Whatever changes in tactics are being prepared for Scotland’s match against Ireland in Dublin on Saturday, it became clear yesterday that Frank Hadden, the coach, will be giving another chance to most of the players who underperformed in the opening two games of the RBS Six Nations Championship.

In naming the squad that is preparing for the game, he has stuck with the backs who did service against France in the opening match, recalling Rory Lamont and Simon Webster after injury with Graeme Morrison and Simon Danielli dropping down to the A squad after winning caps against Wales.

All the forwards who played so badly against Wales have been retained, and the three who were added yesterday appear to be as much cover for the injured and rested as genuine contenders for elevation to the senior side.

The biggest worry remains Jason White, the captain, who got a bang on the head against Wales and has still to complete a training session since then. In former times he would have been forced to take an automatic three-week rest but now the judgment is made using brain scans and function tests.

While that can mean that players are available more quickly than was once the case, it can also delay their return.

With John Barclay, the Glasgow open side, also unavailable yesterday, nursing an injured hand that will not keep him out action beyond today, Alasdair Strokosch, the Gloucester flanker, and Ross Rennie, Barclay’s Edinburgh rival, were called into the training squad alongside Alastair Kellock, the Glasgow captain who replaced Jim Hamilton, the Leicester lock, who was rested after playing the full match for his club on Sunday.

The big surprise was that there was no place for Simon Taylor, the Stade Français No 8 who has not been available after tearing a ligament in his hand but is back in action for his club. He has yet to complete a full game, however, coming off the bench midway through the second half of the club’s recent wins over Brive and Auch, and since he still appeared to be wearing heavy strapping on the injury, Hadden appears to have decided that it would be just too much of a gamble to put him straight into an international.

Earlier this month Hadden admitted that he had made a mistake in the opening Six Nations game by selecting too many players who were not match fit, so for all his known admiration of Taylor and past willingness to rush him back into the Scotland side, that is a mistake he has no intention of repeating.

The hope is now that Taylor will play at least one full game, preferably two, for his club over the next fortnight and be available to take on England.

The squad has only two specialist centres, Andy Henderson and Nick De Luca, suggesting that they will get a reprieve despite their problems in the early matches, while the fly half battle is again between Chris Paterson and Dan Parks, with Phil Godman and Gordon Ross both named in the A squad.

Towards the end of last week, the buzz around the Scotland camp was that Paterson was about to get the nod ahead of Parks, but he failed to make a case for himself when he was fielded in the position by Gloucester on Sunday, and a rethink could be on the cards.

Godman might also have come into the reckoning but did himself no favours playing for Edinburgh on Friday, not only missing vital kicks but also firing out a series of passes that got players on his own side into trouble.

There was one plus point in that game, even though it finished in a narrow win for Munster, with Roland Reid showing that his latest conversion from flanker to wing may prove the success he and his club hope for. He wins instant recognition for his efforts with a place in the A team squad despite having played as a wing just once in six years.

Squads

Scotland: Backs: M Blair (Edinburgh), C Cusiter (Perpignan), N De Luca (Edinburgh), A Henderson (Glasgow Warriors), R Lamont (Sale Sharks), D Parks (Glasgow Warriors), C Paterson (Gloucester), H Southwell (Edinburgh), N Walker (Ospreys), S Webster (Edinburgh). Forwards: J Barclay (Glasgow), K Brown (Glasgow Warriors), R Ford (Edinburgh), J Hamilton (Leicester), N Hines (Perpignan), A Hogg (Edinburgh), A Jacobsen (Edinburgh), A Kellock (Glasgow Warriors), G Kerr (Edinburgh), S MacLeod (Llanelli Scarlets), E Murray (Northampton), R Rennie (Edinburgh), A Strokosch (Gloucester), F Thomson (Glasgow), J White (Sale Sharks, capt). Scotland A: Backs: B Cairns (Edinburgh), S Danielli (Ulster), M Evans (Glasgow), P Godman (Edinburgh), J Houston (Edinburgh), R Lawson (Gloucester), C MacRae (Edinburgh), M McMillan (London Wasps), G Morrison (Glasgow Warriors), R Reid (Edinburgh), G Ross (Saracens). Forwards: J Beattie (Glasgow Warriors), D Callam (Edinburgh), A Dickinson (Gloucester), J Eddie (Glasgow Warriors), D Hall (Glasgow Warriors), C Hamilton (Edinburgh), S Lawson (Sale Sharks), M Low (Glasgow Warriors), A MacDonald (Edinburgh), M Rennie (Bourgoin), C Smith (Edinburgh).