Many Ordinary Fans Say - Never On A Sunday

WE ARE NOW FIVE DAYS PAST MID-SEPTEMBER:

WHERE IS YOUR PROMISED REVIEW LESLEY THOMSON?

Just asking Lesley - but it's another "nippy sweety" who came up with the idea for this blog

I RECEIVED the following note this week, from an old rugby pal, of over 30-years' standing, who wanted to get a particular bee out of his bonnet. The particular guy, is a former scrum-half, so, you know already - he's a wee nippy sweety.

He proudly states, over a 13-year period, he NEVER missed a Scotland game, home or away. That period covered both Grand Slams, in 1984 and 1990. However, while he reckons he must be one of a very small number who can make that claim – and still have the tickets and programmes to back it up - of late, the SRU and the 6Nations organiser have been trying his patience somewhat.

He writes:

“Aristotle.

Have you ever done a piece on ‘Sunday Internationals?’. This is a huge gripe of mine. For the ‘real’ travelling Scotland fans, and for visiting fans, Sunday matches are the biggest nightmare ever. And the suits don’t give a fuck.

I really feel strongly about this. Several years ago Scotland played France at Murrayfield on a Sunday with a 5pm kick off. By 10pm that night, the only people left in the capital having a pint were the French. All the Scots had gone home because they are working the next day. (It’s OK for me because I am self employed).

In Dublin, a couple of years ago, we were playing on the Sunday, and then going to Rome for the following Saturday game. On the Sunday afternoon, I was taking a taxi with (he here names three particular Scottish Rugby reprobates, whose identities I will redact to protect the guilty).

The taxi driver said it was the worst Scottish travelling support he had seen in 30 years. Dublin goes to sleep at 10pm on a Sunday night. The guy reckoned there were 2000 at most Scots at the game.

The following Saturday approx 10000 Scots descended on Rome!! So it was a straight contest. Sunday Dublin or Saturday Rome. Saturday wins every time.

Why tf can we not play three games on the Saturday, starting at 12noon? Friday nights are also OK in my book. Because you have the whole weekend still available to party.

There is little change out of a grand when you go to Dublin, Paris or Rome, but the suits don’t care that we get severely pissed off with Sunday fixtures.

Rant over John M.”

Fair play Wee Man, I feel your pain. It's a difficult one, however. The SRU only have a one-sixth say in how the 6Nations is run. In fact they don't even, I suspect, have that, because TV is the main player. The tournament is an annual one, its dates are, notwithstanding the efforts of the English Premiership clubs to have their say, set in stone.

Never On Sunday - aye, why not?

It comes at a good time of the year for BBC and ITV to show it – since not a lot is happening elsewhere - and the logistics are not difficult to plan.

But, they want to make an EVENT out of it, so, they want it spread over an entire weekend – previews, live transmissions, highlights programmes etc. They have that glossy preview trailer to justify. And because it is an EVENT, the Unions don't have to look after their core customer base too well.

Murrayfield on an international match day, may still be, as some have long claimed: “The biggest old school reunion in the world.” But, if Farquhar from Watsonians and his good lady Fiona, from Mary Erskine have another commitment for a Sunday game at BT Murrayfield, Hamish from Heriot's and Heather, who went to Marcia Blaine's Academy for Girls, will happily pay over the odds for the vacant seats via the SRU's friendly secondary ticket suppliers. And that happens too at Cardiff, Dublin and London, and probably also in Paris.

It's the same thing with football – the paying punter, the guy who actually wants to go to the ground and witness a game live – well, he's a fairly insignificant of the whole financial package these days. Uncle Rupert, Cousin Richard, Great Aunt Beattie from BT, they can be played off, one against the other for the TV rights (not in Scotland of course), to the extent, the clubs barely need a live audience to make money, so the paying punter can be treated like dirt.

Time and again it is shown, British conservatism (small C) in sport is part of our DNA. Given a free choice, we would prefer our sporting occasions to kick-off at 3pm on a Saturday, we're not that bothered about having a seat on which to park our bums, and we'd rather have a greasy pie than a prawn sandwich any Saturday.

But, to the suits who now run our sport, these professional administrators, marketing and PR types, we are the little people – we don't really matter. Because the big money is in the corporate sector, and they don't really care who wins or who loses, as long as they enjoy a good customer experience, and get a chance to network and strut and preen.

That's the modern world I am afraid.

But, if the national side hits the skids, should we ever put together another 17-match losing run, or revert to ten-man rugby, of shoving the ball up the packs' collective jumpers (assuming this is possible in today's tailored, skin-tight strips); when the marketing and events men lose interest, because going to Murrayfield has become boring – who will be left?

Why, your ordinary club member, the dyed-in-wool (even Robbie Dyed-in-wool). He or she will still be guaranteed to turn up, in fact, instead of, as at present, treating the grass roots rugby supporter like dirt – I refer to crazy notions such as the recent changes to how the match tickets are distributed - the suits might actually try to encourage them – which might well be a first.

However, I fear, in an effort to escape the all-encompassing grip of “Wendyball”, and to keep the golden goose of televised sports entertainment glossy, I fear we will be stuck with Sunday internationals for a long while yet.