Ulster fly-half David Humphreys was in inspired form for Ireland, finishing the match with 26 points, but the Scots were equally to blame for their own downfall as a string of try-scoring opportunities went begging.

There was little to applaud in a display which cruelly underlined Scotland’s crippling inability to take their chances and on this evidence another torrid afternoon awaits them at the Stade de France.

But while Logan made no attempt to excuse his team’s performance, he insisted France should write Scotland off at their peril.

“We’ve got a lot of work to do after yesterday’s match but we must be positive as a team because we face a massive challenge next weekend,” said the Wasps flyer, who has now won 57 caps for his country.

“It’s going to be very difficult. We’ve got to try and stick together and turn things round – there’s no getting away from it, we’re under pressure now.

“But we’ve won there before in 1999 which is good. One of Scotland’s strengths is that we can go away from home and play well.

“The pressure is on us as a squad but knowing the players as well as I do I think we’ll go to France and give a good account of ourselves. We owe it to the coaches, fans and each other.”

Ireland were favourites for the Murrayfield encounter even though they had not won in Edinburgh for

18 years, but no-one expected them to win in such spectacular fashion.

Powerful up front and clinical behind the scrum, Ireland took a stranglehold on the game from an early stage, making a mockery of suggestions that the outcome of the match would determine who finished third in the Six Nations table.

Instead, the result has given a clear indication that Ireland will be challenging for top honours in this year – a point Logan is keen to emphasise.

“They are a good side – if they build up a bit of confidence then they can go a long way. I know exactly what it’s like when you’re playing in a team full of confidence,” he said.

“They’ve got England and France at home so you’ve got to fancy their chances and they’ve got an away win against us which is a big bonus. We really thought we could beat them, but they performed on the day.”

British Lion Brian O’Driscoll, Ireland’s skipper in the absence of injured hooker Keith Wood, showed once again why he is considered the best centre of the world.

He beat the first man time and again, keeping his side moving forward with a series of raids which left Scotland’s defence bamboozled, prompting Logan to admit: “He’s a real livewire.

“He played very well against us and when he makes an outside break it’s very difficult to deal with. He caused us problems all afternoon.”