THE Scottish Rugby Union have heralded the appointment of Vern Cotter as head coach of the national team as a coup, even if the New Zealander is unable to take up the role for another year.

Those in charge at Murrayfield revealed earlier this month that they had attracted a significant figure in the rugby world but were, at the time, unable to name him for unspecified reasons. It has since emerged those reasons were that Cotter was engaged in an attempt to win both the French Top 14 title and Heineken Cup with Clermont Auvergne.

That the 51-year-old subsequently failed to secure either title is evidence of how quickly things can change in just a few weeks, never mind in the 12 months that will likely pass before Cotter is permitted to assume his responsibilities with Scotland. It is understood he will work with Scott Johnston, the director of rugby and current interim head coach, on a consultancy basis while he fulfils the two-year contract that he signed with his French club last summer and will take full charge of Scotland at some stage in 2014.

While that state of affairs might be a cause for concern, the SRU were positive about the appointment when they confirmed it yesterday. "Vern is rightly regarded as one of the top coaches in the world and to have secured someone of his calibre is a coup for Scotland," said Mark Dodson, the SRU's chief executive. "He was our first choice and we are pleased to have secured him on a two-year contract taking us up to and beyond the Rugby World Cup 2015.

"We compiled a short list of world-class candidates last December and Vern was top of that list. We did our business with Vern some months ago and we believe we have the best man for the role with our national team. It's a measure of our standing that we have him on board."

He added that the New Zealander will be on hand to help Johnson and the Scotland coaching team in the interim. For his part, Cotter said he was buying into a vision for the future which includes the much-discussed strategic target of winning the World Cup little more than a year after he is expected to take over.

"Mark Dodson and the team at Scottish Rugby have a strategic vision and a determination to do something very special in the coming time and working with them and a talented group of players and coaches I look forward to the Scotland team growing in competitiveness and stature," he said. "We will build a winning team together."