Scotland’s players continued to defend their under-fire head coach after they suffered an RBS 6 Nations Championship whitewash in Rome's Olympic Stadium on Saturday.
One after another of those that Andy Robinson had said he was "rewarding" for their previous efforts in the competition when selecting them for the match with Italy, lined up to repeat the message that it was their fault and not his.
"He's on a contract to 2015 and has a proven track record as a coach with England, having won the World Cup. It's just small margins. The coach isn't on the pitch so it's up to us as a group of players. We have to deliver," said Greig Laidlaw, Scotland's stand-off for four of the five matches in this campaign.
"That's a question for Andy [whether he should stay on], but when he came in at Edinburgh we were second in the league. He’s a proud man and he likes to win, so that's a question for him."
Stuart Hogg, the Glasgow Warriors full-back who was brought into the team this season, offered a similar view. "He has a contract through to 2015 so he's the right man in the right place at the right time. We're backing Andy all the way. There's no reason for him not to be here," he said.
"He's been a fantastic coach and will continue to be a fantastic coach. He's got loads of strengths. He obviously knows the game inside out with having played and he's always learning the game and is passing lots on to us. Hopefully he will be around for a long time.
"Andy can only do so much. It's up to the players to go out on the pitch and perform and we haven't done that. It comes down to the players."
Mike Blair, meanwhile, seemed irritated that Robinson's position was even being challenged. "It is frustrating listening to all the questions asked about whether he will go on. He is signed up until 2015 and is globally recognised as one of the world's best coaches," said the experienced scrum-half.
"We back him and expect him to be our coach. We, as players, have to put our hands up and say it is on us. Andy prepares the squad with the help of Gregor Townsend, with the help of Steady [sacked defence coach Graham Steadman] and the rest of the coaching team. Once we run out it is up to us."
Ross Ford, the Scotland captain, also dismissed the suggestion of splits within the squad, claiming the group remains "tight". It might have been expected that tensions had been heightened among a team that has a worse record of consecutive losses than all bar three national sides.
Asked whether the word "tight" could also be interpreted as cosy he responded with a terse: "No."
Yet the suspicion is growing that the popularity of this coaching team among the players is down to the way they have pandered to them by continuing to tell them how well they are doing.
Last week Allan Jacobsen, the prop who dropped out of this match at the last minute after spraining an ankle in the warm-up, seemed to acknowledge that when he said the players have not been honest enough with one another and that may have been the case for the past five years, corresponding with the time Robinson arrived in Scotland.
Dave Denton, the young No.8 who made a mark earlier in this championship, hinted at the same thing after the defeat by Italy. "Every player has to be able to say it's not good enough. Perhaps before we were a bit too nice with one another. When the bombs have been going off these past few weeks I've seen people stand up to each other."
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