SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY ASKS


Scotland need to hothouse a new stand-off now for the 2011 World Cup, argues Iain Morrison

Iain Morrison
IMAGINE just for a moment the heart-warming prospect of Dan Carter playing in the navy blue of Scotland. If that thought errs on the self-indulgent then think of what might have been achieved had Ronan O'Gara, James Hook or Danny Cipriani boasted a Scottish grandmother and all the privileges that that brings with it.
It is something to savour because whoever fills the No.10 shirt is quite simply the most important player on the field; a mix of Dan Dare and Professor Hawking, a man of action and a deep thinker all rolled into one. If the playmaker, the central cog in the rugby machine, is misfiring then the team as a whole is unlikely to be running like the Swiss railways.

It is one of the ironies of the modern game that while Scotland boast three scrum-halfs any of whom Brian Ashton would swap his mother for, our ancient enemy have six fly-halfs (Danny Cipriani, Jonny Wilkinson, Toby Flood, Shane Geraghty, Glen Jackson and Ryan Lamb) who would walk into Frank Hadden's starting XV without detaining the selectors for longer than a cold cup of coffee. Gloucester's Lamb is the only one in that list who had the necessary qualifications to play for Scotland but, with two appearances for the English Saxons to his credit, he has made his choice for better or for worse.

England's stand-offs have all the skills required of modern playmakers so why does Hadden have to choose between a kicking and a running 10? Anyone aspiring to play top-class rugby in the most important position on the pitch should have multiple skills at his disposal but sadly not in Scotland. Nowhere has the lack of playing numbers hurt their aspirations more than in the country's collective failure to produce even one top-class playmaker.

The options available within the national squad are deeply flawed. On his day, Dan Parks is a world-class kicker but he lacks the pace to trouble any defence with the ball in hand and he is wayward. Chris Paterson lacks the requisite experience to fill the No.10 shirt after being pushed around the houses these last few years. Second, or maybe third, choice at Gloucester, he can't even get a regular game for his club.

In his Murrayfield office, the head of youth rugby, Henry Edwards, runs a grid. It shows which players in which positions are coming up through the ranks of Scotland's age-group teams. You have to imagine that there have been plenty of people burning the midnight oil, pouring over this grid to see who and what is emerging to fill the crucial No.10 jersey.

It's a mixed bag with no obvious heavyweight contender, no prince in waiting, kicking their heels on the sidelines. Instead there are various different players at different levels in their development who could, with the right coaching and a following wind, come through in time for the 2011 Rugby World Cup. Not that Scotland has any record of promoting young talent. The Waratahs' backline included two teenagers in the starting line up this weekend while we think that Ben Carins and Nick De Luca are still young at 22 and 24 respectively.

Even if Ruaridh Jackson or Rory Hutton signed pro papers this summer, how much meaningful game time could they realistically expect next season? Fly-half is the one position where players need time to hone their craft and yet Glasgow Hawks have been playing Jackson at full-back for much of this year and Hawick have occasionally shifted Hutton to the centre spot. The clubs are not to be blamed, they have matches to win, but it isn't helping the players develop as playmakers and Scotland desperately needs someone to step up to the plate.

The sad truth is that we have already had this argument in Scotland. It took place four years ago after the 2003 World Cup when Ian McGeechan tried five fly-halfs in the years leading up to that tournament and then switched his playmaker half way through it, giving Chris Paterson his first ever international start as stand-off in that must-win pool match against Fiji. Everyone agreed that such a farcical situation must never be allowed to happen again and, if it hasn't quite been that bad, here we are four years down the line and still without a Test 10 worth the name.

The danger is obvious. Unless the union makes some bold decisions now and aggressively hothouses a couple of the country's more promising youngsters, we will be having exactly the same arguments again in another four years' time.

This article was posted on 24-Mar-2008, 08:23 by Hugh Barrow.