Scotland suffer Euan Murray blow as prop pulls out of Argentina tour

Murray regained his place in the Scotland team in February after missing the opening match with France through his reluctance to play rugby on the Sabbath. With Scotland playing two matches on Sundays in next season's RBS Six Nations Championship and facing at least two matches in the 2011 Rugby World Cup on the Sabbath, Murray was keen to use the tour to consolidate his claims to the No3 jersey.

However, the 29-year-old has failed to recover from ankle injuries suffered playing for Northampton in the Guinness Premiership and yesterday was forced to accept that he would not be fit enough for Scotland's two-Test tour to Argentina. An ankle injury suffered in the week before the first Test ruled Murray out of the British and Irish Lions tour last summer and the Scotland and Northampton medics have agreed that the 6ft 1in 19-stone forward has to be allowed time, with less pressure being forced on his ankles this summer. James Robson, the Scotland team doctor, said: "Following consultation between our medical team and the medics at Euan's club, Northampton, the decision has been taken in the interests of the player for Euan to undergo a period of rest, treatment and rehabilitation for differing injuries affecting both ankles."

His bad fortune re-opens the door to Geoff Cross, the Edinburgh prop, who won his second cap against England in March. The 27-year-old is called up from the Scotland A squad which also means a long-awaited recall to the Scotland set-up for Bruce Douglas, the 30-year-old prop whose move from the Borders to Llanelli and on to Montpellier seemed to signal the end of his Test career after 43 international appearances.

Douglas's last appearance in a Scotland jersey was also his debut for the A team, in the Churchill Cup against the USA in 2007, but he will be hopeful that the forthcoming IRB Nations Cup, combined with his move back to English rugby with Worcester, may help put him back into the thoughts of the Scotland management. Welsh, the promising young Glasgow prop, has also been ruled out of the A squad as he continues his recovery from a leg injury. His place will be taken by fellow Warrior Ed Kalman, who has won eight A caps out of the Borders and Glasgow, but is yet to feature in a full Scotland squad.

However, this may not be the last of the withdrawals as there are known to be a number of leading players still feeling the effects of a long season with their pro teams and Scotland, one that started for most with pre-season in June, 2009, and who have been carrying various degrees of injuries and knocks through the last few weeks of the season. The squad meets up next week to prepare for a warm-up match with a Japan side at Murrayfield on 1 June in which Andy Robinson, the Scotland coach, plans to field a mix of full internationals and A caps. His choices may be limited, which is one reason why he has termed it a Scotland XV match and insisted it will not be anything like a full Test side. The squads will split after that to head to Argentina and Romania for their respective tours.

But this is where Scotland's meagre resources of fully professional players really begins to be exposed. With the under-20s squad also preparing for their World Cup tournament in Argentina early next month and the sevens team set for the final two weekends of IRB Sevens Series tournaments in London and Edinburgh, having pulled in some players also involved with the A team in order to strengthen their squad at the end of a poor-performing season, the number of players fit and able to perform at their optimum are wearing thin.

It is no wonder coaches are keeping their fingers crossed that players come through rehab and fitness testing this week, and no more suffer injuries in sevens ties, as they put the finishing touches to plans to bring Scotland success on foreign soil next month.