The Super 6 Battle May Already Be Lost - But Not Yet The War

I FEAR, after speaking to one or two of my contemporaries, or near-contemporaries, who were at the Ayr RFC Super 6 meeting on Tuesday night, that the battle against Super 6 may be lost.

 Billy McHarg - impessive

I am told, the three speakers on the night: Ayr president Billy McHarg, SRU Technical Director Stevie Gemmell and CEO Mark Dodson were: “impressive,” with Mark Dodson receiving kudos for his slick presentation, and his even-slicker responses to questions.

If there is hope for those of us who fear the worst from Super 6, it may be from the fact that Ayr, and, we understand some of the other potential franchisees, see the original franchise documents, which can be read online via the SRU site, as – as one prominent Ayr member put it: “A starter for ten.”

The fun will really start once the applicants have been whittled down to the final six, who will then, we understand, go through the document on an almost line by line basis with the Murrayfield “suits”. This will then become simple, old-fashioned negotiation, and, as one other Ayr member said: “If the six successful bidders stick together, and they have to I feel, they could get a workable deal out of Murrayfield.”

 as was Stevie Gemmell

The presumption therefore remains, as it stands, the whole project is not a goer, there will need to be some movement from Murrayfield to get it to work.

There is an element of making the six franchised clubs, Districts by another name in the SRU proposals. Nothing wrong with that, but, if the Union wants to return to having Districts, they should fund them 100%, not expect clubs to take some of the financial risk, in fact a lot of the financial risk.

Another point, which I touched upon when I likened Super 6 to Brexit, and which I had reinforced in an email from an exiled Scot, in New Zealand, is

“Has the SRU published an ‘argument’ outlining the need for change, the factors it considered, the possible solutions to the problems it foresees, the reasons it picked the proposed solution and how it is going to measure the success of its proposed solution?”

While Mark Dodson played a blinder, answering questions other than the main ones - below

These are crucial questions, which, if they have ever been asked of Mr Dodson and the Murrayfield “suits”, have yet to be answered. It is all very well saying: “The BT Premiership is not fit for purpose,” but, Murrayfield has never told anyone:

• Who arrived at this conclusion?
• How did they arrive at it?
• What was the thought process?

Then there is the question I have been asking since I first became involved in Super 6, 31 weeks, 170-odd blog posts and about 175,000 words ago – and to which I am still waiting for an answer:

• Just exactly what is the purpose of the BT Premiership?

The whole project hinges on this question. Will it ever be answered?

But, the chances are, the SRU, being hell-bent on this project, and determined to see it through, will throw resources at it, to make it work. Regardless of the harm this does to the wider game.

I have gradually, as information has emerged, come to the conclusion – the moger around Super 6 is the overture – the organic fertiliser will really hit the air agitator and circulator, when attention turns to Agenda 3. At the moment, Super 6 only affects a small number of clubs, at the sharp end of the playing pyramid. Once the ramifications filter down through the various tiers, hold tight, it will get rocky.

Let's say Ayr are able to get a satisfactory deal from the SRU and take-on a franchise. This immediately means up to 35 Ayr players move across to the new franchise. But, as I understand it, the franchised club – while it might well continue to play in a pink and black strip, will need to have a name other than: “Ayr”. The Ayr club will continue, with, as I understand it again, a place in the new elite club league – National League 1.

From where do these players come? OK, Ayr has a well-developed and funded age group section, which regularly brings through young talent; some of these guys will step up, you would hope. But, they will need experienced players to augment their youthful, home-grown talent.

Blair Macpherson - one of many players to have gone from Marr to Ayr

Where will they come from? Never mind, there is a long-established Ayrshire tradition of players moving from Marr to Ayr, while, surely the Millbrae officials will have a notion of which players from the lower league clubs in Ayrshire and the South-West, might be able to step-up.

So, a prop and a lock from Marr, a flanker and a centre from Stewartry, a winger and perhaps a hooker from Cumnock, and so on; “Ayr” remains competitive in National 1, but, what damage is done to the surrounding clubs, further down the food chain.

And, that scenario will be replicated across Scotland. Maybe this is how the SRU is going to impose: “Fewer but stronger clubs” on us – because, there will be casualties. Then we come, as we go down the levels, to this ludicrous SRU demand for “a strictly amateur game” below a certain level.

Mr Dodson – I have news for you:

THIS WILL NOT WORK – YOU WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO PREVENT CLUBS WHICH WANT TO DO SO, FROM FINDING SOME MEANS OF PAYING PLAYERS THEY PARTICULARLY WANT TO HAVE IN THEIR TEAMS.

Super 6 and Agenda 3 will not solve the problems of Scottish rugby. THINK AGAIN.