Paterson preparations unchanged

Scotland's Chris Paterson will approach the match against Ireland on Saturday in the same way as he has prepared for all 74 of his previous internationals - despite the fact he has been presented with a rare opportunity to prove he is capable of running the game from the crucial stand-off position.

Since making his debut for Scotland against Spain in the 1999 Rugby World Cup his appearances at stand-off have been few and far between, with successive coaches insisting that his talents would be better utilised on the wing or at full-back.

"I'm not approaching this game any differently. I was always reasonably involved anyway to be honest," insisted Paterson. "I made a lot of decisions and did a lot of the preparation work in terms of deciding what we did and where - so it's no different at all for me."

He added: "I've always said that I'm happy to play and train wherever. I just get on and do my best regardless of where that may be. It seems to be other people other than me that have made a big deal of it over the last eight or nine years.

"I can't stress enough that I'm just happy to play. I've said it all along and nobody has believed me.

"I just see myself as a rugby player who wants to be there and do the best I can in whatever position I'm picked to play. It's no bluff - that's just me."

Paterson added: "Obviously the 10 comes under a huge amount of scrutiny. If something goes wrong then it's his fault, it's as simple as that.

"There has been a lot of unfair scrutiny on the 10 over the last number if years which I don't expect to change - but I'm looking forward to it.

"It's a challenge, it's a big game, everyone has trained really hard over the summer and we're just looking to get back into playing rugby."