Saffas in Scotland WC squad

 

Strauss, Nel and Dell are three of eight uncapped players in the  46-man group which will be reduced to 31 for the tournament in England this September.

 

Glasgow Warriors' players make up almost half of the squad (22), with European Challenge Cup finalists Edinburgh providing 12, and clubs outside Scotland a further 12 – including English Premiership winners Jim Hamilton and Duncan Taylor, and Challenge Cup winner Greig Laidlaw.

 

Cotter said he hardly had any selection headaches when announcing the squad.

 

"The selection process was made easier by some good performances from a number of players, especially in the latter part of the season.

 

"Hopefully the confidence the players have gained from their successes will filter through into the rest of Scottish rugby. We'll need that for this campaign,” he said

 

Among the most experienced in the squad are six players competing for a place in a third World Cup. They include forwards John Barclay,  Alasdair Dickinson, Ross Ford and Jim Hamilton and backs Chris Cusiter and Sean Lamont.

 

The inclusion of Barclay sees the Scarlets flank feature in a national squad selection for the first time since 2013, while 25-times capped Wasps flyhalf, Ruaridh Jackson, will also mount an international comeback, having recovered from a season-long knee injury.

 

Jackson, Alasdair Strokosch and Richie Vernon are eyeing a second tournament having featured in New Zealand in 2011, though Vernon's presence was in his former position of No.8.

 

Besides Strauss and Nel the other uncapped players in the squad are Dell, Damien Hoyland and Stuart McInally from Edinburgh; while Hugh Blake, Mike Cusack and Rory Hughes are called up from Glasgow Warriors.

 

Despite naming a 46-man training group, Cotter was keen to stress that the squad was by no means a closed group.

 

"Flexibility and being able to adapt are among our key themes as we move towards the final 31 and the Rugby World Cup. This is not a firmly fixed squad, it's a living document,” he added.

 

"There are a number of players we've spoken to who will be working on things with their clubs and looking for form, and may well feature in our warm-up games as a chance to push for selection.

 

"We're working hard to be as cohesive as possible and push the limits of how far we can go.”

 

Those limits will be put to the test in a fortnight's time when the squad travel to train at high altitude in Font Romeu in the French Pyrenees, returning home for two months of skills, conditioning and tactical training at the home of Scottish rugby.

 

"Our priorities will focus on the major aspects of the game," said Cotter.

 

"Physically we'll be working very hard to find peak form. We know that teams play better in the World Cup, and we want to be one of those teams.

 

"We have four matches before the tournament; four 80-minute spells in which we can practice our combinations and work our plays, in attack and defence, providing opportunities for a number of players to compete for a place in the final 31.

 

"Every team entering the World Cup wants to win, but to win a World Cup you first have to qualify from your pool, and that's our major focus: two games in five days [Japan and USA] followed by another in six [South Africa] and another in seven [Samoa].

 

"We'll focus on preparing appropriately for each of those matches, so that we can become as effective as possible in this World Cup.”

 

Scotland will face France, Ireland and Italy as part of the national team's build-up to the World Cup.

 

The four-match schedule played on consecutive Saturdays from mid-August (15th) will begin when Cotter's men travel to face Ireland at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin.

 

Back-to-back fixtures against Italy will follow in Turin (22nd) and Edinburgh (29th), before concluding preparations against France in Paris at the start of September (5th).

 

The final squad will leave for Gloucester on Wednesday 16 September, ahead of their opening  World Cup Pool match against Japan at Kingsholm Stadium a week later .

 

The Scots will face USA at Elland Road in Leeds (September 27) followed by South Africa and Samoa on consecutive Saturdays (October 3 and 10) at St James Park, Newcastle.

 

 

 

Forwards: Mike Cusack (Glasgow Warriors), Allan Dell (Edinburgh Rugby), Alasdair Dickinson (Edinburgh Rugby), Ryan Grant (Glasgow Warriors), Willem Nel (Edinburgh Rugby), Gordon Reid (Glasgow Warriors), Jon Welsh (Newcastle Falcons), Fraser Brown (Glasgow Warriors), Ross Ford (Edinburgh Rugby), Stuart McInally (Edinburgh Rugby), Grant Gilchrist (Edinburgh Rugby), Jonny Gray (Glasgow Warriors), Richie Gray (Castres), Jim Hamilton (Saracens), Robert Harley (Glasgow Warriors), Tim Swinson (Glasgow Warriors), Adam Ashe (Glasgow Warriors), John Barclay (Scarlets), Hugh Blake (Glasgow Warriors), Blair Cowan (London Irish), David Denton (Edinburgh Rugby), Josh Strauss (Glasgow Warriors), Alasdair Strokosch (Perpignan), Ryan Wilson (Glasgow Warriors), Hamish Watson (Edinburgh Rugby). 

 

 

Backs: Chris Cusiter (Sale Sharks), Sam Hidalgo-Clyne (Edinburgh Rugby), Greig Laidlaw (Gloucester), Henry Pyrgos (Glasgow Warriors), Ruaridh Jackson (Wasps), Finn Russell (Glasgow Warriors), Duncan Weir (Glasgow Warriors), Mark Bennett (Glasgow Warriors), Alex Dunbar (Glasgow Warriors), Peter Horne (Glasgow Warriors), Matt Scott (Edinburgh Rugby), Duncan Taylor (Saracens), Richie Vernon (Glasgow Warriors), Stuart Hogg (Glasgow Warriors), Damien Hoyland (Edinburgh Rugby), Rory Hughes (Glasgow Warriors), Sean Lamont (Glasgow Warriors), Sean Maitland (London Irish), Tommy Seymour (Glasgow Warriors), Greig Tonks (Edinburgh Rugby), Tim Visser (Harlequins).