Modern sports science means that players are well prepared and expertly looked after throughout the build-up and duration of the tournament, but this is a tough, tough mission for the young men labouring in the heat of a sunny Georgian summer.<\/p>\n
Tight-head prop Ollie Blyth-Lafferty<\/strong> \u2013 doing it the hard way as a 6ft 4ins and 21st 6lbs giant anchoring the Scottish scrum \u2013 is one of 10 players in the Scotland starting XV fronting up for the third consecutive time in tomorrow final pool match against Japan. The others being full-back Rory McHaffie<\/strong>, wingers Daniel Kelly<\/strong> and Nairn Moncrieff,<\/strong> centre Henry Kesterton,<\/strong> stand-off Jake Dalziel<\/strong>, hooker Joe Roberts,<\/strong> second-rows Dan Halkon<\/strong> and Christian Lindsay<\/strong> and back-row Jack Utterson.<\/strong><\/p>\n Meanwhile, seven more \u2013 utility-back Alex Bryden<\/strong>, scrum-halves Asa Stewart-Harris<\/strong> and Matthew Fick,<\/strong> replacement hooker Jamie McAughtrie<\/strong>, replacement tight-head Jackson Rennie<\/strong>, replacement flanker Oliver Finlayson-Russell<\/strong> and No 8 Harvey Preston<\/strong> have been involved as a starter or bench option in all three games so far.<\/p>\n Conversely, its also tough for\u00a0 the three players who are yet to feature in any of the match-day squads announced so far. They are second-row Archie Appleby<\/strong>, centre Harry Soboil<\/strong> and especially scrum-half Hamish MacArthur <\/strong>(who was a stalwart for Scotland throughout last season\u2019s U20s Six Nations but has been sidelined by the recruitment during the build-up to this tournament of a South African and an Englishman who played against Scotland during the recent Six Nations).<\/p>\n Of course, organising and managing game-time is a matter for the game\u2019s administrators and coaches. For the players, it is all about the next hurdle, and despite the physical challenges posed by being the biggest man in the Scotland squad playing in the most physically demanding position, Blyth-Lafferty shrugged off questions about how he is coping with impressive breeziness.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not too bad,\u201d he said earlier this week. \u201cObviously, I\u2019ve done it last year so I\u2019m a wee bit more used to it but we\u2019ve got ice baths after this so I\u2019ll be getting right in there and that\u2019s what all the boys have been hammering for the past couple of days, just doing the work on the pitch, staying out the sun and hammering the ice baths, so I think I\u2019m holding it up pretty well.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s been good coming in and with the season that I\u2019ve had especially around the prep stuff,\u201d added the Boroughmuir-developed front-rower, who came into this tournament off the back of a fine breakthrough season with Edinburgh, in which he featured in 15 out of 24 URC and Champions Cup games.<\/p>\n \u201cI went from the Edinburgh environment and played the final game against Connacht and then on the Monday I was back with the 20s and I\u2019d say overall the S&C, the nutritionists and stuff like that they\u2019ve all helped me out and have been understanding of where I\u2019ve came from and the stuff I\u2019ve been doing, and how there\u2019ll be slight changes for me.<\/p>\n \u201cOn pitch as well, it\u2019s helped because I\u2019ve came from quite a lot of games of rugby that I\u2019ve played this season compared to a lot of other boys who\u2019ve just been in prep blocks.\u201d<\/p>\n Looking forward to tomorrow afternoon\u2019s final pool match against Japan [Tuesday with a 12.30pm kick-off], Blyth-Lafferty stressed that morale in the group is high after winning their first match of the campaign against Italy last Tuesday<\/a> and then pushing New Zealand hard before having to settle for a bonus-point against New Zealand on Saturday<\/a> morning.<\/p>\n \u201cOne thing we\u2019ve said is there\u2019s a lot of things we can take from that game [against New Zealand] and having confidence going into Japan is the biggest thing,\u201d continued Blyth-Lafferty.<\/p>\n \u201cYou need to analyse these games in the right way, being in this environment, being able to analyse a game, but being able to drop it and move on too while taking from it what you need going into your next game is key.<\/p>\n \u201cWith this being our final pool game, there\u2019s so many positives that we can take into it from New Zealand, especially as forwards not just as a team, but in our set-piece ability and what we\u2019re really good at, and we need to take pride in what we do against Japan.\u201d<\/p>\n Asked how he feels about the prospect of starting all five matches, he chuckled: \u201cI\u2019m not 100 percent sure, I just need to wait and see and take it as it comes.<\/p>\n \u201cBut, like the rest of the boys, whether you\u2019re involved or not, you take it in your stride and you do the job whether you\u2019ve got number three on your back or you\u2019ve got number 18 on your back or you\u2019re travelling as a reserve, you\u2019ve been selected because you\u2019ve got a job to do.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019ll be tough going into the final two after Japan but I think with the staff we\u2019ve got here in and around recovery and in terms of the morale based side of things it\u2019s something that we\u2019re just taking our stride in as it comes.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Modern sports science means that players are well prepared and expertly looked after throughout the build-up and 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