Six Nations: Changes imposed on Andy Robinson as lack of depth shows
WHEN coaches make miminal alterations to their teams, it is often said they have “resisted the urge to make wholesale changes”.
In Andy Robinson’s case, it is an urge the national coach has always found easy to resist.
Many Scots under-performed in Saturday’s 13-6 defeat by England, but Robinson does not have a wealth of talent in reserve. He was therefore always likely to restrict himself to a couple of changes to the starting XV to play in Wales on Sunday and, it is expected that Greig Laidlaw and Geoff Cross will be the only newcomers. Cross will come in at tighthead prop for Euan Murray, who declines to play on Sundays for religious reasons, and Laidlaw will replace Dan Parks at stand-off.
Parks, who yesterday announced his retirement from international rugby, would probably have been dropped from the squad – not just from the starting line-up – after the crushing disappointment of the Calcutta Cup defeat. Glasgow stand-off Duncan Weir will come on to the bench as Laidlaw’s understudy, having been one of Scotland A’s most impressive performers in a 35-0 win over England Saxons on Friday night at Netherdale.
Cross’s promotion leaves a place on the replacements bench for Alasdair Dickinson, provided he recovers from the shoulder injury which saw him pull out of the squad last week. If not, Jon Welsh or his Glasgow colleague Ed Kalman should step in.
Another change among the replacements should see the introduction of Stuart Hogg at the expense of Graeme Morrison. Hogg scored an outstanding try for the A team, while Morrison was the only unused substitute at Murrayfield.
Although Hogg has played mainly at full-back, he can also play at outside centre.
Wing Max Evans, who will retain the No 11 jersey, also offers cover at 13. And Nick de Luca, who will again start in that position, can slot in at inside centre if required. Sean Lamont, who will start at 12, can be cover for the back three along with Hogg, who still appears in line to be handed his first senior start before the end of the championship.
In his time as England coach as well as latterly with Scotland, Robinson faced criticism for conservative selections. His choice of Parks for the Calcutta Cup game was met with widespread scepticism, including from some knowledgeable former players.
Robinson’s argument was that Laidlaw, the only other contender for the No 10 jersey against England, lacked enough experience. That remains a matter of conjecture but the Edinburgh player was livelier in his 23 minutes on the field than Parks was in his 57. Laidlaw not only came close to scoring a try but did far more than Parks to spark the back line into life. While he remains a seasoned scrum-half who is still short of big-match experience at No 10, he has done more than enough to show he is the best candidate to start Sunday’s match at No 10.
With Laidlaw in, the question was whether Chris Cusiter should hold on to his starting place at scrum-half or Mike Blair start alongside his Edinburgh colleague? Robinson opted for the former, but it must have been a close-run thing.
Blair came off the bench at the same time as Laidlaw, and played a significant part in lifting Scotland’s game. That told in his favour, as did the fact that, as he knows Laidlaw better as a player, he is best placed to guide him through the difficult moments which arise in an international.
Similarly, Cusiter plays alongside Weir at Glasgow, and might therefore be more suited to coming off the bench with his club team-mate than to starting with Laidlaw. But his form has been better than Blair’s over the oast month or two, notably in the head-to-head league matches between the two Scottish sides.
The 13 players who retain their places have not simply been rubber-stamped. Perhaps only back-row forwards David Denton and Ross Rennie did enough to merit that distinction.
But the coaches know that, among those who have kept their places, even the ones who were poorest on Saturday are capable of more. And, in the absence of in-depth competition, there is little alternative but to trust that they will produce more this time round.
Likely Scotland team to face Wales on Sunday:
15 Rory Lamont
14 Max Evans
13 Nick de Luca
12 Sean Lamont
11 Lee Jones
10 Greig Laidlaw
9 Chris Cusiter
1 Allan Jacobsen
2 Ross Ford
3 Geoff Cross
4 Jim Hamilton
5 Richie Gray
6 Alasdair Strokosch
7 Ross Rennie
8 David Denton
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Comments
There are 19 comments to this article
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jockybadger
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 01:10 PMPending Moderation
SeniorandSenior
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 01:02 PMPending Moderation
GTM
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 12:52 PMRegardless of selection there is nothing to suggest that we are capable of winning in Cardiff on Sunday. This was always going to be one of the hardest games, but after seeing the Welsh in Dublin (with hardly any ball gaining yards and points at will) it must be regarded as our toughest game. We have to show some progress and ingenuity however for slightly easier games ahead. Think AR is still scarred by the Matthew Tait experience a few years back, so that ends any hopes for Scott I would think. If Laidlaw was too raw and inexperienced to start against an unbelievably average England team at home, then why is AR refusing to pair him with club colleague in a raucous Cardiff?? Doesn't make sense. Hogg should start too. R Lamont out of form and confidence.
