LIAM Hood got a taste of playing rugby league against Australia – and can hold his head high!

If a mark of a player’s performance is judged on the impact of his opposite number, Leigh Centurions’ 24-year-old hooker arguably had the biggest task of the night in the Scotland ranks up against Australia and Melbourne Storm captain Cameron Smith.

But in a beaten pack in a 54-12 loss in the Ladbrokes Four Nations clash at Hull KR’s KC Lightstream Stadium, the former Leeds Rhinos and Salford Red Devils number nine Hood made himself known to some of the highest-profile names in world rugby league.

Certainly Penrith Panthers full-back Matt Moylan will remember one particular hit that left him shaken and stirred.

Ten tries to two tells its own story, though, with Scotland’s only scores coming from Huddersfield’s former Leigh half back Ryan Brierley and Bradford’s Ben Kavanagh.

However, just like Hood the rest of the Bravehearts team were not shy on getting stuck in – particularly in the second half after turning around 30-6 adrift.

Perhaps if more of the aggression and hunger shown in defence at that stage had been in show in the first half the margin of defeat could have been far less.

Warrington Wolves winger Matty Russell took two carries from dummy half in Scotland’s second set, the latter getting his side on the front foot for St Hlenes-bound Adam Walker to charge into space and provide Huddersfield’s Danny Brough with time to employ his tactical kicking game.

But it was as good as it got for Scotland in the early stages though.

Sydney Roosters’ Blake Ferguson showed his strength to carry Brierley over the line from a scrum play in the fifth minute after Brough had knocked on.

Hood covered the inside break of Brisbane Broncos’ Sam Thaiday but from the play-the-ball Smith darted left out of dummy half and kicked right perfectly for Melbourne Storm clubmate Cooper Cronk to pounce for try number two.

James Maloney, half back of the NRL champions Cronulla Sharks, kicked his first of seven conversions from 10 attemptes for 10-0 after 10 minutes.

Maloney then finished a fast handling move on the last tackle of the next set and Scotland were behind their own sticks again from the next set when St George-Illawarra Dragons’ former Wales international second rower Tyson Frizzell left Brierley floored and fed Cronk on the inside to make it 22-0 after 15 minutes.

Walker was replaced by Northern Pride’s Sheldon Powe-Hobbs as Steve McCormack attempted to share the energy burn around his front men, with Brooks joining the fray in place of Kavanagh minutes later.

Scotland, for the first time in seven minutes, got their hands on the ball and started to look threatening but Bradford’s Dale Ferguson fumbled.

Hood floored Penrith’s Matt Moylan with a crunching hit as the Australian full back crashed onto an inside ball to lift the Bravehearts but they were soon forced into dropping out from between their posts.

It paved the way for Moylan to execute a superb pass for Penrith’s Josh Mansour to cross for the Aussies’ fifth try in the left corner after 25 minutes.

Smith fumbled the spiralling restart from North Queensland Cowboys’ Lachlan Coote to hand the Bravehearts their best attacking position 15 minutes from the try line but Bradford’s Danny Addy dropped the ball in the face of fast-advancing defence as the chance went begging.

Douglas, after a hardworking 30 minutes, intercepted a wild pass on the last tackle to prevent a possible strike from the Aussies and then took a rest to allow Kavanagh’s return.

Brooks lost the ball in the tackle after he was lifted in the air and the Aussies counter-attacked clinically through Maloney and Moylan before Mansour dived over in the corner for his second try and a 30-0 lead after 35 minutes.

A good defensive read from Russell forced an Aussie spill and a Walker offload started to build some pressure before Brough’s grubber that was deflected by Smith was touched down by Brierley. Brough added the extras for 30-6.

On the final play of the half another Walker determined surge and offload allowed Russell to make a half break and slip a pass out of the back door to Coote who found support from Brierley but the half back was second best in the chase to his 40-metre kick to the try line as the half time hooter sounded.

St George’s Josh Dugan ran through a hole on the inside of Russell as he hared on to a pass from Cronk and raced home from 60 metres three minutes into the second half.

But it was not a sign that the floodgates would open.

Russell’s reverse offload out of a tackle sparked some life out of Scotland as they got into position to kick deep through Brough around the 50-minute mark as a bit of an arm wrestle ensued.

Fast runs out of dummy half from Brough and Hood earned the Bravehearts another chance at the Australian line but London Broncos’ former Warrington academy centre Ben Hellewell was tackled on the last tackle when a kick would have been preferential.

Moments after returning to the action Douglas clashed heads with Dugan and both left the field in a dazed state.

A Brough interception of a Moylan attacking pass led to a 60-metre gain, which led to Walker tipping the ball onto Kavanagh for a second converted Scotland try in the 59th minute.

Frizzell powered over from short range from a Maloney inside drop-off pass for Australia’s second try of the half in the 66th minute, punishing Scotland for losing possession inside their 20 metres.

Maloney, Moylan on the inside and then Maloney again combined for North Queensland’s Michael Morgan to touch down on the next set.

Brough and Russell produced a try-saving tackle on another Cowboy, Justin O’Neill, to stop the rot and Brierley could have broken away but failed to take a flip pass out of a tackle by Russell.

But the last act came from the Kangaroos with Penrith’s Trent Merrin stepping off his right foot and breaking away to put Manly’s Jake Trbojevic over, with Maloney’s final kicking success completing the scoring in front of a crowd just over the 5,000 mark.

Scotland: 1. Lachlan Coote; 2. Lewis Tierney, 3. Euan Aitken, 4. Kane Linnett, 5. Matthew Russell; 6. Danny Brough (c), 7. Ryan Brierley; 8. Adam Walker, 9. Liam Hood, 10. Luke Douglas, 11. Danny Addy, 12. Dale Ferguson, 13. Ben Kavanagh. Subs: 14. Ben Hellewell, 15. Sheldon Powe-Hobbs, 16. Sam Brooks, 17. Billy McConnachie.

Australia: 1. Matt Moylan; 2. Josh Mansour, 3. Justin O’Neill, 4. Josh Dugan, 5. Blake Ferguson; 6. James Maloney, 7. Cooper Cronk; 8. Aaron Woods, 9. Cameron Smith (c), 10. David Klemmer, 11. Sam Thaiday, 12. Tyson Frizell, 13. Jake Trbojevic. Subs: 14. Jake Friend, 15. Shannon Boyd, 16. Trent Merrin, 17. Michael Morgan.