Filling the boots of former Scotland captain Bryan Redpath was never going to be easy, but Cusiter has taken the chance with both hands and the plaudits have rained down on him.

Grand Slam winner Roy Laidlaw is one of his biggest fans and claims the 22-year-old Borders man has the potential to be a better all-round No 9 than not just Redpath but also Andy Nicol, Gary Armstrong and himself.

High praise indeed for a man with only 19 international caps to his name (he made his debut as recently as last February against Wales).

A good distributor and intelligent kicker with a great burst of pace from a standing start, Cusiter has all the attributes a great scrum-half needs and is learning all the time.

He has long been tipped as a possible tourist this summer and his performances in a struggling Scotland side during the Six Nations were enough to win Sir Clive Woodward's vote.