Team manager Andy Robinson confirmed Scotland flanker Kelly Brown has further tests to pass before being allowed to start Saturday's final RBS 6 Nations game in Ireland.

Brown has kept his place in the side for the trip to Dublin after recovering well from a sickening clash of heads with England wing Ugo Monye in last weekend's Calcutta Cup draw at Murrayfield.

"He's still got to pass a contact test, so he's still got to go out and do some contact work," Robinson told Press Association Sport after naming an unchanged starting XV for the match at Croke Park.

"Already, the progress that he's made has been very, very good and we're expecting him to be fit."

Should Brown fail to make it, he will be replaced by substitute flanker Alan MacDonald, with Alasdair Strokosch still out injured. There had been speculation lock Nathan Hines may be drafted into the back row if necessary but that was scuppered after he suffered a knee injury.

Robinson said of the Leinster star: "Nathan's done really well for the team and he was looking forward to playing against Ireland as a lot of his team-mates play there."

Robinson refused to reveal whether Hines would have displaced Jim Hamilton in the second row had he been fit after the latter gave away a penalty trying to kick the ball out of Danny Care's hands on Saturday.

Indeed, Robinson defended the Edinburgh man's performance, saying: "Jim gave one penalty away and that was just after half-time.

"He'd spoken to the referee before the game and quizzed him on that and said that he felt that it was legal to do that from the response that he got from the referee.

"However, the referee interpreted it to be foul play in the game."