao on 30 May, a flight to America the next day, a final friendly in New Jersey in early June – and then the big show.

Scotland need momentum, they need to crash rather than limp into the World Cup, they need to hit the ground running. They had, and did, none of these things at the Euros in Germany. The power they had in qualification dissipated during the warm-up games. They arrived at the Euros searching for confidence and failed to find it.

That would have been one of the big takeaways from that tournament – the need to hold on to the energy and feelgood that got them there in the first place.

Scotland still have time to regain it before America. A rousing performance against Ivory Coast – ranked 35 in the world to Scotland’s 20 – in Liverpool and they’ll be where they want to be. After that, Curacao at home. A win against the world number 82 to send them on their way, surely?

Clarke’s team are becoming a bit of an enigma, a curiosity that’s hard to read. The performances rise and fall. It’s hard to get an angle on where they’re at.

Take their games in qualification. Tremendously resilient in Copenhagen in getting a goalless draw in round one, ultra professional in beating Belarus in round two.

Then, a bizarre 3-1 win at home to Greece on a night when the visitors were by far the better side, followed by a 2-1 win against Belarus that led to so many players, and Clarke, expressing disappointment in the most brutal and graphic terms. John McGinn described the pair of victories as “jobby” performances.

Next, to Greece. Losing 3-0 – it could have been been five had it not been for Craig Gordon’s heroics – Scotland rallied and eventually lost 3-2. They were heading for the play-off until Belarus did them the most enormous favour in Copenhagen.

So, a mix of bottle and luck got them to the big showdown against Denmark where sheer class and never-say-die took them the rest of the way. This Scotland team has many faces.

Saturday was a return to their reserved selves when, really, you wanted to see the warriors of November, or at least a version of them. All eyes on Tuesday night, then, and Scotland’s search for the intensity and vitality we know they have.

Clarke has promised six or seven changes. The new blood need to infuse Scotland with some verve. Now is not the time to go into their shell. Against Ivory Coast, they need to come out fighting.

It offers world-famous sporting and medieval history, amazing food, and charming independent shops perfect for an Easter weekend staycation

The Easter bank holiday weekend is nearly upon us, and if you’ve managed to get a few days off work and want to make the most of it, a staycation is ideal.

And if you’re after somewhere boasting exceptional food, stunning scenery, rich heritage and an truly charming atmosphere, there’s one destination that’s worth a visit.

Home to one of Britain’s oldest universities, St Andrews on Scotland’s east coast is genuinely one-of-a-kind. Where else could you stumble upon a 170 year old pub just moments away from an Oliver Bonas? It’s a place I’ve returned to so many times, but every visit reveals something different to explore.

On a recent weekend getaway to Lower Largo, a small village in Fife, we decided to spend the afternoon exploring St Andrews. From Edinburgh it’s roughly an hour and a half by car, while from Glasgow it takes about an hour and three quarters.

Whether you’re passionate about the sport or not, most people probably know that St Andrews is best known for its golfing heritage.

The Old Course, one of the world’s most famous courses, features an iconic structure that you have to get a photo with, regardless of how often you’ve visited.

The Swilcan Bridge, built over 700 years ago, was our first stop on this trip. Positioned on the course’s 18th hole, strolling onto the green feels surreal, but it offers the perfect photography moment.

You’ll inevitably encounter fellow tourists there, so you may need to queue briefly for your picture, but it’s worthwhile. Conveniently, there’s a fantastic pub named the Jigger Inn just a two-minute stroll away, which was our next stop for some food.

With roots dating back to the 1850s, the Jigger Inn is a cosy, inviting pub with crackling fires that overlooks the golf course. There’s an excellent array of beverages at the bar, or you can settle down and order food, which is exactly what we did.

You can’t convince me there’s a better combination than a caesar salad, chips and wine, and the Jigger Inn did all of these perfectly.

Well nourished, it was then time to venture into the actual town itself. It’s not the biggest, and most of the shops and attractions are located on one of about three main streets, but you could easily wander around for hours without getting bored.

St Andrews is a truly unique place with distinct medieval influences that remain very apparent as you wander around the town. The university began teaching in 1413, which is utterly mind-boggling to think about, especially as it’s still a flourishing educational institution today.

There’s no denying that it’s an incredibly affluent area. Students from across the globe flock here to study, and the multiculturalism only enhances its appeal. It’s also famously the location where William and Catherine met and sparked their romance.

One of the main attractions is the remains of St Andrews Cathedral, situated near the seafront. Constructed way back in 1158, it was formerly Scotland’s largest church. Little remains of the original structure today, and it has since been converted into a graveyard.

