Is Edinburgh coach Cockerill next in line for the Scotland job?

Warriors side into the play-offs – Rennie will surely become a more marginal figure the closer his departure date gets.

Who does that leave? A couple of players certainly grew in stature over the four-game campaign in Japan, notably Jamie Ritchie and Magnus Bradbury. But the single person whose standing in the game has grown is surely those two forwards’ coach at Edinburgh, Richard Cockerill.

This is partly by negation: if your peers are having problems while you are holding your own, you will always be thought more highly of by outside observers. But there are also two or three other positive factors that have made Cockerill a more influential figure within Scottish rugby – and which could well see him in the shake-up to be the next Scotland coach if and when Townsend moves on.

Most significantly, he has recovered from a difficult second season in charge of Edinburgh to begin this one in impressive fashion. His team have won three of their four games, and last week against Scarlets in particular showed their new, more expansive style is paying off, as they ran in seven tries against previously unbeaten opponents.

It was telling, too, that after the 46-7 victory, centre Matt Scott explained Cockerill had needed some persuading before accepting it was time to adopt a more adventurous game plan. Telling, because it shows Cockerill is a pragmatic coach who is willing to adapt to his players’ strengths, and is a big enough personality to accept that those players have a right to influence important team decisions.

You could also argue it is no coincidence that it was two of Cockerill’s players, Ritchie and Bradbury, who rose to the occasion so impressively while more experienced team-mates failed to do so. Although, to be fair, quite a few other Edinburgh players were in that under-achieving category, so the coach cannot be credited with a uniformly positive influence on the national squad.

But, make no mistake, Cockerill takes a keen interest in what that national squad is doing. Between Scotland’s defeat by Ireland and their next pool game against Russia, for example, he spoke eloquently at a press conference about the mentality they would have to adopt to recover from the blow of that loss. He talked a lot about self-belief and the need to have faith in your own abilities and, although he was wide of the mark when predicting Scotland would win their next three games because they were better than their opponents, he spoke a lot of sense.

Still only 48, Cockerill has energy to burn and ambition aplenty and, if Edinburgh continue to make progress this season, his services will be widely in demand.

A decade ago another Englishman, Andy Robinson, went from coaching Edinburgh to coaching Scotland. In another eight or nine months or so, that same step may well seem the obvious one for Cockerill to make.

THE great Sam Snead was 52 when he won his 82nd and final PGA Tour title,

Tiger Woods is 43 and has just equalled that particular record. His three-shot win in the Zozo Championship in Japan yesterday added to his extraordinary year and proved, yet again, that predicting anything when it comes to Woods is a fool’s errand.

With a body that occasionally creaks and groans like wonky scaffolding in a gale, nobody really knows if Woods will be playing next year, let alone past his half-century like Snead.

After his fairytale win in April’s Masters, which completed his remarkable rise from the pits of physical, psychological and professional despair, a visibly jaded Woods struggled through much of the season while further surgery on his knee in August led to more doom-mongering about his future career prospects.

In yet another twist in the Tiger tale, however, rounds of 64, 64, 66 and 67 for a 19-under tally in the Far East, which left him clear of home hero Hideki Matsuyama, silenced the doubters … again.

“As far as playing until 52, I hope that’s the case,” said a jubilant Woods as he looked towards emulating Snead’s longevity.

“If you would have asked me a few years ago, I would have given you a different answer, but certainly the future looks brighter than it has. The body can’t do what it used to but I can still think my way around the golf course.

“This week was a good sign for the future,” Woods added. “Hopefully I can be as consistent as Sam was, well into my 40s and early-50s.

“It’s satisfying to dig my way out of it and figure out a way. There were some hard times trying to figure it out but I’ve come back with different games over the years, moving patterns and this one’s been obviously the most challenging.

“Then having another procedure a couple months ago and again coming back and winning an event? Not easy to do.”

Woods still has captaincy duties to perform before 2019 is done as he skippers the USA team at the President’s Cup.

He may yet name himself as a wildcard pick…

NEW British No.2 Cameron Norrie was beaten 6-3, 6-2 by Milos Raonic in the first round of the Paris Masters yesterday.

The 24-year-old was under pressure from the start and Raonic eventually took an opportunity to break in game six before then serving out the set in 32 minutes.

The Canadian broke again at the start of the second set before moving 3-1 ahead.

Norrie needed extended medical treatment for what appeared to be hip and groin problems but was eventually able to continue.

Another break from Raonic put the Canadian 5-2 ahead and clinched the victory with his next service game to love. Raonic will go on to play fifth seed Dominic Thiem.

RONNIE O’Sullivan crashed out of the World Open in Yushan in the preliminary round after losing 5-3 to Dominic Dale.

World No.94 Dale registered his first career win against five-time world champion O’Sullivan to set up a first-round tie with

Fergal O’Brien.

Dale opened up a 2-0 lead and, although O’Sullivan pulled it back to 3-3 with breaks of 50 and 91, the 47-year-old from Coventry compiled successive half-century breaks to clinch the next two frames.

World No.1 Judd Trump wasted no time in thrashing China’s Zhang Jiankang 5-0 to set up a first-round clash with Newcastle’s Sam Craigie.