Scotland will not pay for early release of English-based players, says Andy Robinson
Wales coach Warren Gatland brought the matter to the fore a few days ago when he branded the hard line taken on player release for the World Cup by Premier Rugby Limited (PRL), the English clubs' umbrella organisation, as "completely ridiculous."
Speaking after his announcement of a 34-man provisional Scotland squad to play New Zealand in the first of next month's autumn internationals at Murrayfield, Robinson suggested he would not rule out any player due to release problems, but conceded that the issue could cause individual difficulties for those attached to English clubs.
"I flagged up the problem at the Japan game last season. It's really an issue for the IRB to be dealing with. We've been working with the IRB, the RFU and the PRL ever since that game to make sure that we have a solution that is right for Scotland for the World Cup.
"This is about player welfare and what's best for a player. My whole focus is on getting the best preparations for a player to perform on the world stage. The discussions that we've been having with the RFU and the PRL have been positive, and we're pleased with where we are currently.
"We've asked for the players to be released earlier and those discussions are ongoing. But we will not be paying for the release of players."
Robinson has brought four uncapped players into the squad which will start the build-up to the New Zealand game at a training camp in St Andrews over the first three days of November.
Of those, Glasgow fly-half Ruaridh Jackson seems the likeliest to figure against the All Blacks, if only as a replacement, although scrum-half Greig Laidlaw and full-back back Jim Thompson, both of Edinburgh, and Northampton utility back Joe Ansbro will have plenty of chances to press their cases over the next few weeks.
Jackson moved up the No10 pecking order when Phil Godman suffered the serious knee injury that brought his season to a premature end. However, the 22 year-old has been in fine form for his club, playing with a maturity that was not always evident in his earlier appearances for Glasgow over the past two seasons. If Dan Parks does not shake off the foot injury he picked up with Cardiff recently then Jackson could even make the starting 15 against the All Blacks.
Laidlaw, a nephew of former Scotland and Lions scrum-half Roy, has also put in some strong performances recently, albeit mainly as backup to Mike Blair at Edinburgh.
Thompson, who also boasts a rich rugby ancestry as a grandson of the late Bill McLaren, was unlucky not to be capped on Scotland's summer tour of Argentina, where he was an unused replacement. Ansbro's selection was perhaps the greatest surprise, but Robinson put him in lofty company in explaining his selection.
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