Muny a Meikle Maks a Muckle

I HAD a short but interesting conversation with Heriot's Director of Rugby Neil Meikle prior to yesterday's Glasgow Hawks v Heriot's Premiershp clash at Balgray. Basically, Neil reckons the figures I have been quoting for the potential running costs of a Super- franchise are absoute rubbish and way over the top.

Neil Meikle: "Aristotle, your figures are wrong"

Neil reckons, my estimate of present-day budgets in the Premiership – I thought £150,000 per season as a ball park figure; Neil believes that is way over the top – far-less my £300,000 per season estimate for an S6 franchise, never mind the upwards of £500,000 per season which my internationalist's parent reckoned the other week.

Neil, who is invovled at the sharp end, may well be right in his assertion, and, if he is, good luck to him. He believes at this level, players simply want to play, and being able to enjoy the game they love, comes some way behind any payment for most of the guys in the Premiership.

Again, Neil may well be correct, and, if he and Phil Smith and the rest of the team at Goldnacre can get the sort of performance they did out of their team in their six-try demolition of Hawks on Saturday without paying big money – more power to them. But, I think, once S6 kicks-in at the end of the season, Heriot's will discover, money talks and if players are going to be expected to make the greater commitment to the semi-professional league that is being spoken about, in terms of training time, well they will surely want to be better paid.

Of course, as I keep stressing with this whole Super-6 thing, we are stepping into something of an unknown with this move. Heriot's players, in seeking to demonstrate that their club is the best in Scotland, are merely following in the footsteps of Andy Irvine, the Milnes, Iwan Tukalo, the Lawsons and so forth. The Nails have always been in the forefront of the club game.

But, running a franchised team, tasked with being the “bridge” between the play for fun amateurs and the hard-nosed professionals at Glasgow and Edinburgh – that's a whole different ball game, and I think the guys running whatever the Heriot's-based franchise is called will find – if they want to be competitive, they will need to pay a good bit more than is currently the case.

The guys tasked with finding the money to keep the franchise going will surely discover too – players talk to each other, and, when that happens, things escalate.

Let's say (and I am plucking these figures out of my head): Heriot's are paying a late-rate £50 per week in “expenses” to cover a player commiting to two nights per week of training, plus a match. Over a 40-week season, that's £2000 per player – 35 players: £70,000 per season in expenses.

Now, suppose one of the other Edinburgh Edinburgh franchises is offering £75 per week, well, if that second franchise reckons the Heriot's scrum-half is a better player than the one they have, they have a pretty powerful recruiting tool towards getting him. Suddenly you have not only a bidding war, but, also, the thinking enters the dressing room: “Wait a minute, if he's worth that, maybe I am selling myself short here.”

Before you know it, wages across the city are rising. In a semi-professional league, things such as appearance money will soon come in. A greater commitment will be called for from players – good luck in keeping costs down Neil, you will need it.

ANY WAY, S6 is in the future, what of the present and Saturday's events in the Premiership. A glance at the table after the opening round of matches shows a familiar landscape – Melrose, Heriot's, Currie and Ayr, the usual suspects, occupying the first four places, followed by Watsonians, then Stirling County – five franchise winners in the top six places,

I would not be at all surprised if the top four after Saturday are the four clubs who go through to the play-offs, but, there are 17 more rounds of games to go and a lot can change.

Phil Smith - purring at the end

Heriot's were impressive in putting to the sword a Hawks XV which included All Black Lelia Masaga and a further three Warriors full-timers. Not even the loss of both starting locks: Adam Sinclair and Callum Marshall, could depower the Edinburgh pack, for whom Iain Wilson gave a genuine captain's display, that had Phil Smith purring, not least because he claims he rarely, if ever, sees his side win their opening league fixture.

Wilson has been virtually side-lined by injury over the past two seasons, but, on Saturday, even before his immediate opponent was red-carded, he had the better of his head-to-head with Warriors' Matt Smith. On the other side of the scrum, the battle between Ruaridh Leishman and Bruce Flockhart was also cracking entertainment.

Phil Smith was also chuffed to bits by the play of Andrew Simmers at scrum-half. Having taught Andrew at Glasgow Academy – where else would a Simmers be educated – he is delighted at how the kid has matured, and rightly so.

Heriot's strength is up front, but, the Goldenacre legacy of excellent backs remains, even if, as yet, some of the current crop are a wee bit under-appreciated.

Hawks are having to depend on youth this season. OK, we all know: “You win nothing with kids,” but, if this squad, and there were at least four teenagers in the starting XV, can keep their heads up, they will learn quickly and surprise one or two sides this season.

 Lelia Masaga - influencing the Hawks youngsters

Lelia Masaga was praised by coach Fin Gillies for his input – image, at 18, getting to play alongside an All Black,. If you cannot benefit from that, there is no hope for you. Flockhart gave a rousing display at six, while Grant Stewart has clearly benefitted from his summer “holiday” with the Scotland squad in North America. I predict, he will be starting for Warriors before this season is over – and I know the competition he faces there.

Finally, Saturday saw another excellent refereeing display from Ben Blain, the Cumbrian really has become a welcome addition to the ranks of Scottish match officials.