SeniorandSenior
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 12:52 PMAndy Robinson has to do the right thing with these young guys. Throw them on against a Wales side with their tails up at a seething millennium stadium, and they'll never be the same players again...... So he shouldn't pick Matt Scott, or Stuart Hogg to start, and he was right not to start Greig Laidlaw against England. It looks like Hogg and Weir will be on the bench with Laidlaw starting against Wales, and this is the right way to bring young players into a losing team IMO - i.e. slowly, from the bench, giving them confidence. laidlaw will know he made a difference against england when he came on, and that will give him the confidence he is worth a start. Matt Scott will maybe get on the bench against France, which means he'll get 20 minutes unless there's an injury, and that's the best way to do it. Anyone who thinks you can just throw young players onto the pitch against some of the best players in the world and hope they'll be OK is just not being realistic.
jockybadger
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 12:32 PMI'd also give serious though to replacing Strokosch with McInally @ 6. Feel really sorry for Rory Lawson, I reckon he's at least as good as Blair & Cusiter but almost always overlooked.
Sevendirtywords
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 12:31 PMLack of depth? Where exactly? Robinson has a couple of problem positions but actually has alternate choices available in almost every position .............. Tighthead has been an issue yet he has a choice between Cross and Kalman ........... Stand-off has been a problem yet he has Laidlaw and Weir to replace Parks and the injured Jackson ............. Inside Centre is our real biggest problem, yet we have Matt Scott at Edinburgh coming on in leaps and bounds, even at Scotland A level, and giving Robinson another option ............. Full Back has been a problem at times yet Hogg has been in fabulous form all season long (until moved to Centre to accomodate Rory Lamont) including Scotland A last weekend. The options are there, there is (some) depth in every position but some of the options are "risky" insofar as the players are inexperienced. If you pick the players in form in their correct positions (bearing in mind combinations) you won't go far wrong. Robinson is too conservative and has had too much faith in the experienced players who have only experienced failure.
RodB
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 11:57 AMWe can't win the Grand slam (though we had very little chance anyway..) and unlikely we'll win, or even come close, to winning the championship... we can't score tries, so now is the opportunity to build and experiment. Laidlaw is not the only answer, we need a talented 9, 10, 12 axis with flair behind. Isn't it time for Robinson to take a risk and play Blair, Laidlaw, Scott and Hogg - put Sean Lamont on the wing to take on the big welsh wingers put Evans at 13 until Ansbro is fit. And put jones on the other wing, I thought he did pretty well on saturday The pack also did pretty well - most teams would have scored a boatload of tries with the possession they delivered. Andy admire you enormously but sometimes you just have to be brave... What have we got to lose?
jockybadger
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 11:50 AMSOME GREAT POINTS RE INSIDE CENTRE EDINBURGH PLAY WITH A NZ STYLE 2ND 58 (SCOTT OR KING) & HAVE SCORED LOADS OF TRIES. SCOTLAND A PLAYED WITH A 2ND 58 & SWEPT THE SAXONS OFF THE PARK. LAMONT IS A GOOD PLAYER BUT (@ 12) EASY TO DEFEND AGAINST. IT WOULD SEEM TO BE A NO-BRAINER TO PUT SCOTT @ 12 & S.LAMONT IN FOR EVANS. DE LUCA LOOKS GOOD FOR EDINBURGH BECAUSE HE GETS THAT EXTRA WEE 12 SECOND AFFORDED TO HIM BY HAVING A GUY INSIDE HIM THAT CAN PLAY SOMETHING THAT DOESN'T HAPPEN WITH SCOTLAND.
