Chris Cusiter is relishing the chance to lead out Scotland for the first time against Fiji at Murrayfield on Saturday.
Scrum-half primed for Fiji challenge
Chris Cusiter is relishing the chance to lead out Scotland for the first time against Fiji at Murrayfield on Saturday.
The Glasgow scrum-half has won the battle for the armband and a place in the team with joint skipper Mike Blair.
Unlike Blair, who has led Scotland for the past year and a half, Cusiter's experience in the role at Test level is limited to replacing his rival during last season's RBS 6 Nations game against Wales.
Coming off the bench has been the story of Cusiter's Test career for the past two years, with Blair's stranglehold on the armband guaranteeing his own place in the team.
But Andy Robinson's decision to appoint the pair joint captains for the autumn internationals has reignited a battle for the number nine jersey which dates back several years.
Frustrating
"To be honest, being on the bench is probably more nerve-wracking than starting a game because you don't know when you're going to be on, you don't know how long you're going to get," he said.
"And, ultimately, if you don't get on or you get a very short period of time, it can be very frustrating.
"It's not the end of the world being on the bench; it's still an honour to be in the Scotland squad.
"But all the players want to start the games and I'm no different."
That is something Cusiter has not done since the World Cup, with his last 10 appearances all coming as a replacement.
Proud
So it was perhaps no surprise that he appeared happier to be a starter than a skipper.
Asked if leading out Scotland would be the proudest moment of his career, the Glasgow star said: "Possibly, I hadn't thought of it like that.
"It's certainly one of the biggest moments of my rugby career to date.
"I've been around a few years but captaining Scotland is such a huge honour that it's going to be emotional and I'm pretty excited about it."
