THE SUNDAY HERALD REPORTS
ALASDAIR REID
The end of the beginning


DID SCOTLAND save their worst for last, or had they been flattered in the build-up to yesterday's game? Victories over Romania and the Pacific Islanders had raised hopes that they could end the year undefeated at Murrayfield, but those dreams were dashed by the clinical precision of the Australians. In retrospect, we will say Scotland were found out by the only opponents of any real quality they faced in their November Test series, but what conclusions can coach Frank Hadden draw this morning?

Perhaps the first is that one of the longest honeymoons an international coach has ever had came to an end yesterday afternoon.

It was just over a year ago that Hadden first inherited the legacy of Matt Williams' ruinous time in charge, and few would argue that he has made anything but a decent fist of what seemed bound to be a challenging job. Those RBS Six Nations wins over France, England and Italy silenced the critics who argued he lacked top-level experience, and even after two defeats on the summer tour to South Africa he seemed to be leading a charmed life.

continued...

Yesterday's loss to Australia, hefty as it was, cannot be used to fuel anti-Hadden discontent. The coach suffered a desperate run of bad luck in the build-up to the game, losing a host of key players in recent weeks. On Friday Nathan Hines, a player with the sort of robust physical presence that could have made a huge difference against the Wallabies, was forced out by a disciplinary ban, and salt was then added to Scotland's open wounds when Simon Webster, clearly the best attacker in the side, had to hobble off just a few minutes into the game.

Yet it is still true that the coach's actions and statements in the months ahead will be judged not as a refreshing contrast to the dismal regime of Williams, but by what they might contribute to Scotland's World Cup efforts in 10 months' time. The personal horizons of every international coach in world rugby are dominated by that event, and Hadden is no different.

He faces another harsh programme of matches in the 2007 Six Nations, in which only the home fixture against Italy seems a shoo-in victory for his side. Confidence has been a huge part of what he has added to the Scotland side he now leads, but it could take a heavy battering next spring.

It is astonishing how much the most innocuous incident can mean in these affairs. In 1999, John Leslie injured an ankle as he stretched for a touchdown in Scotland's opening World Cup match against South Africa, a moment that effectively derailed any hopes the Scots, the reigning Five Nations champions at the time, had of progressing through the tournament.

Hadden's deepest fear was that the knee ligament injury picked up by Jason White as he spun away from a scrum in the Romania match 15 days ago could prove to be just as significant for the current side. Certainly, it is the most important entry in the debit column at the end of this year's autumn Test series.

White was the outstanding figure in the last Six Nations, bringing a harshness and ferocity too many Scotland packs have struggled to muster in the past. Without those qualities, the Scots are a different side altogether; they could survive White's absence against the Pacific Islanders a week ago, but were exposed by Australia yesterday.

There are many who suspect that the loss of Rob Dewey could be just as much of a blow for Scotland. The prognosis for his knee problem is an absence measured in weeks rather than months, but the Edinburgh centre would have benefited hugely from more involvement in the international squad over the past few weeks. In his try-scoring cameo against Romania he showed what a forceful player he can be, a player Hadden would almost certainly rate as a first-choice selection even on so little Test evidence.

Yet the coach can also reflect with some satisfaction on his introduction of a raft of new players to the Scotland set-up.

Phil Godman had made just three appearances off the bench before this month's run of matches, but in his performance against Romania, and as a replacement for Dan Parks yesterday, he showed a sharpness and variety of game that Scotland have often lacked in his fly-half position. He may not be Hadden's first-choice at 10 just yet, but he is edging closer every time he pulls on a Scotland jersey.

Johnnie Beattie is in the same category. It is just as well that Scotland have rich reserves in the loose forward positions, for the back row attrition rate has been alarming recently.

When you consider that the trio of White, Simon Taylor and Ally Hogg, who made such an impact earlier this year, have all been major injury casualties in recent months, it is just as well that Hadden can call on players of the quality of Beattie. Like Dewey, his injury early in the match against the Islanders robbed him of the valuable experience the rest of that match would have provided, but his development as an international player has been delayed, not derailed.

It has been refreshing to see Euan Murray emerge from a few difficult seasons and finally start to live up to his potential as well. James Hamilton, the rabbit from the Leicester hat, also performed creditably on the two chances he was given, although he is still some way down the second row pecking order.

Edinburgh flanker Alasdair Strokosch sauntered out for a 12-minute debut as a replacement towards the end of yesterday's game - too little to confirm the potential he has been showing for his club, but a welcome introduction all the same, just as it was for No 8 David Callam in his first start for Scotland.

Scotland, then, are certainly stacking up the numbers by blooding new players at this level. As Australia showed, however, there is another level to which they must now aspire.

This article was posted on 26-Nov-2006, 08:53 by Hugh Barrow.