Robinson in line if Scots fail in Dublin

Robinson is already employed by the Scottish Rugby Union as coach of Edinburgh. He expanded his brief by taking charge of the Scotland A team with Sean Lineen.

It would scarcely take a leap of imagination to place the former England coach at the top of the list to succeed Frank Hadden, should the latter pay for a disappointing RBS Six Nations campaign.

Hadden is on a 12-month performance-related rolling contract.

A crushing defeat by Ireland will make his deal appear as solid as Scotland's ineffective rolling maul.

'I don't feel threatened by his presence,' Hadden said when asked about Robinson.

'My job is permanently on the line, entirely dependent on results, and I see Andy as a positive addition to the core of experienced professional coaches we have here.'

Robinson has diplomatically dismissed any talk of a return to the international scene in Scotland. But others are beginning to talk.

John Beattie, former Lion and BBC pundit, has already called for Robinson to lend Hadden a hand with the national squad.

One Edinburgh international said: 'I have learned more in four months with Robinson than I did for the last four years.'

There will, of course, be resistance to an Englishman coaching Scotland but Wales have shown the way this season with their New Zealand/England management axis of Warren Gatland and Shaun Edwards.

England would have already hired a Scottish coach had Ian McGeechan been receptive to the advances of the RFU in the pre-Clive Woodward era.

A short month ago, Hadden had been probably the most secure of the Six Nations coaches.

A decent World Cup offered the hope of a promising 2008.

Eddie O'Sullivan was the man under threat; a threat only reduced by a strong second half Irish display in Paris.

Hadden's reputation has crumbled along with that of a Scotland side which has not looked like scoring other than by the boot.

The replacement at fly half of the kicking Dan Parks by the more adventurous Chris Paterson offers only a slight hope of a more threatening attack.

Ireland's attack has not been weakened by the return of Geordan Murphy in place of the injured Girvan Dempsey.

IRELAND: Murphy, Bowe, B O'Driscoll (capt), Trimble, Kearney, O'Gara, Reddan; Horan, Jackman, Hayes, O'Callaghan, M O'Driscoll, Leamy, D Wallace, Heaslip. Subs: Best, Buckley, O'Connell, Easterby, Stringer, P Wallace, Horgan.

SCOTLAND: Southwell, Lamont, Webster, Henderson, Walker, Paterson, Blair (capt); Jacobsen, Ford, Murray, Hines, MacLeod, Strokosch, Hogg, Brown. Subs: Thomson, Kerr, Hamilton, Rennie, Cusiter, Parks, De Luca.

TV: BBC1 4.50pm, KO 5pm.

DAWSON'S VERDICT

Scotland have been poor, but then so have Ireland. Both sides look very limited, so they could be quite evenly matched.

There will be lots of pressure on Ireland, but with bad weather predicted Ronan O'Gara should be in his element and I expect them to win by 15 points.