Rugby: Scots in combat mode for Cup

Vern Cotter is readying Scotland for the World Cup battlefield. Photo / Getty Images

Coach Vern Cotter has brought in a trained hostage negotiator to toughen up his Scotland squad for this year's Rugby World Cup.

The 41-strong training group travelled to a high altitude training camp in the French Pyrenees this week and Cotter had drawn up plans to ready his players for battle.

Eric Blondeau, who worked with the French equivalent of the SAS, coached the players on dealing with stressful situations while a commando chief, who helped prepare the French national side ahead of the 2007 and 2011 World Cups, was due to put them through a series of arduous tests and challenges.

Cotter said he would work on both the physical and mental side of his players at Font Romeau — 1850m above sea level — where athletes such as Paula Radcliffe and Mo Farah have trained in the past.

Scotland will need to improve dramatically at the world cup from the team who failed to win a game in this year's Six Nations and finished last behind Italy.

They are in the same pool at South Africa, Samoa, Japan and the US and, at No10, are ranked third in their group behind the Springboks (2) and Samoa (9). Japan are ranked 13th and the US 16th.

"There's a chap who'll be coming to meet us in France called Eric Blondeau, who has worked in hostage negotiations and with the GIGN, which is the French SAS equivalent," Cotter said. "He's not a psychologist, as such, but has been involved in stress situations.

"He has a lot of experience in traumatic and difficult decision-making situations and he'll come and speak to a few of the players. I used him at Clermont Auvergne when I was in charge there and he'll be periodically coming in and having a talk with myself, too. I met with him a month or so ago and we spoke about the challenges we have ahead. He's very good at throwing up ideas. "This is an ideal training level at 1800-2000 metres above sea level and I'll be looking at the character of my players and how they adapt to what they have to deal with.

"I asked the commander who will be taking them what it would be like and he said, 'trust me Vern, I've done this before'. He did it with the French team in 2007 and 2011 and I'm sure they've perfected a few techniques and drills specifically for the players. It will be tough but, put it this way, the commander didn't lose anyone. Also it's the auld alliance isn't it? We've always helped each other."

Despite their Six Nations whitewash, Cotter expects confidence to be high in the squad particularly among the Glasgow players who triumphed against Munster in the Pro12 final last month.

- Daily Mail