Given where we are at in this season’s championship, I feel it appropriate to look at the squad and both Chris and Gordon deserve the opportunity to start. Both need to be seen, particularly when...

As I have said before Nathan remains very much in my thoughts. He has not retired from international rugby.

I started thinking about South Africa two days after the Italy game in mid-March, that’s just the nature of the beast. We’ve played a lot of physical teams in the last 12 months but this...

Colin Noon is someone who interests me greatly. I tried to sign him for Edinburgh a couple of times and although I would have to speak to other selectors before making a decision.

Those who have been mud-slinging at Dan need to have a look at themselves now.

We are where we are at the moment on the international rankings – ninth,

Italy have made so much progress this year and, to be honest, I think they have played better than us in this championship.

I was very impressed with MacLeod’s play against Wales when he came off the bench.

The first international squad session is due to take place on October 3 and it would be expected that the new coach determines who takes part. That means giving players notice and from that point...

Between them they’ve won 88 caps but it is the knowledge from coaching our professionals on a daily basis that will prove such an asset,

It is our last home game and they have got to come in after the match and face up to the supporters. They will need to give their all for 80 minutes before they do...

They are very different types of player and it’s a new toy for us to play with having real competition for places, … It won’t be until the Heineken Cup that you will get a...

What I said at half-time was that there were going to be a lot more points in the game and sitting on a lead wasn’t an option. We had to be brave in going out...

Ben has made great strides since he joined Edinburgh last season. Rob has earned his call-up with the consistency of his performances.

Everyone connected with Scottish rugby should be celebrating Simon’s comeback. He is such an important player – both for Edinburgh and the national squad.

Scottish style, eh? No, just pragmatic.

Mike performed exceptionally well when he came on as a replacement against New Zealand.

He has had a tremendous impact on the squad. The fact his own performance was so exceptional during the November Tests means he is coping well with the extra responsibility.

Steve and I have discussed a formula so that the ‘A’ team will adapt the same shape of game as the Scotland side so, if someone is required to fly from Canada to South Africa,...

We would have liked to give the crowd more to cheer at the other end of the field but it wasn’t to be. England actually played extremely well in the first half-hour, which made it...

I’ve said all along that we have three top quality performers in that position. Now is the opportunity for the other two to show what they can do.

Rob does need a lot more time but you can never rule anybody out who is playing for one of the three Scottish pro-teams because it is not as if we have massive resources in...

I’m so proud. It was a sensational defensive effort. Make no mistake, England played pretty well today, but our defense was magnificent.

It is fantastic to be in a situation where you’ll have to think twice about Simon Taylor.

It really was an absolutely unbelievable defensive effort and it’s a reminder that there’s more than one way to win a rugby match.

Phil [Godman] has done exceptionally well but Duncan has been champing at the bit to get a start,

In Scotland, we can’t afford to get too far ahead of ourselves and our entire focus will be on the first game. If we are as successful as we’d like to be in the first...

The reality is you don’t get stand offs who are expert kickers as well as top drawer runners. The trick is to find a balance but Phil is putting a lot of guys into gaps.

I think Chris started twice in the November matches and Mike came on after 20 minutes in the New Zealand game and performed exceptionally well – he deserves the opportunity to start this time. At...

The Welsh were hugely inspirational to us last season. We are obviously very familiar with them and what they did was fantastic.

Duncan needs games after being out injured for the best part of 18 months and it was great to see him distributing so well from stand off, … There is no reason at all why...

They had a good autumn series and they have been involved in one or two grand slam showdowns so beating them would be special.

We don’t want to take the competitive edge off him because that’s crucial to him, but we’re expecting him to get streetwise and smarter.

One of the things that has given me confidence in the progress that Scotland have made in the professional era is that there was a time when a kicker lined up a kick and no-one...

It has been disappointing and is something I’ve spoken to him personally about. We need to address it because we can’t afford to have Simon off the pitch for 10 minutes on a regular basis.

It’s an advantage we haven’t had in the past and one which we’ve envied in other teams. I honestly believe that all the replacements are capable of making an impact when they come on and...

Edinburgh have never won against Llanelli at Stradey Park but our intention this weekend is to turn that around.

Edinburgh play Glasgow this weekend and then Edinburgh play the Borders the week after and there’s no doubt I will be viewing these are trial opportunities, particularly for hooker,

Scotland’s history has been one or two occasions of tremendous over-achievement, and I am hoping this is the start of one for us.

I never really saw us winning the championship, but I think we’ve done enough this year to convince people that we are a good side and there will be a lot of teams that won’t...

We had an outstanding pre-season and we are raring to go,

It came down to experience, these two are the most experienced guys we could lay hands on. What we now have in Scotland is genuine competition for places.

There has been a tremendous amount of sympathy towards Scott and I haven’t come across anybody who thought it was anything other than an accident. The referee’s view was that he had no choice because...

Scott has timed his return from injury very well. He’s fresh and enthusiastic and will be an invaluable member of our World Cup squad. These days it’s sometimes not a bad thing for players to...

Duncan needs an opportunity to show what he can do.

You only had to hear the players talking about Andy Murray’s victory in the tennis earlier in the week to appreciate how much they believe that Scotland can compete on a world stage. All these...

We will be monitoring him closely this week and obviously we will be considering other options. Ben MacDougall and Graeme Morrison will both be with us in training.

Conditions just got too difficult for the players and they couldn’t cope with it.

He is now one of the senior pros in the side and his physical approach makes him ideal to lead by example.

When you are away from home there is absolutely no substitute for experience. We are playing against a team that we have not beaten at Lansdowne Road for eight years.