Derrick Grant knew a good No.8 when he saw one.

The problem was, as the Five Nations meeting with Wales approached in March 1987, it wasn't just one good No.8 the Scotland coach could see, but five of them. It was the kind of dilemma anyone in a similar position would be happy to have, but Grant solved it with a stroke of genius. He picked the lot of them.

Grant put Derek White and Iain Paxton into the second row. John Jeffrey was told to do a shift on the blindside flank, with Finlay Calder packing down on the other side of the scrum. John Beattie, first among equals, was given the No.8 shirt itself. And Scotland won the game 21-15.

It was a time of plenty. All five already were, or would become, Lions tourists. Scotland still had the spine of the side that had won a grand slam in 1984, and they had been joined by the host of rising stars that would form the core of the team that won another in 1990.

The pack's athleticism was decisive. "At times they were running the Welsh into ragged disarray," this newspaper reported two days later.

Grant's ploy - officially, it was the collective decision of the Scotland selectors of the time - came to mind this week when Scott Johnson announced his team, or at least his pack, to play Australia at Murrayfield today.

The current head coach stopped a couple short of picking five No.8s but picking three was still a noteworthy tactic. That one of them is Johnnie Beattie, son of John, only amplified the echo of history.

Beattie Jr will start at blindside, Kelly Brown at openside and Dave Denton in the position Beattie Sr filled 26 years ago. It is hard to imagine that Johnson envisages the kind of rampaging performance that Wales found themselves up against in 1987, but the emphasis on all-round dynamism, as opposed to specific mastery of the technical demands of each position, is still a fascinating approach.

Australia's well-advertised excellence at the breakdown might have persuaded Johnson to fight fire with firemen but in some areas he seems determined to stoke the infernos rather than quench them.

On their day, Beattie and Denton are marvellous ball carriers and, while Brown is not quite in their league, he is no slouch either. If Scotland can get the go-forward, then they will not be short of gas.

All week, the Scottish players have highlighted the differences between the kind of game South Africa played at Murrayfield last Sunday and the one they expect Australia to produce today. In truth, they have almost certainly oversimplified things with their caricatures of the Springboks as rugby bludgeons and the Wallabies as rugby rapiers.

Against Ireland last weekend, the best of Australia was seen not in the bravura of their backs but in an obdurate pack performance in which their forwards were crushingly effective at the scrum. There is a kind of prickliness about this Australian side at the moment, a determination to set the record straight on a few things.

It was of no help to Ireland that the Wallaby set-piece had been an object of derision in the build-up their match at the Aviva Stadium; the backlash Scotland might feel today has its roots in the fact they have beaten Australia in their last two meetings.

Australia also exploited Ireland's defensive errors - and there were plenty of them - quite ruthlessly. "Australia have never had a problem putting points on anybody and they're improving all the time," Johnson said. "That win in Dublin - not an easy place to go and win - was good and there were more tries out on that field. You can point the finger at Ireland but I'd point it at the team that did the deed. They're an emerging side so it will be a good Test."

Scotland's defence hardly covered themselves in glory by shipping 28 points against South Africa six days ago, and Johnson's choice of an unchanged three-quarter line is not so much a vote of confidence as an admission his backs cupboard is rather bare at the moment.

By contrast, the Australia coach, Ewen McKenzie, shorn by injury and discipline issues of the wing and centre combinations that played against Ireland, has been able to call up some impressive deputies, albeit much lighter on Test experience than the Scots.

There has been air of public contrition among the Wallabies since six of their number were suspended and another nine reprimanded for an unauthorised work night out in Dublin 10 days ago.

The line being spun is that the affair has strengthened their resolve and application but there have also been reports that it was a n Australian player, furious at the lack of professionalism in the squad, who spilled the beans to McKenzie. We will have a better idea of whether the tour is characterised by solidarity or splits by close of play tonight.

For Johnnie Beattie, who has admitted he expected injury to rule him out of the autumn series, there is a special poignancy about today's game in the fact he will overtake his father's haul of 25 Scotland caps as he wins his own 26th. "It was always a little milestone in my mind," he said. "It's not something I would openly share with other people but your dad is always someone you look up to.

"To reach 25 caps, the same amount he got to, was something. I know we play in different generations and there are more Tests now, so maybe it's slightly easier. I'm sure he would say that."

Beattie's appearance as a replacement against the Springboks last weekend was his first cap off the bench. In all his previous Tests he started at No.8 but he is undaunted by the fact he will be wearing a different number today.

"People read too much into it," he said. "A specialist openside, is different but the roles of a No.6 and No8 in modern rugby are more or less the same - the only difference is one controls the ball at the back of a scrum. This should be good fun. It's a different challenge for me, playing slightly different roles in first and second phase at lineout. After that, once you get into phase play, there's not much difference."