Scotland’s abject RBS 6 Nations descended into final humiliation at the Millennium Stadium as Stuart Hogg’s first-half sending-off sparked a record rout by Wales.
Wales romped in for seven tries, with braces for George North and Jamie Roberts, in running up a 51-3 score which is Scotland’s biggest-ever defeat in the championship.
Hogg’s red card was the full stop on Scotland’s abysmal disciplinary record under stand-in head coach Scott Johnson, which has seen them be the most penalised team in the championship in two successive years.
It was a key moment in contest, leaving the Scots reeling and only just avoiding their worst-ever loss, which remains the 68-10 defeat to South Africa in 1997. It is however the biggest margin of defeat in the Fiev or Six Nations, surpassing the 43-3 defeat to England at Twickenham in 2001.
Scotland were already 10-3 down and without skipper Kelly Brown – who took a blow to the head and was replaced after nine minutes – when Hogg, chasing his own up-and-under, was miles late on Dan Biggar after the Welsh fly-half had returned the kick.
The 21-year-old caught Biggar on the jaw with a shoulder charge and while referee Jerome Garces at first gave only a yellow card, he upgraded it to red when he saw the replay on the Millennium Stadium big screens.
Greig Laidlaw had given Scotland an early lead but the outgoing champions’ direct running was already poking holes in a passive Scottish defence before Hogg’s petulant aberration opened the floodgates.
Liam Williams, replacing the injured Leigh Halfpenny at full back for Wales, scored their first try after Biggar had levelled the scores with a penalty, but once the Scots were a man down Wales’ dangerous strike runners began to run riot.
Biggar dusted himself down after the Hogg incident to land the resulting penalty, and then Williams set up George North for the wing’s first try after a clean take and run back of an aimless high kick.
North again caused havoc up the Scot’s right wing for Roberts to score his first try, as the Welshmen sought to run every possession from every part of the field to exploit their man advantage.
There was stubborn resistance from David Denton and from Brown’s replacement Al Strokosch among others, but Wales poured through for tries by North, Roberts and No 8 Toby Faletau early in the second half before the Scots managed to regroup and stem the tide.
However a succession of scrums inside the Welsh 22 brought no reward and the exhausted Scots conceded a further try in the dying minutes to replacement scrum-half Rhodri Williams.