Andy Robinson has to strike a balance between going with tried and tested international performers and trusting in youth as he assembles a training squad of up to 40 players for the forthcoming RBS 6 Nations Championship.

At the start of a new four-year cycle on which his time as Scotland coach will ultimately be judged, the man who failed to deliver at last year's World Cup has a wider range of options than any previous Scotland coach.

With only Chris Paterson and Nathan Hines having chosen to retire since the tournament in New Zealand, no fewer than 38 of the 40 players originally selected in the World Cup development squad are available for consideration.

In the end, that World Cup squad was chosen from 37 players – Fergus Thomson, Hugo Southwell and Nikki Walker were ruled out through injury – and those to miss out were the loose forwards Johnny Beattie, Dave Denton and Rob Harley, prop Ryan Grant, half-back Greig Laidlaw, centre Ben Cairns and full-back Jack Cuthbert.

The World Cup 30, of whom only Moray Low had no game time, were:

back three Simon Danielli (Ulster), Max Evans (Castres), Rory Lamont (Toulon), Sean Lamont (Scarlets), Chris Paterson (Edinburgh)

centres Joe Ansbro (London Irish), Nick De Luca (Edinburgh), Graeme Morrison (Glasgow Warriors)

fly-halves Ruaridh Jackson (Glasgow Warriors), Dan Parks (Cardiff Blues)

scrum-halves Mike Blair (Edinburgh), Chris Cusiter (Glasgow Warriors), Rory Lawson (Gloucester)

Props Geoff Cross (Edinburgh), Alasdair Dickinson (Sale Sharks), Allan Jacobsen (Edinburgh), Moray Low (Glasgow Warriors), Euan Murray (Newcastle Falcons)

hookers Ross Ford (Edinburgh), Dougie Hall (Glasgow Warriors), Scott Lawson (Gloucester)

locks Richie Gray (Glasgow Warriors), Jim Hamilton (Gloucester), Nathan Hines (Clermont Auvergne), Alastair Kellock (Glasgow Warriors)

back-row John Barclay (Glasgow Warriors), Kelly Brown (Saracens), Ross Rennie (Edinburgh), Alasdair Strokosch (Gloucester), Richie Vernon (Sale Sharks)

Since the end of the tournament, a combination of injury and form has restricted the opportunity for some to make their cases for selection but, excitingly, in the interim a string of young players at Edinburgh and Glasgow Warriors have emerged as serious contenders for Test places.

Of those, Harley and Denton, in particular, have responded superbly to having been given a taste of the international scene before being told to go back to their clubs and enhance their reputations. The same cannot be said of Beattie, though. An automatic choice for the national side not that long ago, he is now struggling to get into the Glasgow Warriors side ahead of Ryan Wilson. So too is John Barclay, his fellow "Killer B", forced out of the starting line-up on a couple of occasions by Chris Fusaro.

Nor is Wilson the only young No.8 to have seized his chance. Edinburgh's Stuart McInally has put in some high-class performances, not least earning the man of the match award after scoring the winning try in what could yet prove their crucial away win at London Irish in the Heineken Cup. Roddy Grant is yet another young flanker who rarely lets anyone down.

At lock Al Kellock, the World Cup captain, must be relieved to have recovered some form of late because, as well as his boilerhouse partner Richie Gray, another top-quality youngster has come through in the shape of Edinburgh's Grant Gilchrist, while another of Glasgow's locks, Tom Ryder, is also playing consistently well.

In the front row, Grant has kicked on, earning more game time than Jon Welsh, his fellow Scotland A cap. Alongside him on a regular basis has been Pat McArthur, who has continued to be selected as first-choice hooker more often than the vastly experienced Dougie Hall.

Behind the scrum there will be huge interest in Robinson's choices. Three scrum-half contenders stand out – all have captained the side in the past – although Chris Cusiter's performance in the first of the Inter-City derbies surely reinforced his position as the front-runner.

Greig Laidlaw's versatility – Edinburgh's club captain has played more often at stand-off than scrum-half lately – makes him a tempting option for any squad.

Yet Robinson, who was only able to select a single stand-off in his first Scotland squad little more than two years ago, has a range of play-making options.

While it is surely much too soon for Harry Leonard, Edinburgh's teenage prospect, Duncan Weir's on-field presence has largely resulted in him being preferred to Ruaridh Jackson since the Scotland stand-off's return from injury. Rightly so, on the form shown.

Weir's ordinary performance in the second of the Inter-City derbies, combined with a fine distributive showing by old hand Phil Godman for Edinburgh, may have muddied the waters slightly, but Weir has that something about him that makes the little Glaswegian a compelling candidate.

Turning to the midfield, all those who went to the World Cup continue to challenge, but the Scotland coaches surely have to include Stuart Hogg somewhere, if only to give such a promising player a chance to find out what the international camp is all about. Edinburgh's Matt Scott is another who has performed well.

Though he has had less game time, the same could be said of Tom Brown, scorer of a vital try in the spectacular Heineken Cup win over Racing Metro, albeit he may be another who needs a bit more game time.

If I had been picking a 40-man squad on current form and future potential then, this is how it could look. My suspicion is, though, that it may differ more from that chosen by Robinson selectors than any Scotland squad I have guessed at previously, such are the options available.

Backs Ansbro, Blair, T Brown (Edinburgh), Cusiter, J Cuthbert (Bath), Danielli, De Luca, Evans, S Hogg (Glasgow), Jackson, G Laidlaw (Edinburgh), R Lamont, S Lamont, R Lawson, Morrison, Parks, M Scott (Edinburgh), D Weir (Glasgow)

Forwards Barclay, Brown, Cross, D Denton (Edinburgh), Dickinson, Ford, C Fusaro (Glasgow), G Gilchrist (Edinburgh), R Grant (Glasgow), Gray, Hamilton, R Harley (Glasgow), Jacobsen, Kellock, S Lawson, Low, P McArthur (Glasgow), S McInally (Edinburgh), Murray, Rennie, Strokosch, Vernon