London (AFP) - Scotland will bid to kick on from recent agonising defeats in their quest for a first win over New Zealand in the two sides’ November Nations Championship opener in Edinburgh on Saturday.

New Zealand have won 31 of the 33 previous encounters, with Scotland’s best results in the 121-year history of the fixture two draws – the last in 1983.

By contrast, England, Wales and Ireland have all beaten the All Blacks, long a rugby union superpower.

So why has such a landmark success eluded Scotland?

Other than tales of sporting bad luck such as a bounce of the ball and a pass not held, an underlying reason is that rugby union is New Zealand’s national sport while football has traditionally held sway in Scotland.

The issue has been exacerbated since the end of the sport’s amateur era by the fact Scotland can only sustain two professional clubs in Edinburgh and Glasgow, with the likes of gifted fly-half Finn Russell leaving to play for Paris-based Racing 92 before joining English giants Bath three years ago.

Scotland’s relative lack of depth has also become more apparent in an age where teams can make eight substitutions during a game.

Last year’s match was a case in point. New Zealand led 17-0 at half-time only for Scotland to pull back to 17-17 heading into the final quarter.

But New Zealand replacement Damian McKenzie scored a try late on before his penalty ensured the All Blacks won 25-17 – the fourth match in a row where they had beaten Scotland by eight points or fewer.

- ‘Toughest challenge’ -

“A lot of people in sport know the All Blacks is the iconic rugby team. But our players have played against them, so that will help,” said Scotland coach Gregor Townsend.

Scotland’s task at Murrayfield on Saturday is all the harder for it being their first Test since July, while New Zealand have played six since – a 3-1 series defeat by world champions South Africa followed by two thumping wins over Australia.

Former Scotland playmaker Townsend, taking on a New Zealand side coached by his Glasgow successor Dave Rennie, added: “They’re playing some excellent rugby right now and it’s our first game of the season, which is always the toughest challenge for us too.

“It’s a different New Zealand team. It’s a team that is playing much more ambitious rugby. They’re informed, they’re cohesive. They played a lot of Test matches over the summer.”

Generations of Scots have left home to build new lives in New Zealand – the South Island city of Dunedin derives its name from the Scottish Gaelic for Edinburgh.

There is also a Scottish influence when it comes to the present-day All Blacks set-up, with former Scotland scrum-half Mike Blair now New Zealand’s attack coach and eight members of the touring squad playing for Super Rugby champions the Hurricanes – where the head coach is Clark Laidlaw, the son of Scotland great Roy Laidlaw.

Blair, in charge of Edinburgh from 2021-2023, said recent results meant there was no question of New Zealand taking Scotland lightly this weekend.

“When I played, New Zealand played their second-string team,” recalled the former scrum-half, capped 85 times by Scotland.

“They gave guys opportunity against us.”

But with the All Blacks recalling centre Jordie Barrett to a threatening back division also featuring his older brother Beauden at full-back, and McKenzie at fly-half, Blair added: “Times have changed from that. We’re fully loaded. We’re ready to go.”