His capacity to cope with the demands of Test rugby now having been firmly established, Scotland centre Sam Johnson is ready to demonstrate his leadership ability and, should it be called upon, his versatility for this weekend’s trip to Paris.

The Australian-born midfielder has performed with commendable assurance in his first two international appearances, claiming a win on his debut against Italy, then scoring his side’s only try in the defeat by world number two ranked Ireland a week later.

With the players who have started on either side of him in those two matches, Finn Russell and Huw Jones, having been ruled out along with full-back Stuart Hogg, there is a sense that much of the fizz has been extracted from the champagne-style rugby that is the preferred choice of the current coaches.

A string of options consequently presents itself with, for all that Dunc Weir was recalled to the squad this week, Johnson’s clubmates Pete Horne and Adam Hastings the likeliest contenders to replace Russell. Similarly, at centre, while Edinburgh’s James Johnstone was brought into the squad this week, another Glasgow Warrior, Nick Grigg, and Newcastle’s Chris Harris, who seems to be something of a management favourite, could slot in for Jones at outside centre.

Another option, however, to accommodate the inclusion of both Horne and Hastings, who is the closest to a direct replacement for Russell, would be to shift Johnson to outside centre, where he has performed well for Glasgow and the 25-year-old sees no difficulty in doing so, should the need arise.

“I’m 100 per cent ready to go, so hopefully I’ll be involved this weekend and whoever’s around me it doesn’t really matter once you pull on that Scotland jersey, you’ve got a job to do, so we’ll go for it,” he said yesterday.

“There’s probably just a shift in mindset between 12 and 13. 13 is probably running a bit more and looking up, whereas 12 you’re ball playing a bit more, so wherever Gregor wants to put me I’m happy to fill.”

Either way, he knows that there is additional responsibility to be taken on.

“I suppose there’s an onus on other boys to step up, isn’t there,” he said of the loss of Russell, Hogg, Jones and Ryan Wilson.

“I put myself into that. Probably the first couple of weeks, even though I was playing good rugby I was still a bit shy in regards of trying to get the ball to those boys, whereas now I’ve got to take responsibility, taking the ball to the line, taking it on and helping as much as I can.”

That is a pretty harsh piece of self-assessment since the general impression has been of one who has taken the international experience in his stride to this point.

However, along with the emotions of the happiest surprises on the day of his debut when, along with his mother and father, his sister and niece made the trip from Brisbane to mark his day, he admits that all that surrounds it has been challenging.

“It’s been a bit of a whirlwind couple of weeks, going from just playing club and stuff... It’s a bit more surreal, but I’ve really enjoyed it and now it’s about consistency, so we’ll keep going,” he said.

“It helps having similar faces around me and for me it’s just obviously a big occasion, but you prepare like it’s another game of rugby.

“I like to think if you get the clarity right during the week, then you take your opportunity, then you play free-flowing.

“It’s probably the occasion, more than the rugby that’s different. So, getting off the bus with the bagpipes, the national anthem, all that sort of stuff, the whole day is exhausting, not just the rugby. It’s definitely a step up, the speed and physicality.

“You feel like you’ve played back-to-back Grand Finals in one game and you deserve four weeks off, but you’ve got to prepare again the following week. So, it’s definitely a new experience, but one I’ve thoroughly enjoyed.”

A first away trip with the national team will bring another dimension to the experience and, as much as the litany of injuries that has befallen the squad, he expressed confidence that there remains sufficient quality to claim what would be a first Scotland win in 20 years in the French capital.

“I think from an internal point of view, it doesn’t matter who puts on that jersey, you’re expected to do a job, whereas obviously from an outside point of view people are going to be devastated with the people we’ve lost,” Johnson acknowledged.

“I think we’ve got a good enough squad here. Finn’s a great player, but it doesn’t matter who comes in, whether it’s Pete Horne, Adam Hastings or Dunky Weir, you’ve got a job to do for Scotland and you’ve got to do it.”