Finals whistle

It’s D-Day for Toony as Scotland boss makes agonising call on who will miss the cut for trip to France

- DAVID BARNES

AFTER 12 weeks of intense training, D-Day for Scotland’s World Cup hopefuls has finally arrived. 

The final 33 to travel to France at the start of September for the World Cup will be announced this morning.

The original training group started out as 41 at the end of May but the sudden retirement of Stuart Hogg, and the early release from the squad of Adam Hastings, Stafford McDowall and Cameron Henderson, means that only 37 now remain.

That leaves four more players to be given the devastating news that they won’t get to compete on the game’s biggest stage this autumn.

Head coach Gregor Townsend confirmed after Saturday ’s warm-up defeat to France that he plans to shed one player in each of four key positions.

That means one of his four hookers – George Turner, Stuart McInally, Dave Cherry and Ewan Ashman – is for the chop.