Scotland v South Africa:  In a world inhabited by Ben Cohen and Jonah Lomu, Scotland can walk tall at last. It has been a while, but the Murrayfield faithful will be grateful that the next big thing rampaging down the wing has a thistle on his breast, writesIain Morrison

For the match against South Africa today, Ian McGeechan has kept faith with the XV that struggled to put points on the board against Romania, which means Nikki Walker will win his second cap. Bruce Douglas, Stuart Moffat and Walker, last weekend's debutants, all showed enough promise to justify a second crack but it is Walker whose tenure on the right wing could run and run.

"I think with more experience I'll be able to read play better. I was a wee bit disappointed and frustrated (against Romania) because I wanted to make a bigger impact on the game."

At 6ft 4in and 16 stone the Borderer is better equipped than most to make an impression when the opportunity arises. If, like most big men, he needs a yard or two to work up a head of steam, once on the move he is horribly difficult to stop. Unfortunately the Borders wing rarely saw the ball against Romania and when it appeared it was usually escorted by a couple of defenders. Walker may not see it this way but the attention afforded the 20-year-old was the sincerest form of flattery available.

He may not have carried the ball often but Walker still comes burdened with huge expectations because Scotland appear to have found the international-class wide man they have missed since Iwan Tukalo last showed his poacher's instincts a decade ago.

Walker is either unbothered or simply unaware of the hopes that ride with him and the youngster remains unflappable. For years this carefree attitude extended to rugby - "I was just playing for a laugh" - until his path crossed that of Colin Sutherland, a youth coach whom he credits with "making me a bit hungrier for rugby".

Scotland fans owe Sutherland a debt because Walker could have been lost to football. He proved a useful midfielder and juggled the two sports together, concentrating on rugby only from 15 onwards, when he was forced to choose. Given his size Walker might have been wasted in the depths of the scrum, but when nature delayed his growth spurt he was saved a life of cauliflower ears and broken noses: "I was always quick but never that big at school. I only shot up after I had established myself in the centre or wing."

Still eligible for the Scotland under-21 side for whom he played last year, Walker has made swift progress up the rugby ladder. Only last April as an amateur he helped Hawick lift the BT Cellnet Cup, winding his way past several defenders in the dying minutes of the match to score a fine solo try. In similar style he has bypassed all the usual stepping stones and gone straight into the national team.

This is both a strength and a weakness in Scottish rugby. The paucity of numbers to choose from means that the selectors should not miss any talent, especially one that sticks out like Walker. Against that, the wing would perhaps benefit from more time acclimatising to the rarefied atmosphere of top-flight rugby.

Rudi Straeuli's Springboks, keen to prove they have absorbed last week's French lesson, represent a considerable step up for Walker.

"Playing for Scotland is the easy part," he says. "It's winning for Scotland that's the difficult bit."

Guardian Service

REPLACEMENTS

SCOTLAND - S Scott (Borders), D Hilton (Glasgow), N Hines (Edinburgh), J White (Edinburgh), G Beveridge (Glasgow), G Townsend (Borders), B Hinshelwood (Worcester).

SOUTH AFRICA - Replacements to be named.

REFEREE: Nigel Williams (Wales).

ON TELEVISION: BBC 1