Scotland’s 31-man Rugby World Cup squad has been named, the players have been told, and it was publicly announced this afternoon at Edinburgh University.

After almost 3 months of hard training and 2 wins out of 3 in the warm-up games, Vern Cotter has made his decision and the paperwork has been delivered to the tournament organisers. Supporters were treated at the Old College Quad to see today’s announcement, which was made at 14:30 BST (15:30 SA Time), and supporters had a chance to mingle with the players afterwards.

Following Saturday’s 48 / 7 win over Italy at BT Murrayfield, Cotter and his coaching staff met for final discussions and assessments of the medical reports before confirming the squad and informing the players of the decision.

Wing Tommy Seymour, fullback Sean Maitland and prop Ryan Grant were all passed fit for selection but time had run out for Glasgow centre Alex Dunbar, who has been to the USA for rehabilitation on a long-term knee injury.

Scotland defence coach Matt Taylor said: “The hardest part of being a coach is telling the guys who don’t make a team or a squad, because they’ve worked as hard as the guys who have made it. It’s a difficult time but the players understand that’s the nature of the job. There will be guys who miss out that could come back in through injuries so it’s important to keep them motivated and on track in terms of their training.”

scotsman

Scotland Rugby World Cup Squad:

Forwards (17):

• Hookers: Fraser Brown (Glasgow Warriors), Ross Ford (Edinburgh), Stuart McInally (Edinburgh).
• Props: Alasdair Dickinson (Edinburgh), Ryan Grant (Glasgow Warriors), Gordon Reid (Glasgow Warriors), WP Nel (Edinburgh), Jon Welsh (Newcastle Falcons).
• Locks: Grant Gilchrist (Edinburgh), Jonny Gray (Glasgow Warriors), Richie Gray (Castres), Tim Swinson (Glasgow Warriors).
• Loose Forwards: David Denton (Edinburgh), John Hardie (Unattached), Josh Strauss (Glasgow Warriors), Alasdair Strokosch (Perpignan), Ryan Wilson (Glasgow Warriors).

Backs (14):

• Back Three: Stuart Hogg (Glasgow Warriors), Sean Lamont (Glasgow Warriors), Sean Maitland (London Irish), Tommy Seymour (Glasgow Warriors), Tim Visser (Harlequins).
• Centres: Mark Bennett (Glasgow Warriors), Peter Horne (Glasgow Warriors), Matt Scott (Edinburgh), Richie Vernon (Glasgow Warriors).
• Flyhalves: Finn Russell (Glasgow Warriors), Duncan Weir (Glasgow Warriors).
• Scrumhalves: Sam Hidalgo-Clyne (Edinburgh), Greig Laidlaw (Gloucester), Henry Pyrgos (Glasgow Warriors).