“I’m working hard, the coaches are really challenging us and it is an exciting time”

● Former Scotland captain has had to bide his time but is eager for action

HENRY PYRGOS is ready to step up again after the one-time Scotland captain dropped down the Glasgow scrum-half pecking order.

Being Mr Reliable can be a thankless role, as Henry Pyrgos knows only too well. After several years as understudy scrum-half to Chris Cusiter and then Mike Blair at Glasgow Warriors, it looked like he might be just about to step out into centre stage when he was named co-captain of the club – along with Jonny Gray – for the 2016-17 season.

He had been on the books at Glasgow since 2010, having graduated through the Scotland Under-20s set-up, and had made his international debutasasecond-halfreplacement for Blair in a 22-51 defeat to New Zealand at Murrayfield in November 2012. He had already skippered the national side in their 2015 World Cup warm-up match against Ireland, against the USA at the tournament proper, and against Japan on the 2017 summer tour.

Honest, hard-working, sensible and with a sound skillset, he was exactly the kind of character the team needed as they looked to rediscover some of the consistency which had allowed them to march to the Pro12 title in 2015.

Ali Price, however, had other ideas.thenewkidontheblock madeabigenoughimpression as Pyrgos’ deputy during the opening few months of the 2016-17 season to merit a late call-up to Vern Cotter’s Scotland squad for the November Test series, and then trained his way on to the bench for the opening game of that campaign against Australia.

0 Henry Pyrgos has started just four matches for the Warriors this season, amid intense competition. Price, pictured, didn’t manage to make it on to the park on that occasion, or the following week against Argentina, but he finally got his big chance with seven minutes to go of Scotland’s final outing of the series against Georgia at Rugby Park in Kilmarnock – and he certainly made his mark.

He had one pass off the back of a driven line-out, was beat- en to one high ball, made two tackles, and then really announced himself. When Scotland were awarded a penalty deep inside their 22 after a maul had been collapsed, Price took the quick tap almost before the referee had finished blowing his whistle, and was off in a flash – launching a breath-taking counter-attack which was carried on by Rory Hughes before Stuart Hogg finished off a fine length-of-the-field score.

It seemed to be a slidingdoors moment for the two scrum-halves. All of a sudden, Price was the man everyone was talking about as the next great Scottish No 9. Another exciting Glasgow and Scottish back who can turn a game on its head with a flash of inspiration conjured out of nowhere.

And without doing anything in particular wrong, Pyrgos suddenly found himself dropping down the pecking order for both club and country.

To make matters worse, the progress of another live-wire scrum-half in George Horne this season has added to the competition which he must now overcome to get game time. Pyrgos has played in 18 games so far in this campaign but started on only four of those occasions.

“I feel I have been going well,” he replies when asked about his form. “At the start of the season, every player wants to play as much as they can and I did not get as many starts as I would have liked – but that is life. I am working hard, the coaching environment has been brilliant, they are really challenging us, and it is an exciting time.”

Price gave away an interception try to Scarlets scrum-half Gareth Davies last weekend, which was almost a carbon copy of the one he conceded to the same player when Scotland lost to Wales in Cardiff at the start of the Six Nations. On both occasions, the game swung on that moment of calamity. That is the flipside of having a virtuoso talent calling the shots at scrum-half.

Pyrgos came off the bench on the hour mark against Scarlets and scored a try. It was too little, too late, but a point was perhaps made as the Warriors look to build towards the business end of the season with a return to winning ways against struggling Connacht tomorrow night.

All of a sudden, at 28, Mr Reliable might not seem as unfashionable as he did a few short months ago.

“We did not perform as well as we wanted to last week so there might be a couple of changes,” agreed Pyrgos. “We will see. As a player, you don’t worry about that. It is out of your control – you work hard in training and go from there.” Caledonia won the BT Sport Scottish Rugby Academy under-17 regional championship final by securing a 26-17 win over Borders and East Lothian on the artificial pitch at Netherdale yesterday.

The north side had to battle hard for their win after trailing 17-7 early in the second half. But a clever kicking game directed by Madras stand-off Harry Mercer and effective use of their strong bench changed the balance of the match, allowing Caledonia to score three unanswered tries in the final 20 minutes.

Aside from Mercer, Caledonia had influential players in their Queen Victoria School No 8, Josh King, the Granite City wing Greg Mcrae, and the Dunfermline second row Niall Dowds. For Borders and East Lothian, the Preston Lodge pair of centre Scott King and stand-off Scott Clark were impressive.

Borders and East Lothian looked the more likely winners after scoring tries through Melrose back rower Trystan Andrews, Dunbar prop Struan Lugton and the Loretto centre Nathan Sweeney, who converted his own score.

But, in a strong finish, Caledonia, who had scored through King, added second-half touchdowns by the Dollar Academy replacement Jamie Cruickshank, Mcrae and the Dunfermline replacement Oliver Kirk, Sweeney converting two of the second-half scores.

Earlier, in the third/ fourth play-off, Edinburgh and Glasgow drew 24-24. Glasgow led 24-5 late in the first half with two tries by their outstanding Kelvinside Academy No 8, Rory Jackson, and one each from Hamilton wing, Jordan Craig, and Glasgow Hawks wing Finlay Callaghan. The St Aloysius centre Adam Scott added two conversions.

Edinburgh’s tries were scored by Boroughmuir scrum-half Ethan Mcvicker, the Stewart’s-melville centre Finlay Mcneil and wing Nathan Moffat, and the Watson’s lock Jonathan Robertson, Moffat kicking three conversions.