The PRO14 Is Back Tonight - Real Rugby In The Premiership Tomorrow

AFTER all the sweat of pre-season training, and the altered reality of warm-up games, real rugby gets going for the new season tonight, when Edinburgh Rugby take-on Ospreys, at the Liberty Stadium.

 

Henry Pyrgos - one of four Edinburgh debutants tonight

Much is expected of the capital outfit this season, following their quantum leap up the table, once they bought-in to Richard Cockerill's hard-nosed approach last term. They are back in Europe, and everyone from the SRU hierarchy down will be hoping to see them kick-on from that, stop seemingly being there to make-up the numbers in the PRO14 and, along with Glasgow, make a real bid for the big prizes.

Cockerill has certainly named a strong team for tonight. In 1-23 order the Edinburgh squad reads:

Pierre Schoeman, Stuart McInally (Capt), Simon Berghan; Ben Toolis, Grant Gilchrist; Luke Hamilton, Hamish Watson, Bill Mata; Henry Pyrgos, Simon Hickey; Duhan van der Merwe, Matt Scott, Mark Bennett, Dougie Fife; Blair Kinghorn.

Replacements: Ross Ford, Allan Dell, Murray McCallum, Fraser McKenzie, Jamie Ritchie; Sean Kennedy, Jaco van der Walt, James Johnstone.

That is one experienced and battle-hardened unit – 12 internationalists in the starting line-up a further four on the bench. Four players, Schoeman, Luke Hamilton and the half-backs are making their debut, but, none comes into the callow youth category. Of course, it is never easy to win in Wales, but, after winning in Newcastle last time out, that squad ought to be capable of cutting down the Ospreys.

The Welsh side named is a strong one, packed with experienced Welsh and Lions caps and there are some rare tussles in prospect. George North, on his return to Wales, facing Duhan van der Merwe is a heavyweight clash, as is the battle in the centres. Up front, the tussle at the touchlines will be good, as will the back row battle at the breakdown.

If Edinburgh can win this one, it will really lay down a marker for the season, and that result is not beyond them.

 

NEIL DIAMOND, as so-often, hit the nail on the head when, in: 'Forever in Blue Jeans,' he wrote: “Money talks, but it don't sing and dance and it don't walk.” Money has been talking in rugby for a while now, but, the big-money English and French sides don't have it all their own way when it comes to walking away with the big rugby prizes.

Of course, we don't exactly know what sort of tax deal has been agreed, between the IRFU and the Dublin tax office – but, when Scotland tears itself away from the cold dead hand of Westminster, the next CEO of the SRU should waste little time in kissing and making-up with Dublin to find out exactly what deal they do have, and set about trying to persuade Holyrood to give the same deal to Murrayfield – that way we keep our best talent at home.

But, that's a wee meander off today's straight and narrow – what are we going to do to get rugby's finances sorted? Reading the Guardian this week was heart-stopping stuff, as they outlined the financial forces conspiring against efforts to have England as rugby's master race. Basically, the English Premiership is financially fucked, with only Exeter declaring a profit the last time figures were released, cumulative debt among the clubs rising and D:Ream's only hit off the Twickenham play list, since they all doubt if things can ever, far less only, get better.

The Taffia are in their usual state of civil war, with those unloved “families”: the Blues – who run things in Cardiff, the Dragons, the top family in Gwent, the Ospreys who run things around Swansea Bay, and the Scarlets, who rule the wild West of Wales, conscripting all the young guns into new Under-23 and A squads to take on the Irish, while the politicians back at HQ cut the Welsh Premiership by 25% of the clubs, slash their pocket money and try to force them into associating with half a dozen new Scottish sides in an unloved cross-border competition, the details of which appear to have been worked-out on the back of a packet of ten Woodbine.

At least, the Welsh Premiership does have a TV deal on “cooncil telly”.

France U-20s, world champions but, the players will struggle for game time in the Top 14

Over in France, meanwhile, even their second tier clubs are operating with budgets which are eye-watering when viewed from this little offshore European island with pretensions to world domination. The result of all these Euros flowing into the coffers of the Top 14, and even the Division Two clubs – well, they are plundering the South Seas, the bottom of Africa and the Celtic fringes for talent, which will make it very difficult for even the players in the World Cup-winning French Under-20 side to get game time, to the long-term detriment of Les Bleus.

The Irish, Paddy does his own thing – which seems to work OK, notwithstanding a wee crisis of confidence in Ulster at the moment.

Open Rugby (we must always remember, the game is open – it is not professional) is on one-hand a business, but, on the other hand, it is a game, a pastime. But, if it is to flourish, it has to be profitable, in the financial sense, as well as in making those of us involved in it feel good.

Profitability appears to be absent from the top level in England, France, Scotland and Wales, indeed, I am not alone in starting to think, top-level, professional rugby, can never be profitable long-term. The top clubs in England and France appear to be aping the worst-excesses of their football clubs when it comes to recruiting ready-made big names off the shelf, rather than – with one or two clear exceptions such as Exeter and Saracens, growing their own.

At least we have been, up till now, spared the ridiculous over-blown transfer fees of football, so let's be thankful for small mercies.

In a lot of respects, I find it impossible to argue against the SRU's base financial model, which is based on a successful Scotland team being the principal generator of income. I would not argue against the notion – however much it goes against the traditional club ethos which we have grown-up with – of the SRU looking after our elite players. But, I do have reservations about their management of player resources. I honestly think they can do much better here.

Oh! And, in case you think I've gone soft – drop Stupid-6, now.