My place is on the line but I am up to job, says McInally

Darryl is very impressive. All his hard work has paid off

AMID all the financial trauma and talk of bankruptcy surrounding Samoan rugby, a game will still go ahead at Murrayfield on Saturday.

The home of Scottish rugby will be close to full for Gregor Townsend’s home debut as coach. Samoa may be understrength, and their players understandably with their minds on other things, but they will still provide a stern test. Scotland will have to front up, especially in the opening exchanges.

And it is there where the problems lie for Townsend. The Scotland front row, for so many years the powerhouse of the team, could prove to be the weakest.

Its fragility is causing concern, its experimental nature providing much in the way of talking points.

Injuries to Ross Ford and Fraser Brown sees third-choice hooker Stuart McInally catapulted into the starting XV. While on one side there will be the rugged strength and experience of Willem Nel, on the other is his uncapped Edinburgh team-mate Darryl Marfo — signed as fourth-choice loose-head for the club in the summer, now a Scotland debutant.

If that prospect causes Scottish fans to crumble with an attack of the vapours, fear not. Those involved are confident that the Scotland pack will stand strong.

‘Injuries can change things in a blink of an eye as I know from experience and maybe I am getting the chance partly because of that,’ said McInally. ‘I was named in the 2015 World cup squad but had to pull out with a neck injury, so I know what it is like.

‘I am delighted to be named in the squad first and foremost but I also feel for Ross and Fraser, who are injured. I train with Ross every day and know how hard he works, know how desperate he is to play for Scotland. I know he’s hugely disappointed he’s had to take a step back at this time.’

McInally insists he has built up a good understanding with Marfo since the London-born prop, who qualifies through his Scottish-born mother, joined the club in the summer. He added: ‘Darryl is a hugely impressive player. You won’t meet a more professional guy in terms of someone who comes in, does his work, does his homework.

‘He is frequently taking laptops away to watch scrums at home. He’ll sometimes take the scrum presentations at Edinburgh because he just wants to get his point across.

‘He’s been playing a lot and every game he’s been getting better and better. Hard work has paid off, and it shows in that he’s here. He’s really humble and proud to be in this environment. I am chuffed for him.’ McInally’s game has benefited from Richard cockerill’s arrival at Edinburgh. A former hooker himself, his experience has proved a valuable asset. The Edinburgh head coach has described the 27-year-old as ‘the form hooker’ in Scotland and there is a strong argument McInally would have started against Samoa whether Ford and Brown were fit or not.

Townsend didn’t see it that way and would have gone with the other two if they had not been injured.

But McInally said: ‘Richard has helped me a lot by giving me hints and tips. There was one for striking the ball at the scrum he gave me, a little technique he used to use back in the day which I use now as it works really well.

‘He knows the pressure you’re under as a hooker at the set-piece so he doesn’t put heaps of extra pressure on me.

‘If I throw the odd bad line-out he doesn’t mind so long as I’m contributing around the pitch.

‘In training if I miss a line-out he doesn’t get on at me, doesn’t send me to the back of the queue to wait for another shot. He just says: “You’re doing it again”.

‘He is a really smart, technical coach. He can be hard on us as well, don’t get me wrong, but in terms of what I’ve got out of him, he has helped me a lot.

‘He took a bit of a gamble on me at the start of the year and he was happy for me to play, and play a lot. It’s been really good to start the first four or five games of the season and be in the Scotland squad.’