Aristotle Names The Guilty People Who Are Failing Scottish Rugby

WORKING on the assumption I am one of SRU President Rob Flockhart's “Six Troublemakers”, and further assuming Bill Lothian of the Edinburgh Evening News is another – that just leaves five further reprobates to identify. Ah well, I can wait.

SRU President Rob Flockhart has been criticised for not giving a lead to the clubs

However, it is easier to identify the people we are after – the people NOT doing their jobs, who have brought us to this pass. Step forward:

• Rob Flockhart, president
• Dee Bradbury. vice president
• Peter Laverie, Premier Division representative
• Colin Rigby, National Division 1 representative
• Graeme Scott, National Division 2 representative
• Andrew Little, National Division 3 representative
• Jim Littlefair, Edinburgh Regional League representative
• William Gardner, Glasgow North Regional League representative
• Adam Gray, Glasgow South Regional Leagues representative
• Alan Brown, Borders Regional League representative
• Graham Kerr, Caledonia Midlands Regional League representative
• Mike Monro, Caledonia North Regional representative
• Dr. John Halliday, Schools representative
• Kenneth Knott, Referees' representative
• Rosy Hume, Scottish Women's Forum representative

John Jeffrey, IRB / 6NC representative
• Ian Rankin, PRO14 representative

Council secretary: Douglas Struth

Together these 18 people are the SRU Council members. Certainly Messrs Jeffrey and Rankin are co-opted onto membership, but, the 15 from President Rob down to Rosy Hume for the Women are mandated by the CLUBS to represent the clubs' interests, and I honestly do not think they are doing their jobs – a view which I do not singularly hold.

I cannot stress often enough – the clubs OWN the Scottish Rugby Union. By its very definition, the SRU is a Union of like-minded independent organisations, pulled together by the game of Rugby Union Football.

Sure, the Scotland national team and the age group sides, not forgetting the two full-time professional sides in the PRO14, they are the glamour end of the game – that's where the SRU gets its public profile, these are the teams which generate most of the media interest in the game. However, Stuart Hogg and Finn Russell, Gregor Townsend, Richard Cockerill and Dave Rennie, or any of the other big names – they would not be where they are without the small army of ordinary clubmen and women who are the broad body of the kirk in Scottish rugby.

We, whether we be a Court of Session judge who played for Edinburgh Academy half a century ago, or a street sweeper who never got past the second XV of a club playing in the bottom Regional league – we all helped put these guys there.

Scottish Rugby is as much about the guy who helped the primary school-aged Hogg or Russell on the bottom rung of the ladder to living their dream for Scotland, by coaching mini-rugby, about the mother who went along to make the post-game sandwiches for her son or daughter, made friends and remained at the club, doing that job because she enjoyed it, as it is about Finn Russell being able to sign a life-changing £700,000 per season contract to play in Paris.

 Finn Russell - stands on the shoulders of the giants who keep the clubs going

The little people, every Tam Shuggie and Senga who does his or her bit for their club, they want to see Scotland winning, but, they want to see their club doing well too.

My club, Cumnock, is currently playing in West Division Two. I know, at the moment we do not have the infrastructure to support it, but, I have a dream of one day, seeing us perhaps playing in the Premiership. When I played at school, I scored my first try against Marr. I enjoyed many games against the Troon club; I was smashed by Gordon Brown and by Bill Cuthbertson, and I in turn smashed one or two Marr men.

Broon and Gulliver had to leave Marr to win international honours. Today, Scott Bickerstaff has stayed with the club and is in the Club International XV. We at Cumnock had to let Mark Bennett go to Ayr, then onto Glasgow and Scotland.

I dream that, maybe, I will be around long enough to see Cumnock follow Marr up through the ranks. Except, unless we can demonstrate the insanity of the Super Six plans – Marr will be the last climb to ascend to the highest levels.

I want to see the next Mark Bennett able to stay with Cumnock as the club rises through the leagues, except Super Six will kill such ambitions.

When the SRU, 45-years ago, instituted the rugby world's first official leagues clubs such as Hawick, Heriot's, Gala, Melrose, Watsonians, West of Scotland and so forth were there because – well, they had always been there. But, since then, former junior or lesser clubs – Ayr, Currie, Boroughmuir, Stirling County and now Marr have clawed their way up to join them.

Super Six now threatens to pull-up the ladder behind the current top clubs, cutting them off from the rest – except, several long-established clubs will be sacrificed along the way, because they are unable or unwilling to purchase a franchise from the Union.

Let's just look at the stupidity of this franchise scheme for a minute.

Under the Super Six proposals, clubs which already, as full member clubs of the SRU are part-owners of the SRU, are now being required to purchase, from the SRU (which remember they part-own) the right to compete at the highest level of the club game in Scotland; (a right they already hold by virtue of past performances on the park).

In other words – the Union's Board are trying to sell back to these clubs, something these clubs already own. It makes no sense.

The clubs also delegate to the SRU Council, the right to guard and uphold the rights of these same clubs. I would suggest, in allowing the Board, or the paid officials of the Union, to come up with this ludicrous plan, then the Council, singularly and collectively, are guilty of dereliction of duty and ought to resign en masse, since they seem incapable of doing their jobs.

Ladies and Gentlemen, you have failed your own clubs; you have failed the associate clubs which you are supposed to also represent; you have failed Scottish Rugby.

Either – shape-up, or ship out.