Old friends and foes will unite in Scotland's cause for the RBS 6 Nations but, more immediately, to provide the national team's new caretaker head coach with moral support as he meets his first official audience at Murrayfield next week.
In announcing a posse of appointments of former Scotland internationalists – Shade Munro, Stevie Scott, Scott Murray and Duncan Hodge – to posts with the senior and A teams, as well as Dean Ryan, the former England lock, who played in the team that won at Murrayfield in 1998, to the role of forwards coach, the Scottish Rugby Union rightly underlined the interim nature of the set-up.
Naming them now means Scott Johnson will have more to discuss than his own record when he meets the media for the first time since his appointment as caretaker coach, not to mention having lieutenants alongside should any questioning prove uncomfortable.
The Australian has much to prove having won only one Test match in either seven or nine attempts (depending on interpretation of American records) during two stints as a national head coach, the first having been on an interim basis with Wales and the second with the USA.
To the senior squad, working alongside assistant coaches Matt Taylor (defence), Massimo Cuttitta (scrummaging) and Hodge (kicking), he has added two others in the same category to work with the forwards.
Ryan has been more visible as a television analyst in recent years since ending what was largely seen as a successful four-year stint with Gloucester, but which ended in disappointment, but he has been keeping his hand in and was appointed as a coaching consultant to Newport Gwent Dragons just last month.
He has been recruited on a 12-week contract while Scott – the former Scotland hooker was the national team's lineout coach but quit to join Sale Sharks in 2010 then left the turmoil-ridden English club a few months ago – has been appointed on an interim basis. Scott was involved with Scotland A last season when, with Michael Bradley, Edinburgh's head coach, in charge, they thrashed England Saxons 35-0 in the best display by any Scottish representative team last year.
Shade Munro, the Glasgow Warriors forwards coach, takes charge of Scotland A this time around; Hodge, as well as kicking coach, takes on an auxiliary role as A team backs coach; and Murray, Scotland's most capped forward who has a player/coach role at French club Mont-de-Marsan, will help with the pack.
While some will be encouraged that most of those posts have gone to Scots others will see the appointments as a further kick in the teeth to those involved in the domestic club game.
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