Vern Cotter is deciding whether to rejig his Scotland side less than 24 hours to go before facing Australia after forwards Ross Ford and Jonny Gray received a World Cup reprieve.
Hooker Ford and lock Gray thought their tournament was over after they were punished for a twoman tip tackle on Samoa’s Jack Lam with three-match bans.
But they are now free to face the Wallabies at Twickenham after winning a shock appeal.
The Scots lodged their challenge on Friday but Cotter was so pessimistic about their chances that he went ahead and named his side to face the Aussies without them. However, in a surprise move, World Rugby disciplinary bosses have now overturned the suspension.
Now, though, having prepared all week with Ford’s understudy hooker Fraser Brown and back-up second-rower Tim Swinson in his starting line-up, Cotter faces a difficult choice as he ponders recalling experienced number two Ford and Gray, a man already tipped as a potential future Scotland captain.
The Scots started 2015 with six straight defeats but marched into the knock-out stages after winning three of their four pool stages.
Aussie coach Michael Cheika was asked if he feared his side’s opponents were now peaking just at the right time to face the Australians – who they have beaten twice in their last three meetings – but the 48-year-old confessed he has spent more time worrying about his side than fretting over Scotland.
He said: We’ve taken a very introverted approach in this tournament. I don’t know if that’s naive because we’re only pretty young as coaches in the international sphere but we’ve just focused on what we’re doing. I want us to do our absolute best and then I’m not worried about the rest.”
