Andy Robinson resigned in the wake of the 21-15 defeat to the Pacific Islanders with attack coach Scott Johnson declaring his interest in taking over ahead of the RBS 6 Nations and Cross is looking to the future.

The Edinburgh forward experienced the highs and lows of international rugby over the course of the three Tests, from scoring his maiden international try against world champions New Zealand to finding himself on the bench for the defeat against Tonga at Pittodrie.

Two other qualifiers will finish off Scotland’s World Cup group and Cross is adamant their section for the competition is just the incentive they need to put a disappointing autumn behind them.

“It’s a section we can do business in, but only if we are very accurate about how we hold on to the ball,” Cross told The Scotsman.

“These are teams I believe we should be excited about playing and it is an opportunity to show how we can play rugby that will flourish under pressure.

“The autumn series showed me that if we are not accurate at the tackle contest, then we will be punished by competent teams.

“We have to perform consistently at a standard that we didn’t achieve in the autumn.

“It is something I believe we can fix back at our clubs in training.

“The important point I am going to work on is tackling low and making a nuisance of myself so far as the opposition are concerned.

“If we do that, it will be easier for us to win collisions.”