Beattie misses out in back row as coach opts to take extra prop cover instead

STRENGTH in depth in the Scotland international squad is always welcome, but the flip side is that it makes tough calls and the dropping of top-quality players inevitable.

Johnnie Beattie is the most high-profile performer left out of the 30-man World Cup squad. The 25-year-old has a star quality evident when he stormed through the Irish defences to score in the famous Scottish win at Croke Park in 2010, a year in which he nailed the No8 jersey, but form and injury have prevented him from showing that on a regular basis.

He spent the latter half of 2010 recovering from a serious shoulder operation undergone, ironically, to improve his World Cup hopes. Head coach Andy Robinson restored him prematurely to the side, a fact only realised when Beattie played against Ireland and was some way from top form. The back row returned against the Irish a fortnight ago but suffered a dead leg in the first half and was replaced after the break.

Some coaches would still have taken him either as a sixth back row – six went in 2007 – or instead of Vernon, but when Robinson decided that he had to cover the unavailability of Euan Murray for Sunday games, and the tighthead’s niggling Achilles injury, with a fifth prop, his back row options shrunk.

When asked why Beattie was overlooked, Robinson stated: “It’s down to the consistency of the others. I looked at Ross Rennie playing openside, and he’s pushing John Barclay for that seven spot. Ross can off-load, is a livewire and has got himself into great shape.

“Kelly Brown has been consistent and an outstanding performer for Scotland in the last year. Remember, I didn’t pick Kelly in 2009 at the start of my reign, but he has really fought and really started to deliver. Al Strokosch is physical and always in the game, in the dark arts of the game as well, the rucks and tackles, and I thought his performance against Ireland was exceptional for the amount of work he got through.

“So we were down to one selection, and for me the pace of Richie Vernon can really add to our game. I thought what you saw at the weekend was Richie maturing as a player and getting into the game to show his pace.

“The five players deserve selection because of their work-rate and ability to get themselves into the game, and what I’ve asked from John is to do that on a consistent level.”

Beattie was understandably down yesterday, but, stating that he would rather not comment publicly, for fear of taking the spotlight from those selected, he insisted that he understood Robinson’s words and was determined to act upon them.

His father, the former Scotland back row, had finished his career before the World Cup was launched in 1987 and was disappointed too that his son would not become the first Beattie to appear in the global event. “Sadness in our family of course,” he said, “but life teaches you hard lessons and, as I’m sure all of us think when we look back, it’s actually the bits where we have to dust ourselves down and move on that help to mould us for later life.”

Beattie junior is not the only player nursing his wounds this week. Greig Laidlaw could not have done more to force his way into the World Cup squad, but the 25-year-old lost out to the coaches’ belief that Chris Cusiter and Mike Blair will rediscover their fitness and form over the next three weeks.

Ben Cairns has the quality to perform in a World Cup too, but is yet to be given the chance, while the experience gained by Jack Cuthbert, Ryan Grant, Rob Harley and David Denton could reap dividends in the future.

Robinson paid tribute to the players who did not make it, including injured pair Hugo Southwell and Fergus Thomson, adding that he would happily turn to them if injuries arise.

The players who missed out have returned to their pro clubs to maintain high standards of training knowing that as the squad’s preparation and intensity builds, their World Cup dreams may not yet be shattered yet.