Here, rugby gods, leave our talented players alone!

So Ruaridh Jackson is out for the next 3 months (see http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/rugbyunion/international/scotland/6163741/Ruaridh-Jackson-ruled-out-for-three-months-after-suffering-shoulder-dislocation.html). Typical; young Scottish players with potential specialise in poorly timed injuries, see Chris Cusiter, Simon Taylor, and especially Tom Philip. Whereas our not-quite-international-class plodders seem immune to injury, and end up acquiring 50 caps more than they'd get in any other team in the 6 Nations - see Dan Parks, Andy Henderson, Gavin Kerr. Have to say I'd hardly seen Jackson prior to his cameo on Friday, and there wasn't much for me to judge him on there, but watching his try again on TV from behind the posts, you see the fantastic sprint he made to be in position to take Morrison's pass. From there the try was almost certain, because he'd anticipated correctly and done the hard work when it mattered. It's the sort of support running that Craig Chalmers used to be famous for, albeit he was nothing like this quick.

But in Ruaridh's absence, I'm not writing Dan Parks off yet; it's only 2 years since he was winning Man of the Match awards at Firhill so often as to suggest his Mum was the judge. Except that he deserved them all, and it wasn't just down to kicking; on his good days he can get the backs running as well as any fly half in league rugby. Just a pity he never seems able to adjust to the greater pace of international rugby, where he keeps getting charged down and intercepted in ways that very rarely happen for Glasgow.