By Mark Woods

Hadden is focusing on Argentina, not his future

Thirty years ago, to this very month, Argentina was the setting for one of the seminal moments in Scottish sport.

Archie Gemmell's goal against the Netherlands provided a moment of joy amid a period of pain at football's 1978 World Cup, as expectation failed utterly to approximate reality.

Based on recent performances by the national rugby side, few will dare to anticipate much from their current tour to South America, not when memories of the struggles in this year's Six Nations are still fresh.

It is a burden which sits uneasily on the shoulders of head coach Frank Hadden.

Defeats in the two Tests against Los Pumas would barely be a surprise. After all, this is a squad which rolled past the Scots 19-13 in last year's World Cup.

Returning home empty-handed, however, will not eradicate the feeling that Hadden is on borrowed time in his current position, given the failure of the Scottish Rugby Union to provide a fulsome endorsement of his work in their most recent appraisal process.

The former Edinburgh chief has shrugged off the speculation, insisting his focus is squarely on the present, not the past.

Yet the near-complete dismantling of his previous coaching staff - and the introduction of Sean Lineen and Andy Robinson as his new assistants - is a clear indication that the SRU wants a rapid change in fortunes.

And that means victories, rather than excuses for failure.

Hadden concedes there were lessons that had to be learnt.

"We had a very honest debrief following the Six Nations," he told BBC Scotland.

"There were all sorts of things we weren't happy with but some of them were out of our control. Like the injury situation, like the preparation time.

"But there were some parts of the Six Nations where some of the young players made some progress. And that again gives us a number of options available when we're selecting."

The preparation issue, Hadden claims, has been addressed. One week before departure, almost a week before the first Test in Rosario on Saturday, more time than was available before the ill-fated spring campaign.

Despite a long season, the attitude and enthusiasm of his players has been a positive, he asserts. While the form of tour captain Mike Blair, of Edinburgh, and Gloucester's Alisdair Strokosh, provides hope of better times ahead.

Success in Argentina could have longer-term ramifications. Presently ranked tenth in the IRB seedings, a leap of two places would give Hadden's men an easier path through to the 2011 World Cup in New Zealand.

And this may be an opportune time to take some revenge on the Argentines, whose new coach Santiago Phelan has drafted in a litany of inexperienced faces to face their European visitors.

"This is a top quality side," notes Hadden, nonetheless. "We haven't got a very good track record against them.

"In fact, we've never, ever beaten them at junior level and the players are fully aware of how difficult it is.

"But the preparation we have under our belts is very good and it will stand us in good stead. We're going out full of confidence because although we know we need to win the game, we believe that we can win the game."

MY SPORT: DEBATE I'm trying to think what good it'll do the Scotland squad who have just finished a long, hard season. Do these lads just want to be relaxing on a beach somewhere? donsmad83

Getting off to a good start will be vital, he declares. Under the tutelage of Lineen and Robinson, a more direct and positive approach is likely to filter in, with Chris Paterson expected to be fielded at full-back and Dan Parks inserted at stand-off.

There will, regardless, be challenges which Hadden - and his charges - will have to overcome.

"We're all aware about how tough it's going to be, especially in the set-piece," the Scotland supremo confirms.

"We're playing on two narrow pitches, 65 metres wide. The first one's only 95 metres long. That's a bit like Firhill. So that will have an impact on the way the game's played.

"What's important for us is to start really positively next week. To try and capitalise, perhaps, on the fact they haven't played for such a long time. But we're aware about how difficult it's going to be."

No Ally MacLeod-style predictions for Hadden. But how he must wish to confound expectations rather than live down to them.