An unbeaten summer tour that included a shock win over the Wallabies has heightened spirits and McGeechan believes the atmosphere within the camp is as good as it has been in recent history.

"Overall, I think the Scotland squad at the moment probably looks as good as it has for seven or eight years," McGeechan told the Sunday Herald.

"I think Andy Robinson has done a really good job there. I'm one step back, but the vibes seem so much better than they were.

"The summer tour was brilliant. Sometimes you just need to win by an odd point rather than lose by an odd point and the whole feeling changes and confidence increases.

"Edinburgh had a superb season in Europe last year… and Glasgow are going well now. It is important that they are competitive and getting results because it builds up the support base and gets people talking about rugby all year rather than just at international times."

First up for the Scots this month is a mouth-watering match up with the All Blacks at Murrayfield this Saturday.

It's a particularly daunting challenge when you consider that the World Champions haven't lost since August last year and have never been beaten by Scotland in 107 years of fixtures between the two teams.

But McGeechan's own experience against the Kiwis back in 1990 suggest an historic victory isn't out of the question, even if it is highly unlikely.

McGeechan coached his country to the brink of glory at Eden Park in Auckland 22 years ago before slipping to a heartbreaking 21-18 defeat at a time when the All Blacks were again the reigning global kings.

"My biggest disappointment still is losing to the All Blacks in 1990," added McGeechan.

"We should have beaten them and it would have happened but for some refereeing decisions. Even the New Zealand public accepted that Scotland should have won that day.

"That was the best Scottish performance I was ever involved in. Tactically and technically we showed what we could do.

"When you lose a game like that your disappointment is much greater. The opportunity was undoubtedly there to come out with a win in New Zealand against an All Blacks side who hadn't lost since the 1987 World Cup. That was one of the special Scottish performances."