Scotland will have just one uncapped player in their squad when they take on France on Sunday, with Nick De Luca, the Edinburgh centre, set for his international debut, probably in the starting XV. He was included in the 23-man squad named by Frank Hadden yesterday, making him a near-certainty to win his first cap.

Hadden did have a surprise, however, leaving Phil Godman, the Edinburgh fly half, out despite his recent revival in form. Instead Chris Paterson will provide fly-half cover after some solid performances in the role at Gloucester, the club he joined after the World Cup.

The Scotland coach has moved away from his normal practice of keeping the party under wraps until the formal announcement tomorrow, and it is obvious that changes in the starting XV will be kept to the minimum needed to cover the loss to injury of Rob Dewey, Sean Lamont and Simon Taylor.

It is likely that De Luca will indirectly replace Lamont by allowing Simon Webster, who started at centre towards the end of the World Cup, to revert to wing, his best position, in the same way as John Barclay looks to be replacing Taylor by winning selection at flanker and allowing Allister Hogg, Kelly Brown or David Callam to start at No 8.

There is an extra back row in the squad, Callam having only just recovered from a shoulder injury and Jason White carrying a knock on a leg that prevented him training yesterday but is not expected to keep him out of action beyond the middle of the week.

The big focus, however, will be on De Luca. If there is one position that sums up Scotland’s biggest problems during this decade, it is outside centre. While most sides have been able to settle on a strike runner there, since Alan Tait retired after the 1999 World Cup, Scotland have tried 11 different players in the role and are still looking for a long-term answer.

De Luca has earned the right to his chance two days after his 24th birthday, not just with some startling attacking performances, but for proving that he has conquered the defensive demons that once threatened his international future.

“It is certainly the area of my game that has shown the greatest improvement,” he said. “The attack is more natural, more instinctive, I have had to work lot harder at defence, just to get used to the systems, not to be so individual. It is good now, though. I’ve been very happy with my performances against the likes of Leinster, Leicester and Toulouse because they are big European teams with big-name players. If you can show up well against them, you can go into other games feeling pretty confident. I have been quite happy with my performances but I know that I am by no means the finished article.”

All this could not have gone unnoticed and De Luca confessed that all the publicity has brought is a certain amount of teasing from his teammates. “They’re just jealous,” he said with a huge grin. “It’s an exciting time for me. I’ve tried to shut most of it out, I don’t read the papers myself but I have had to tell my Dad to stop texting me to tell me what they are saying.

“I would be very honoured to get my first cap, especially at home against France in such a great tournament. It would be amazing.”

The cap is coming a lot more quickly than even he had dared to dream of. After making an impact last season at the Borders, he was one of those picked up by Edinburgh, long before all the problems with the two clubs started, but knew he was joining a young team who might take time to develop.

The height of his ambition was to become involved on the fringes of the Six Nations squad and perhaps make a case for honours during the summer tour. Instead, he is about to be in there at the start and gunning to make the position his own for the long-term future. If he does, it will be a bonus for his country, who may have found the answer to a problem that has dogged them for years.

SQUAD: Backs: M Blair (Edinburgh), C Cusiter (Perpignan), N De Luca (Edinburgh), A Henderson (Glasgow), R Lamont (Sale), D Parks (Glasgow), C Paterson (Gloucester), H Southwell (Edinburgh), N Walker (Ospreys), S Webster (Edinburgh). Forwards: J Barclay (Glasgow), K Brown (Glasgow), D Callam (Edinburgh), R Ford (Edinburgh), J Hamilton (Leicester), N Hines (Perpignan), A Hogg (Edinburgh), A Jacobsen (Edinburgh), G Kerr (Edinburgh), S MacLeod (Llanelli Scarlets), E Murray (Northampton), F Thomson (Glasgow), J White (Sale Sharks).