Interview: Andy Robinson has reflected on Scotland's poor World Cup campaign and plans to make his side a force again

On the field

Scotland's finishing at the World Cup was dreadful. Their haul of four tries was the third worst of the tournament. They also threw away winning positions in their critical games against both Argentina and England.

AR "Part of our coaching method working with the players is developing our game understanding, so that we can take the chances we have created. That's a big thing for us. We need to trust our ability to move the ball into space and to be able to finish, and recognise how to finish.

"A key element for us is where you attack from. Our coaching message is not coming across strongly enough. This is an area where I hold myself accountable: what we're looking for, what we're trying to do when we get line breaks. We want everyone to have a shared mental model of our attacking game. It's about getting across to the players a total understanding of how we attack and where we attack. That's why we're not scoring tries. The fact we are creating opportunities shows a great mindset of the players to go out there and play. We just have to improve our accuracy in what we do. It's not the fact we're not creating opportunities, it's that when we get into the green zone we have to keep moving the ball to where the space is, get our best players there and attack together as a XV as opposed to individuals.

"What we have to work on with the players is recognising opportunities when they are there. It's for all of us to recognise what the decision-making process is and improving our decision making and our execution. It takes practice, being put in those scenarios regularly. We made very costly mistakes in the key games. What upset me was that we then compounded those mistakes by making more mistakes and we lost points as a result. We have to learn how to regroup and steady the ship after something has gone wrong."

gregor townsend

The dismal try count has been blamed on Gregor Townsend, the attack coach, who came into the Scotland set up despite the fact he had never had sole charge of a team before. Robinson admitted that his assistant lacks experience, but backed him to carry on.

AR "I think that Gregor is a very, very good coach. He has real potential to be even better. His communication of the way the game is played, his understanding of the game and his development of players like Ruaridh Jackson have been very good.

"But the one thing I can't deny around Gregor is that he does not have the coaching experience. The key element for us is to facilitate the opportunity for him to get that experience. That's what he wants too. We're looking to explore how that can be done."

new blood

Robinson's finest hour was as Clive Woodward's assistant when England won the 2003 World Cup. In seeking to strengthen his Scotland coaching team, he may have that model in mind again. Recognised as a brilliant rugby technician, Robinson's grasp of strategy is not so clear. The wise head he brings may be as much for himself as for Townsend and the other assistants.

AR "I am looking to build on the coaching team by adding greater international experience to the mix. When I look at other coaching teams around the world they've got a lot of experience there. We have to look at who the right person would be to come in and achieve that.

"It's a long-term aim for the next couple of years, so it's not going to happen straight away. We want someone to add to what we're doing. We're looking for someone who we feel can make a difference to all of us, as well as to our attacking game.

"International experience is important for us. But we're not going to be jumping in. We want to find the right person. We want someone with a lot of experience. I have candidates in mind."

CAPTAINCY

Robinson chose Al Kellock, the Glasgow lock, as Scotland captain before the squad set off for New Zealand. However, he was dropped for the critical game against Argentina, when the leadership role passed to scrum-half Rory Lawson. A week later, Lawson was dropped and Kellock was back in. The chopping and changing reinforced the impression that Robinson didn't know his best team or leader.

AR "Not picking your captain is a big decision to take, not one to take lightly. I stand by the decision I made for the Argentina game. The scrum in that game was going to be important and I chose not to select Al in the Argentina game because Jim Hamilton was our best scrummaging right-hand lock. Al then played well in the England game. He has had some very consistent performances and as a leader he is a very good captain.

"Moving forward, it's important to select a captain who's going to be picked in the team. That's what I'm looking for. We don't want to be in a situation where we're not picking the captain. It's important that that is not happening.

"There's a tough month of rugby ahead, so I'm not going to say now who will be captain for the Six Nations. But we are looking for a long-term captain now. That's important for our development over the next three or four years."

the cusiter question

After a year-long battle for fitness, Chris Cusiter was allowed just 27 minutes of rugby at the World Cup, making late appearances off the bench against Romania and England. Since returning to Scotland, the scrum-half has been outstanding for Glasgow. Should Robinson have used him more?

AR "The position going into the World Cup was that Rory [Lawson] and Mike [Blair] were playing well. Chris had been out for a year and had only just made the tour. My selection policy was to reward the guys who had been playing. I thought Rory played well against Argentina, Mike played well against England and we got into winning positions.

"It was just unfortunate for Chris. If he had played two or three more games he would have been pushing for the first-choice selection. The lack of time he had, in terms of training as well, was the main reason for the decision I made. I'm very pleased with the way he has played for Glasgow since he got back."

casting the net

Tim Visser, the Dutch-born Edinburgh winger, becomes eligible for Scotland on residence grounds next summer. Robinson believes that we should be looking out and outwards for others who could follow in Visser's footsteps.

AR "Setting up a scouting network is a key thing for us. Finding the odd 'project' player like Tim Visser is important. We have to find the right players, players who want to play for Scotland, people like Nathan Hines. We want them to challenge for places and move the team forward as well. They have to be players who can make a difference for us in whatever time they are given. It's great that Tim Visser has put that commitment in and has performed well for Edinburgh. He's got himself into a position to be selected for the national team on merit.

"It's about creating greater depth and competition for places. We can't stand still. We have to move ourselves forward so we want players to be improving constantly."

the brat pack

While the World Cup squad was away, a host of young players broke through at Edinburgh and Glasgow. Collectively, they have been hailed as the best crop of Scottish talent for a generation. Robinson shares the excitement, but warns that they cannot all move up to Test level at once.

AR "It's important that we keep drip-feeding in the younger players. It's pleasing to see how Dave Denton, Stuart McInally, Rob Harley and also Chris Fusaro have performed. In the backs, you've got Harry Leonard, Duncan Weir, Matt Scott and Stuart Hogg. There are some good young players who have really started to put their hands up. But I can't suddenly flood the whole team. When we bring in a young player we want him to be successful. When we feel that the time is right we will bring them in. It's too early to talk about the next Six Nations, but the great thing is that these players are showing consistency."

johnnie beattie

Eighteen months ago, Johnnie Beattie was the best No.8 in Europe. He has struggled since, though, battling to regain form after a shoulder operation last year. He failed to make the cut for the World Cup squad. Robinson wants to see the Glasgow forward back at his best.

AR "Johnnie has opportunities coming. I hope he can find his feet over the next couple of weeks and be able to play consistently well again. Obviously it was a big disappointment for him to miss the World Cup, but he is in control of getting back. He's a good player and I'm really keen for him to get back to performing well. I haven't spoken to him yet, but that's a call I will be making soon."

Picture: Craig Watson/SNS