Ruaridh put in a tricky position as he aims to win World Cup place
DURING his long 11 months on t he sidelines recovering from injury, Ruaridh Jackson kept his spirits up by imagining himself playing for Scotland again.
However, he never thought for one second that the stakes would be so high when he pulled on the national colours in what will be his first match back after knee surgery.
Put bluntly, tonight’s encounter with Ireland in Dublin is make-orbreak for Jackson’s chances of earning a place in Vern Cotter’s World Cup squad.
Simply trying to impress in his first competitive game at any level, never mind against such strong opposition as the reigning Six Nations champions, was always going to be a tough test after so long out.
To make things even more difficult in his first match since last September, the 27-year- old Aberdonian will be playing out of position at full-back, rather than in his customary stand-off role.
With a bit of devilment in his thinking that adds to the pressure on Jackson’s shoulders, Scotland head coach Cotter has forced him to do a shirt swap with recognised full-back Greig Tonks, who will start at stand-off in the Aviva Stadium.
Cotter has made them switch in a bid to find out which one of the t wo is t he more versatile. Whoever copes better when taken out of their comfort zone will enhance his chances of going to the World Cup as a utility player.
‘Yes, this is a head-to-head in a way but I’m purely going out to focus on my role and I’ll do that to the best of my ability,’ said Jackson.
‘Getting back playing one day for Scotland kept me going when I was injured and, now that I’m back, I have to focus and show I can be an option at full-back as well as at stand-off for the World Cup.
‘This is a huge game for me, but I can’t push it too much or try too many things in my first game back.
‘For me, it’s about doing the basics right — working with my wingers, dealing with the high balls that Ireland will certainly put up and making sure I’m a good link in attack and organising the forwards in the wide channels.
‘Could I move to stand-off in the second half? I haven’t been given any guarantees but i t could happen. I can’t think that it will definitely happen. All I have to focus on is executing everything that I do well at full-back to make sure I have a chance of making the World Cup squad.’
Jackson has played at full-back before, but that was f or an instantly forgettable five-minute spell when he came off the bench towards the end of Scotland’s win over the USA last summer.
He touched the ball once and knocked it on once before the final whistle sounded. His cameo role playing 15 only came about because Stuart Hogg had gone off injured and there were only forwards left on the bench.
The 25-times capped Jackson concedes that his short run-out in the baking heat of Houston, Texas, can hardly be counted as much experience ahead of starting against a si de as formidable as Joe Schmidt’s Ireland. But he believes he has trained enough at full-back this week to take it in his stride.
‘To be fair, I definitely didn’t think when I came back into the Scotland camp that I would be getting my first full run- out at f ull- back, but I have been working hard in my new role,’
said Jackson, who hasn’t played since he tore his ACL ligament playing f or Wasps against Northampton in the second game of the last Aviva Premiership season.
‘Just to be back playing — especially for Scotland — in my first game since my injury is a huge boost an y way an d, hopefully, is the start of a new beginning for me.
‘Being ruled out for so long was a nightmare and I knew straight away it was a bad injury. But now my knee feels really solid and there is no worry about injuring it again, so I’m feeling extremely confident about going in against Ireland.
‘I am not alone in wanting to do well. All the guys are champing at the bit to get the opportunity to show what we’ve been working towards in pre-season.
‘There is so much at stake over the next few weeks to make the World Cup squad and we all want to put our hands up for selection out on that field.
‘Whatever happens, Scotland will head into the World Cup games with confidence because it’s definitely Vern Cotter’s team and he has put his stamp on how we play.
‘There are little intricacies and differences he has introduced that I’ve had to get up to speed with, but the way he wants Scotland to play definitely suits the way I want to play the game. Now it’s up to me to make sure I play well at full-back to give me a better chance of making the final squad.’
Scotland assistant head coach Duncan Hodge revealed that the management team had mixed and matched pl ayers l i ke Jackson and Tonks today to keep everyone on their toes ahead of World Cup selection.
‘Ruaridh comes in at 15 and Greig has shown us some pretty good things over the past couple of months and he can do a good job at 10 today,’ said Hodge.
‘The match against Ireland will allow us to see what players can do in different positions and, by the end of the game, some will have enhanced their chances.
‘It’s a great opportunity for all of us to get an indication of how well all the hard work that has been put in over the summer is paying off.’