Unfortunately, protective barriers surrounded numerous graves due to possible safety concerns, but it’s still a haunting yet fascinating spot to wander through.

There’s so much going on in St Andrews that you can easily forget that the sea is right there. Just past the Old Course sits the West Sands Beach, which famously appeared in that memorable opening sequence of Chariots of Fire.

Had the weather been warmer, this would have been an ideal spot for a walk, but the fierce wind was battering us from all directions so we opted to retreat to the shelter of the town centre.

St. Andrews boasts an excellent range of shops, from high street names like H&M and Jo Malone to unique boutiques and retailers you won’t find elsewhere. As a passionate book lover, I was eager to check out Topping and Company, a well-known family-run bookshop with a handful of branches throughout the UK.

The team were welcoming and helpful, and the range of titles available was outstanding. An entire display of signed first editions greeted visitors at the shop entrance, and the bookcases appeared to extend upwards and deeper into the shop endlessly.

It’s the sort of place where you could easily spend hours browsing – and rack up quite a bill too. Luckily, I succeeded in limiting myself to just one book, which demonstrated admirable self-control on my part.

There was just one final destination to visit on our trip, and if you like a sweet treat, you’ll want to hear about it.

You can’t visit St Andrews without stopping at Fisher and Donaldson. Founded in Fife in 1919, this family bakery is known for one thing and one thing only – its fudge doughnuts.

Widely regarded as the very best in Scotland, these indulgent delights are filled with fresh custard and topped with a delicious fudge icing.

Naturally there are other cakes and biscuits available, but the fudge doughnut honestly beats everything else on offer. We brought some home to enjoy with a coffee later on, and it’s fair to say they didn’t last very long.

St Andrews is just a wonderful place to spend the day or even the weekend if you prefer taking things at a slightly more relaxed pace. It’s brilliant regardless of the weather, but I can’t wait to return in the summer when it’s a little warmer.

Scotland assistant coach Steven Naismith hailed Curtis’ drive to move out on loan and not be content with being a squad player at Rangers.

“This desire, this instinctive nature to get chances,” Naismith added on BBC Sportscene when analysing the youngster’s weekend goal.

“He’s got a bit of pace, he’s direct, he commits defenders – these are all things that have caught the eye.”

Former Celtic and Hibernian midfielder Scott Allan added on the BBC’s Scottish Football Podcast: “When we don’t have Gannon-Doak, we don’t have someone who can really travel with the ball. Curtis does have that.

“Yes, he’s still developing and doesn’t always have that final ball, but that can be worked on. We aren’t blessed with a lot of pace, especially in the attacking areas.

“You have to have pace in those areas, especially when at times we’ll be forced back and when we’re then trying to get up the pitch. Players with pace can be the difference.”

The waymarked quartzite path glimmers in the sun, flanked by amber-gold grassland. Beyond, one of Scotland’s finest landscapes opens up before me, a woodland of ancient Caledonian pines leading my eye to the metallic glint of Loch Maree. On the other side of the water, a winding river separates the steep, stacked rocks of Beinn a’Mhùinidh from Slioch, one of the great mountains of Wester Ross, rising to a knuckle ridge of Torridonian sandstone.

I’m walking the four-mile mountain trail looping through Beinn Eighe national nature reserve (NNR), Britain’s first NNR, which celebrates its 75th anniversary this year. In a crowded list, you’d be hard pushed to find a more soul-stirring landscape in all of Scotland.

“The mountain path gives you a real flavour for Beinn Eighe,” the reserve manager, Doug Bartholomew, told me earlier. “It takes you right through the heart of the ancient Caledonian pinewood, then you climb steeply up to this rocky upland with views of Beinn Eighe mountain itself.”

When I reach the high point, at about 550m (1,805ft), I’m awed by the views across a lonely valley to the jagged ridgeline of mountain, which surges and falls like Atlantic waves locked in stone.

Beinn Eighe NNR stretches 48 sq km from Loch Maree to the eponymous mountain summit. When it was created in 1951, a key mission of the NNR was to protect Coille na Glas Leitir (the Wood of the Grey Slope), which is the largest remaining fragment of ancient Caledonian pinewood in north-west Scotland. The woodland was felled by some of Scotland’s earliest ironworks in the 1600s, and forestry and farming took its toll over the generations, but it is believed to have been here for the last 8,000 years.

