There's Something About Finn

THE FARRELLY BROTHERS' gross-out comedy 'There's Something About Mary' is one of my favourite films – and it's not merely because it stars the wonderful Cameron Diaz. The current media obsession with oor ain Finn Russell has me thinking, 'Finnsanity' is becoming a male “something about” figure. Mind you, that said, I don't see 'There's Something About Finn' being a Hollywood blockbuster – for a start I cannot buy Ben Stiller as a world-class fly half.

 However, in the aftermath of another bad Scottish day in the Cardiff office – a lot of media commentators have chosen to pass judgement on our boy.

In a recent blog, I referenced one leading Scottish football writer calling for Denis Law to be dropped – in spite of him scoring all three Scottish goals in a 3-4 loss to Norway. Well, the Scottish Football Writers Association has a long history of admitting and tolerating half-wits – I expect better of the Scottish Rugby Writers, and, to be fair, none of them is calling for Finn's head. Instead, it's rugby commentators from elsewhere who have been piling-on in “dissing” our hero. Methinks they fear him.

Take Finn's yellow card in Cardiff; had he made the interception he was trying for (and it was an attempted interception – he went for the ball with both hands), he gets clear of the first defensive line – Duhan van der Merwe gets up in support and we might well have had a winning try as good, if not better than the famous length of the park 1982 one.

But, that's international rugby. I honestly believe, had Dan Biggar done what Finn did, he'd have got away with a knock-on only decision. Because, at this level, referees, sub-consciously or not, go out with a feeling, something like: “Wales, the reigning Champions, at home to Scotland, who haven't won here in years, so, Wales is the better team.” Then, that same referee has the home crowd howling for every decision. In such a scenario, the Scottish players should have had the Jock Stein dictum drummed home: “Don't give the referee a chance to make a decision which could hurt you.”

But, Finn is the ultimate risk v reward player, and, he nearly pulled it off.

I put our defeat in Cardiff down to the fact, we finished second up front – our pack never had the control we required, and, they never produced fast enough ball for our backs to flourish. We have some good players up front, and the value of Jamie Ritchie to us is only now becoming evident, when he isn't around. Also, one or two of the eight in Cardiff didn't hit their straps.

It's an old rugby adage: “Forwards win matches – backs decide by how much.” In Cardiff, our forwards didn't do enough to put us in a winning position.

So, lay-off Finn, the real blame lies elsewhere and I trust Toony and his team to put things right before we face a perhaps even-harder task, in trying to beat France at Murrayfield.

JINGS CRIVVENS, HELP MA BOAB, but, I let the genie out of the bottle again and mentioned the FOSROC SUPER6. Cue indignation all round and the club rugby purists calling for S6 to be ditched and a return to the old ways.

Look guys, I've said this before and will probably have to say it again in the future, but, we are not going to see a return to club rugby under-pinning District Rugby any time soon – if ever.

Some of your clubs might, if they are lucky and can get their act together, have a chance to take-up franchises eight and perhaps nine and ten – but, the rest of you are going to have to get used to reduced circumstances in club rugby.

How long will it take before you realise, the only form of the game which has the capacity to attract a mass media, money-generating following, particularly television, is the international game. Yes, the TV companies will bid for elite-level club rugby, provided the clubs pack their squads with international players. But, it's the international contracts they want.

Maybe, when Scotland is independent, a state-owned or funded Scottish Broadcasting Corporation, will send some cash the way of Murrayfield, but, until that day – and aged 75 in a few days' time and looking at the current SNP ruling cabal, I doubt if I will now see independence. But, if we are looking to BBC Shortbread, far less a cable or satellite company to chuck some cash the way of the Scottish club game – in your dreams pal.

The best thing that could happen to the game, below international level, is for the English Premiership bubble to burst. I keep thinking: “the professional game in England is unsustainable,” then I read of events like this week's £32 million Saracens take-over, and I think, reality has yet to hit the bubble that is casino finance in the City of London.

When that club bubble bursts, maybe the 57 Old Farts at the head of the RFU could get their act together and break the habit of generations, by speaking to the Celtic Fringes to set-up a British Isles League for the professional game. But, I fear that is wishful thinking on my part.

As things stand, the greater share of any monies which the SRU will have to spend will go on the Performance element of the game: National teams, age group sides, the Sevens squad, the pro teams and the Super clubs. Don't forget, the SRU has already worked-out, they cannot afford to fund all these teams themselves, there is not the private money interest in Scotland to fund either the pro or semi-pro sides, so, to try to make it work, they have had to go down the franchise route at S6 level.

The S6 clubs are keen to build bridges with the club sides, and I know they would like to see the club game given a set budget each year for game sustainability and development, but, just as they have had to go out and find commercial partners and sponsors, so too should the clubs. That seems fair to me.

Another reason why S6/8/10 is the future is this – that part of the franchises' remit which deals with player development and bridging the gap between the club game and the pro one. For this to work properly, there has to be a minimum standard. This strategy is only as strong as the weakest club. Such a strategy cannot be risked on transient form or a string of injuries, on promotion and relegation.

It cannot be risked on several clubs with delusions of grandeur and a sense of entitlement, skweaming, and skweaming and skweaming until they are sick because they are not seen as top clubs.

Sure, bad decisions have been made around the way ahead – by the SRU and by some of the S6 clubs. The system isn't perfect, it has a long way to go and a few problems to be solved. But, S6/8/10 gives us a better chance of keeping Scottish Rugby and the international team relevant than going back to a general club-based game. Live with this.