I Am No Longer A Lone Voice

I HAVE this week sensed a sea change in attitudes in Scottish Rugby. For a start, I am no longer, I believe, a one-man band - one voice, crying: “Woe, woe and thrice woe,” or even: “whoa,” in the wilderness. A couple of other rugby writers have said, this week: “This Super 6 idea needs to be stopped.”

But, more interestingly, the great body of the kirk, the smaller clubs, are suddenly wakening-up to the clusterfuck they could stumble into with – Agenda 3 - the second part of the Dodson-Johnson master plan to mess-up Scottish Rugby.

Of course, as that sage Edwardian, the late Harold MacMillan, 1^st Earl of Stockton, OM, PC, FRS, (pictured above) so memorably quipped: “Events dear boy, events.” It is a series of events which have wakened-up the clubs to what could be fast-approaching down the track.

I feel, Murrayfield's whole strategy in their power grab at the top end of the club game was to separate the turkeys – those clubs who will vote for Christmas by taking-up a franchise – from the chickens, the continuing clubs. Unfortunately, some of these chickens are coming home to roost.

The North Region clubs held a meeting this week, which covered several salient topics. I am told Super 6 did not greatly trouble the clubs, and was quickly dispensed with. Our friends in the North agreeing, I understand:

• The figures do not stack-up, none of us will touch it
• Aberdeen University, being actively courted by Murrayfield, telling the “suits”: “Forget it, we see our progress being through BUCS,” (the British Universities and Colleges system).
• The clubs accepting, they do not currently have the talent locally to sustain a viable franchise, or the cash to attract outside players to re-locate to Aberdeen to play.

The attitude towards Super 6 might well be covered by: “If half a dozen turkeys want to bring forward Christmas, good luck to the – they will need it. Most of us just want to carry on playing rugby.”

There's trouble Up North

But, it was, I am told, when the meeting discussed the implications of Agenda 3, that the temperature increased. A hard winter has naturally played havoc with fixtures in the Caledonian North leagues. The leagues MUST finish on Saturday, 19 May, just ten Saturdays away. However, in the lowest league up there, Caledonian Region Division Three (North), 4 of the 12 clubs: Aberdeen University, Peterhead, Huntly and Aberdeen Wanderers 2 still have more than half of their scheduled 22 fixtures to play.

Kinloss Eagles and North Police Scotland, the two clubs fighting for the league title, each have ten fixtures still to play, in those ten Saturdays, with Inverness Craig Dunain similarly commuted to playing every Saturday until the end of the season, just to complete their league fixtures.

In the next league up, Caledonian Region Division Two (North) the two outlying clubs, Shetland and Stornoway, are still less than half-way through their 22-match league campaigns, while Aberdeen Grammar 2^nd XV still have ten games to play.

Some rugby men up there are calling for smaller leagues, as a way round this problem. “Going from 12-team leagues to 8-team ones would make it easier to complete fixtures, or even revive the once-popular cup competitions or a sevens circuit up here,” one club official said to me.

The carrot and stick approach

But, the clubs hae their doots about some aspects of Agenda 3, such as the SRU's determination to impose “strict amateurism” on the clubs below a certain level. There is a general acceptance, “strict amateurism” is a good thing at club level, and ought to ensure a more-level playing field. However, while that “carrot” is fine by everyone – it is the “big stick” which the SRU is holding in the other hand that concerns the clubs.

The SRU is reining-back on the successful Modern Apprenticeships programme, which most people see as being good for getting new recruits into the game at mini-rugby level. That is being widely seen as a Murrayfield mistake. Also causing concern is the possibility that, under “strict amateurism”, a situation whereby a club employs someone as a Youth Development Officer from Sunday to Friday, but he then plays for that club on a Saturday, might be outlawed.

Threats - some obvious, others less-so

Then there are the more-obvious threats – clubs believed to be paying players being reported to HMRC, or the threat to remove a club's insurance cover or the centrally-distributed sustainability funding. "The brown envelopes stuffed into players' boots will make a come-back," one club official forecast.

But, of more-immediate concern to some clubs is the implications of GDPR. What's GDPR I hear you ask? That stands for General Data Protection Regulations, an EU directive on how companies and organisations, such as rugby clubs, manage the personal data they hold on members.

This new scheme comes into operation in May. Some club officials at the North meeting, with experience in such matters in their day jobs, believe GDPR has implications for rugby clubs, but, the SRU has offered no guidance or assistance in implementing this.

“GDPR has implications in such matters as safeguarding, but, Murrayfield has said nothing,” was how one club official reacted. This one could go off in Murrayfield's faces.

In closing today, I leave you with a heartfelt cry/rant, from a btl commenter following yesterday's blog post. For me, this one sort of says it all:

"Let's take a step back from stupid six, given that the executive and the apparently weak Council need it to happen and look at the potential ramifications of Agenda 3.

• Stupid six with two National leagues of 10 under that,Beventually coming under the control of the high performance department!.
• All other Clubs playing local friendlies with the gulf too large for any promotion or relegation.
• All talented youngsters playing in school conferences (SRU controlled)
• Then going into Academy system (SRU controlled)
• Before going on to stupid six or pro contracted teams(SRU controlled)
• A few may drop down into the the two remaining Leagues (probably SRU controlled)
• Not many scraps left for the 95% of Clubs playing in friendly fixtures.
• The Club participation agreements already makes it nigh on impossible for the majority to comply for funding; leaving more cash for the Elite!
• As the Elite end of the game starts to run out of cash I would envisage the current regime would consider selling the crown jewels to fund their hare-brained scheme!!
• Yes, selling HQ Murrayfield Stadium ! Without any consultation with you the stakeholders.
• Control freakery and Elitism in its extreme in my humble opinion!!
• If you don't believe it could happen check the criteria for Club funding!
• Ask your Council rep if any of the above has been discussed or mentioned at HQ.
• Then decide if you could accept that model or if you would prefer to see a clear pathway allowing Clubs and players to develop step by step!"

I think I will just leave that one there.