EGGSTASY TO AGONY

Paterson's shock debut ends in heartache with late TMO call

»SCOTLAND..16 FRANCE..20 ANDY NEWPORT AT MURRAYFIELD

HARRY PATERSON was tucking into some poached eggs on Saturday morning when he picked up a call from Gregor Townsend.

It wasn't the eggs but rather his head that was soon scrambled as the Edinburgh youngster was told to get ready for the most unexpected of Scotland debuts.

With just eight appearances as a professional, the 22-year-old assumed his invite to join Townsend's Six Nations squad would extend only to making up the numbers in training.

But a combination of injuries and the news that Kyle Steyn's wife had gone into labour on the morning of the showdown with France meant Paterson was the last man standing to fill the No.15 jersey.

Rugby at this level is all new to the fresh-faced back and he admits he was briefly gripped by panic as the prospect of facing a star-studded Les Bleus outfit dawned.

By the time referee Nic Berry blew the final whistle on the most controversial of Test match endings, however, Paterson was experiencing a feeling most of his teammates know all too well.

For all the talent and all the improvements this side have made in recent years, they remain undoubtedly the nearly men of the Northern Hemisphere.

They nearly blew it in Cardiff last week. They nearly won it at the weekend. But as has regularly been the case, nearly wasn't good enough.