DAVID SOLE ON RUGBY

It seems slightly bizarre that the cricket season is still in full flow, but already there is international rugby being played in the northern hemisphere after a brief summer break.

Scotland have the weekend off before facing France in Nice, but other nations are in action.

The Scots then host France at Murrayfield before heading to Tblisi for the first of two international matches against Georgia.

It is a demanding set of games, and I’m sure that they will take their toll, physically.

Gregor Townsend will be hoping that his squad don’t pick up too many injuries.

During the week, he made his first cull, reducing the group by four players to 40.

The unfortunate ones to make the first cut were centres Nick Grigg and Kyle Steyn, scrum-half Henry Pyrgos and back rower Gary Graham.

Townsend seems to have good strength in depth in the midfield now, with the likes of Duncan Taylor returning to fitness and the impressive Sam Johnson consolidating his place in the squad after a strong Six Nations.

Interestingly, the uncapped Rory Hutchinson has been retained. He has been in great form for Northampton, and few are surprised there that he is in the coach’s plans.

‘ If the coaches have any sense, McInally will be in cotton wool

The strength in the back row is also good and, again, an uncapped player has made it through to the 40.

Blade Thomson, the Kiwi who is playing in Wales, has now fully recovered from his concussion and adds great depth to the back row.

It will be interesting to see who makes it through to Townsend’s final 31 that board the plan to Japan, especially in the back five.

The one area where there is less depth is hooker, and Stuart McInally will be kept in cotton wool over these next four matches if the coaches have any sense.

I’m sure that Townsend will want to rotate his squad.

Part of the purpose of these matches is to ensure his players are match fit, in the sense of the intensity of full contact over 80 minutes.

While the games will obviously be competitive, the outcomes are of less significance in terms of result.

If I were the coach, I wouldn’t be playing my starting XV until the final game.

The warm-ups allow the coaches to look at combinations and permutations, and to try and establish a consistent set of patterns of play.

In essence, Townsend and his players have probably two or three games to book their places for the Rugby World Cup.

The competition is as strong for places as it has been for years, which augers well – so long as everyone remains fit.