Scotland rugby coach Frank Hadden has his back to the wall as he battles to give his side a chance of securing a first ever victory over the All Blacks in November.

Hadden is desperate to have his players together for a fortnight before the November 8 Test against the All Blacks, but is fighting a losing battle against England's premiership clubs to do so.

Hadden believes to have any chance of upsetting the All Blacks in the clash at Murrayfield that opens the autumn international window, or of knocking over the world champion Springboks a week later, he has to have a two-week build-up with his full squad.

But England's clubs are digging their heels in over the release of players for the November internationals, adamant that they will only make their men available on the Monday of a Test being held the following Saturday.

Scotland's desperation to get their full squad together early is fuelled by their desire to achieve the results they'll need to play their way into the world's top eight ahead of the looming World Cup draw which will be made based on rankings as at November 30.

The Scots have enlisted the IRB to intervene in the dispute, hopeful the international body can break the deadlock that they believe compromises their ability to be competitive for the November tests.

A total of 10 Scotland squad players ply their trade in the English Premiership, and all were barred from taking part in a national training session this week.

Premier Rugby Limited, the group representing the top English clubs, have said as far as they are concerned they are only obliged to release players the week of Test matches.

Compounding the matter is the fact that England's RFU now have an agreement in place with PRL giving them unprecedented access to national squad players. The difference is they're paying big money to do so, compensating clubs to the tune of £100 million over the eight years the deal is to run for.

"Everyone is hoping that common sense prevails, that custom and practice prevails," an IRB spokesman told The Times newspaper. "Everyone accepts it is a delicate situation and we are talking to all parties to see what is the best solution.

"In the last five or six years a gentleman's agreement between unions and clubs has worked very well but there is a differing attitude towards what custom and practice is for squad sessions. Hopefully, we will soon have new regulations in place, agreed by everybody, which will set the platform for player release in the future."

A Scotland union spokeperson told The Times that the dispute had major repercussions.

"We are obviously concerned that our tried and tested relationship with these English clubs has been upset by the sudden intervention of Premier Rugby," the spokesman said."

"With the IRB having decided to determine the RWC 2011 draw based upon world rankings at November 30, it is absolutely imperative that this matter is clarified quickly and well before our final preparations begin for the critical autumn test matches."

The IRB is hoping to get in place a new agreement between clubs and the national unions over this very issue, but clearly faces some major hurdles to do so.

Once again it is a case of test rugby being compromised by clubs putting their own interest first. Scotland have never beaten the All Blacks, and with 10 of their squad members not being available to preapre for a test against the world's best side until five days before, that situation is unlikely to change this year.