ronburgendy
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 11:44 AMThis is why Robinson got sacked by England and why he will no doubt soon leave Scotland. His selection policy is terrible and makes no sense whatsoever. Firstly to go with Lamont at centre for the Wales game is astonishing. He didn't make any headway against two young English centres making their debuts and has not shown anything in his previous starts at 12 to suggest he can play there. So how is he suddenly going to have the ability to do anything against Davies and Roberts? There is a huge clamour to get Matt Scott in but Robinson hasn't actually got him in the squad so that will just not happen (which is crazy as Morrison is there and even a blind, dumb and deaf man could see who's been the better performer this season). As for Hogg not getting a start i'm stunned. Yes he is young but he clearly has the self-belief and confidence to handle himself. For the scrum-half I just don't get what people see in Cusiter. He maybe had the better of him in 2 games this season, 1 of which involved an Edinburgh 2nd team on a freezing cold January night, but does that justify a starting place? Who's been the better consistant performer and who knows the no. 10 better? You have 2 set partnerships there in Blair & Laidlaw and Cusiter & Weir so why break it up? And has Rory Lawson suddenly gone from Scotland captain in World Cup to being useless? Hopefully it won't happen but I really feel for Laidlaw if he is going to have passes coming from Cusiter and then laying them off to Lamont outside him. De Luca has been battered by people claiming he does nothing...well it's kind of hard when your 10 & 12 don't give you any ball. If he was playing with a 9, 10 & 12 with pace and handling skills he would flourish. RANT OVER!
stellarbluesky
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 11:23 AMRory Lawson is a natural captain and a scrum half with fast hands who doesn't need to take a step before passing - like both C and B. Pairing Lawson with Laidlaw would allow the line to move as effectively as the A side reportedly did in beating England Saxon by scoring tries. But GT is blinkered as an 'attack' coach.
donald marr
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 10:42 AM#3 Lamont is a far better player than De Luca and he had a far better world cup to prove it.
George_Haley
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 09:42 AMAnother aspect of the Euan Murray situation has just come to mind, if he doesn’t want to play on Sunday, what is to stop him putting his name up to play for the A side? Or does he have another caveat in his contract that says he will only play for the senior side? Can you imagine any situation where an employee tells his employer that he can’t work his shift because of his religion? No neither can I and what is more although I am not versed in the dark arts of the front row, it didn’t seem to me that the English front row had any great struggle with Murray or for that matter when Murray’s replacement came on. The more I think about it the more ridiculous the situation appears.
Sevendirtywords
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 09:39 AMAgree with earlier comments re 12. Also concerned about playing two wee wingers against North and Cuthbert, especially the former. Sean Lamont should have been put back on the wing where he belongs to tackle that threat.
George_Haley
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 09:22 AM#3 and #5 are absolutely spot on in my opinion, any half-decent side or worse [as was the case at the weekend] can deal with an inside centre on a crash ball. Even in the old days when forwards were not strung across the midfield the move became old hat, especially when you put someone like Lamont in at inside centre, you know he is going to do the crash ball, unfortunately usually without looking for support for a pass, mind you the question of support runners brings on another topic. And why the insistence on allowing Euan Murray to pick and choose when HE wants to play is beyond me. In the amateur days it might have been ok if you wanted to turn out for a lower side but not at the top in the days of so called professional Rugby. As regards experience, you don’t get experience in the 1st XV by sitting on a bench or playing for the 2nd XV. Instead of picking a team to save his job Mr Robinson should tell the SRU that he is picking a team for the next World Cup rather than hanging on to players who are unlikely to be in the selectors list come 2015. That goes double for Murray, if the SRU want to have a chance of success then this season is the time to start the process. Heaven knows we have filled the role of good losers for long enough with players that have not fulfilled either promise or ability, so why worry if we get a thumping giving potential up and coming players a chance, if they have character they will use the defeat as a learning curve, if they don’t then in reality we are no worse off.
On the brink
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 09:03 AM...and of course this will be the team that is announced because it is always leaked ahead of the game, so apart from two forced changes (Parks and Murray beliefs) Robinson is planning nothng to address the try shortage by maintaining with a 12 who is never a 12 - which will lead to commentary about Laidlaw effectiveness at 10 - which in fact will be strangled by having a crash 12 who can't pass playing off him. Also - why no blair? It is a partnership for goodness sake???? AR lack of adventure is very frustrating and wearing thin on me as a supporter. Comment earlier was right - lack of depth is not the issue - lack of faith in what is coming through is - Please let this team prediction be wrong and have Scott in - we would all feel we were heading somewhere then, irrespective of match outcome on Sunday.
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