Scrum-half Ali Price has been handed a surprise start for Scotland’s World Cup Pool B qualification shootout with Ireland on Saturday, as regular number nine Ben White misses out on a place in the 23 altogether.
The 30-year-old Glasgow back made the number nine jersey his own for three years until losing his spot to the burgeoning White at the start of this year’s Six Nations.
But after scoring a try when a much-changed XV defeated Romania in Lille last Saturday, Price has remained in the team for this weekend’s Paris showdown.
White is not even listed among the substitutes, with George Horne the replacement scrum-half.
Captain Jamie Ritchie returns to lead the team after going off with concussion in the first half of the Tonga match a fortnight ago.
Price in place of White is the only change to the team that started the match against South Africa on the opening weekend of the tournament.
The scrum-half had spoken in Nice earlier this week about how his improved maturity had helped him deal with losing his place just two years after being selected for British and Irish Lions duty.
But he now appears to have convinced Gregor Townsend that he is worthy of being pitched back into the thick of it for one of Scotland’s biggest games in years as they bid to get a bonus-point win over the Irish or deny their opponents a losing bonus in order to reach the quarter-finals.
Hamish Watson, another 2021 Lion who has fallen from prominence this year, has not made the 23 despite impressing against Romania last weekend.
— Scottish Rugby (@Scotlandteam) October 5, 2023
Scotland team to face Ireland at Rugby World Cup
Forwards: 1 Pierre Schoeman (Edinburgh Rugby), 2 George Turner (Glasgow Warriors), 3 Zander Fagerson (Glasgow Warriors), 4 Richie Gray (Glasgow Warriors), 5 Grant Gilchrist (Edinburgh Rugby), 6 Jamie Ritchie (CAPTAIN, Edinburgh Rugby), 7 Rory Darge (Glasgow Warriors), 8 Jack Dempsey (Glasgow Warriors)
Backs: 9 Ali Price (Glasgow Warriors), 10 Finn Russell (Bath Rugby), 11 Duhan van der Merwe (Edinburgh Rugby), 12 Sione Tuipulotu (Glasgow Warriors), 13 Huw Jones (Glasgow Warriors), 14 Darcy Graham (Edinburgh Rugby), 15 Blair Kinghorn (Edinburgh Rugby)
Replacements: 16 Ewan Ashman (Edinburgh Rugby), 17 Rory Sutherland (unattached), 18 WP Nel (Edinburgh Rugby), 19 Scott Cummings (Glasgow Warriors), 20 Matt Fagerson (Glasgow Warriors), 21 Luke Crosbie (Edinburgh Rugby), 22 George Horne (Glasgow Warriors), 23 Ollie Smith (Glasgow Warriors)