Scots injury crisis as Ford is ruled out

AUTUMN TESTS Assistant coach Mike Blair is determined to take a positive view of the frontrow injury crisis which has engulfed Scotland ahead of the first autumn Test against Samoa at BT Murrayfield on Saturday, declaring it an “opportunity” for those who will fill the void.

The country’s mostcapped player, Ross Ford, was ruled out the series, which also includes matches against New Zealand and Australia, with a pectoral injury sustained in training last week. The 110-times capped hooker requires surgery and will be sidelined for four months.

The Edinburgh trio of back-rower Magnus Bradbury, loosehead prop Rory Sutherland and hooker Neil Cochrane were drafted into the now 38-man squad yesterday morning.

Ford joins a front-row casualty list which also includes fellow hooker Fraser Brown and looseheads Al Dickinson, Allan Dell and Gordon Reid.

That leaves the unlikely uncapped pairing of Edinburgh’s Darryl Marfo and Glasgow’s Jamie Bhatti vying for the No 1 jersey on Saturday. Sutherland has three caps but has missed a year through injury and only has a couple of club games for Hawick and a bench appearance for