After the Highland clearances, the lower slopes of Beinn Eighe were increasingly used for grazing. Deer-stalking, grouse-shooting and muirburn (when old growth is burnt off to encourage new growth for grazing) followed. The final exploitation happened during the second world war, when lumberjacks were brought in from Newfoundland and British Honduras to fell the trees for ammunition boxes. But thanks to pioneering landscape restoration work, namely deer management and tree planting, woodland cover has increased by more than 40% in the 75 years since the reserve was created.

Today, it’s a rare Scottish landscape where you can walk beneath twisted and gnarled pine branches hundreds of years old, but also alongside younger, conical trees.

“In the past, we had a tree nursery; so we collected seeds from the reserve, grew them in our nursery and planted them,” said Bartholomew. “We’ve now got continuous woodland linked from Glas Leitir all the way through to Coulin Estate, where you’ve got other remnants of ancient woodland, and we’re moving more to natural processes – conditions that will allow the woodland to regenerate and expand naturally.”

I soon descend into Coille na Glas Leitir on the mountain trail, passing a mosaic of birch and pines, draped in lichen. This path was a public access landmark when it opened in the early 70s, encouraging visitors to explore the mountain, and it’s still perfectly marked (though snowfall can obscure it in winter). Stags roar from the other side of Loch Maree as I walk. Tougher to pick out are the crossbills, with crossed mandibles to prise open pine cones. In warmer months, dragonflies with magical names – northern emerald, azure hawker – nose around rare mosses.

While steep, the mountain trail isn’t technical. Along with the easier woodland path, which showcases the ancient forest, and short loops from the excellent visitor centre, the beauty of this reserve really is accessible. Local providers such as Shieldaig Outdoor Adventures also offer days out exploring the islands of Loch Maree by canoe or kayak in warmer months.

I’m staying in Torridon youth hostel, at the head of Upper Loch Torridon, south-west of the Beinn Eighe massif. It’s a 20-minute drive from Coille na Glas Leitir via the village Kinlochewe, passing beneath the bulky mass of Beinn Eighe before Liathach, an icon of Glen Torridon, is revealed. The hostel is tucked beneath this mighty mountain, not in the nature reserve itself, but in an ideal place to explore it and the Torridon hills beyond.

“When we mention that we live in Torridon, people get misty eyes,” jokes Debbie Maskill, manager of the youth hostel. “For us, it’s the best part of Scotland. A real jewel.” It’s true that few place names roll so sweetly off the tongue of a hillwalker as Torridon. This is a place of grandeur – of immense, intimidating mountains set on some of the oldest rocks in Britain; of shifting light and uncompromising ferocity – with a beauty verging on myth.

The hostel – which itself turned 50 last year – is a pilgrimage site for hikers; it’s in close reach of some of Scotland’s finest scrambles, as well as the family-friendly nature reserve. Walkers and climbers trade stories and photographs in the communal kitchen and dining area. Floor-to-ceiling windows in the cosy lounge allow you to watch the weather roll over the Wester Ross peaks.

I stay in a comfy private room, and regret my early bedtime when a French guest shows me the photographs he took of the aurora shimmering above Loch Torridon the next morning. “Winter really captures the far north essence here, but by February, it’s getting lighter,” says Paul Thompson, duty supervisor at the hostel. “In the middle of winter, we don’t see the sun here, but in February it’s above the hills for quite some time. Then you get to May, a stunning time of year, when everything is fresh and you’ve got almost endless daylight. I love it all.”

On a six-mile loop of Loch Clair and Loch Coulin, just outside the reserve, I stroll beneath more tall pines, looking on to the Torridon beasts. The grey, dotted ridge of Beinn Eighe looks like it has a snow leopard’s coat draped over it, and the pyramidal mass of Liathach reflects back off the water.

I plan to walk to the Triple Buttress of Coire Mhic Fhearchair on my final day (three glacial rock towers in a corrie of Beinn Eighe), but heavy rain arrives. It’s all the excuse I need for a venison lunch at Bo & Muc, a field-to-fork restaurant at the swanky five-star The Torridon hotel.

I leave Torridon via the road to Achnasheen, stopping at the Glen Docherty viewpoint for one last look over the road to Kinlochewe, the lapping mountains and Loch Maree.

After centuries of deterioration, it’s heartwarming to see the fragments of ancient pinewood reconnecting here, in this immediately spellbinding landscape. In another 75 years, the young pines of Beinn Eighe will stand taller and, if all goes to plan, those who pass by them will be walking through a fully regenerative forest.

Accommodation was provided by Hostelling Scotland. Torridon youth hostel has private rooms for two from £52 a night, dorm beds from £20.50. The Beinn Eighe NNR trails are open year-round and are free to visit. The Beinn Eighe NNR visitor centre (with info on the reserve) is open April to October, 10am to 5pm