“I think we learned a lot from that period, we learned from the Six Nations. We have grown the group, we are constantly improving. We feel we are getting closer.

“We’ve got all the ingredients. We’ve got to find a way to get ourselves there after just 60 minutes of work, we’ve got to find a way to get through this last hurdle.”

“If it were easy, everyone would do it. I definitely feel that in the last few tests where we have come forward, we can be competitive against the top teams both away and at home.”

After facing Portugal, Scotland wrapped up the Autumn Nations Series against the Australian team that stunned England last time out at Twickenham.

Dalziel, who wants his team to leave the season by winning 3 out of 4 matches, says that even though there will be changes in the squad for the Portugal match, he will not be complacent about the team that ranks 15th in the world rankings.

“We must show the utmost respect to Portugal,” Dalziel said. “It’s the first time they’ve come to play against a Six Nations team away from home, with 55,000 people at Murrayfield.

“They have a game that can rival anyone, we saw that in the World Cup. The defeat against Fiji was very competitive.

“They should have performed better against Wales where they had the opportunity to win the game. We will give them full respect.

“There will be a few players I would dream of replacing, but we will pick a strong Test team to win this weekend. We want to finish with three wins.”