Ibrox Crowd Are Heroes - Sensation

We all know that old chestnut about the Murrayfield crowd being the biggest public school Old Boys gathering in the world, as all the Hamishes, Frasers, Campbells, Douglases and the like meet to reminisce.

But, what a difference when the game moved, over the weekend, to Ibrox, for the Commonwealth Games Sevens. Certainly there were Kiwis, Aussies, Saffers, Welsh and English there in good numbers, also pockets of support for the minnows.

But, the majority of the 171,000 people who thronged into Ibrox over the four sessions were Scots. Yes, Scotland's rugby community turned out, but, that community isn't that big; so, we must conclude that a few fitba fans must have been at a rugby match for the first time, and, hopefully, some will come back.

I fancied, with the crowd behind them, Scotland might get a medal, but, it wasn't to be. Still, there is no disgrace in losing to the eventual winners, and, South Africa were awesome - never more-so than when becoming the first CG team to defeat New Zealand.

That was some final, and, if Scottish Rugby learned one thing from it, hopefully it is how much more intensity, fitness and skill we have to develop, before we can challenge, let alone beat the Big Three Southern Hemisphere giants - not forgetting the highly-impressive Samoans.

The Sevens did show, we have some good talent in Scottish rugby. Things didn't always work-out for Stuart Hogg, but, his class was obvious, while, Mark Bennett surely embellished an already impressive young CV, while Lee Jones maybe figuratively lifted two fingers to his Edinburgh coach - he is a good player.

Finally, on this issue - I never thought I would ever see a black man, wearing a green, white and gold strip, score at Ibrox, immediately cross himself, and not get hit by a screw-top or something.

Maybe we are growing-up; or, are rugby followers really a better class of person; or, just maybe, I really am an old cynic.

THE next big Sevens tournament to be part of a major, multi-sport Games, will be the inaugural Olympic Sevens tournament, in Rio, in 2016.

Even IF we get a Yes vote in September, and the negotiations between the Scottish and Westminseter governments go as well as Alex Salmond hopes (and I honestyly think he is kidding himself in having us independent by March, 2016), there will not be a Scotland team at Rio.

So, the Team GB Sevens squad in Rio will be a combined England/Scotland/Wales selection. The Rio Olympics is a little over two years away, which is half an Olympic cycle, and, as yet, Rugby Sevens is not yet a member of the BOA's National Olympic Committee, the body which oversees Team GB's (as the UK Olympic Games teams are known), in the Games.

For the sport of Rugby Union Sevens to participate in the work of the BOA, and be represented on the NOC, Rugby Union in Great Britain will have to set-up a tri-nations umbrella organisation, something like "UK Rugby", to oversee the Sevens programme.

IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT THIS BODY BE SET-UP AND BE PROPERLY REPRESENTATIVE OF THE RFU, SRU AND WRU.

Football never did this, the (English) FA has always been football's representative on the BOA's NOC, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales have no input - which was partly the reason behind the furore over the selection of the football Team GB for London 2012.

The SRU and WRU must not allow the RFU to simply take charge and run things. It would be foolish not to presume that English players will dominate the eventual Rio squad, but, we cannot assume that England has the best coaches, physios, support staff and so-forth. The Team GB Sevens team (on and off the field) in Rio, has to properly represent the three individual nations.

I am not entirely sure about the length of the qualifying process for Rio, there are two complete northern hemisphere rugby seasons to go. The long-established IRB Sevens circuit will probably act as the qualifying tournaments.

England, Scotland and Wales already have their plans in place for season 2014-15 in place, which means, either:

The three nations will again compete individually in 2015-16 with the highest-placed of the three Great Britain nations being the qualifying nation - but, able to bring-in players from the other two as necessary for Rio.

Or: A Team GB squad will have to be selected, set-up and managed to compete through the 2015-16 IRB Sevens circuit.

Either way, they have to start their planning NOW, if Rugby in Great Britain is to compete in Rio.

That promises to be quite a tournament. New Zealand will want to be the first Olympic Games Sevens winners, ditto South Africa and Australia. Fiji will be major players, as will France. Ireland generally doesn't bother with Sevens, but, will surely want to have a go at the Olympics.

However, perhaps THE team to watch will be the USA, who will be outsiders who might be worth a punt, and, with the tournament in South America, Argentine will not lack support.

If Team GB doesn't get their act together, and quickly, it could be embarrassing for the nation which invented the game.

JINGS, crivvens, help ma Boab. Somebody at Murrayfield has wakened-up and smelled the coffee. There can be no other explanation for the news this week that Edinburgh will be taking on Leicester Tigers at the Greenyards and Newcastle Falcons at Mansfield Park in pre-season friendlies.

The way in which the Borders have been side-lined since the closure of the Borders pro side and the revertion to just the two city-based clubs hass been nothing short of scandalous. MInd you, did nobody at Murrayfield take cognisance of Border sensibilities when they based the Reivers at Galashield?OK, there was maybe a case for using Netherdale as a training base, but, some callants, convinced Gala were benefitting from having the Reivers based there, were never going to hand-over their hard-earned cash, in case some of it went to the Braw Lads.

Had Reivers games been rotated round the District, with the Greenyards, Mansfield, Philiphaugh, Poynder Park, Riverside and Milntown each getting a chance to host games, would have built on the old District feeling of the South team, made the Borders clubs feel cherished and done lots for Scotland.

A Strong Scotland needs a strong South of Scotland isn't just a trite line - it has a strong basis intruth.

So, taking Edinburgh's show on the road, just might be good for that club. That said, getting a few more Scots and a lot fewer Saffers onto the playing roster, finding a proper club home ground for the team so the fans are not rattling around in the vast Murrayfield bowl and winnnng more games are other items on the Edinburgh fans'wish list. 



I AM excited by the personnel who will be on-duty for Scotland;s Sevens squad at the Commonwealth Games. Adding Stuart Hogg to the likes of Mark Bennett, Lee Jones, Sean Lamont and Richie Vernon gives us a squad with real potential to do well.

New Zealand just might still be too-strong for us, but, the squad has medal potential. I just may have to forego my doubts about entering Ibrox and go along to support the team.



STILL on the subject of Sevens. Qualification for the 2015 Sevens event at the Rio Olympics will kick-off in October 2015.

Now Rugby Sevens is an Olympic sport, the three rugby unions based on Great Britain still have not, as far as I can see, come up with an agreement as to which body will represent the sport on the British Olympic Association's National Olympic Committee, the body which runs 'Team GB'.

This is important; football NEVER has got round to sorting this out, with the result,when it comes to Olympic Games football, it is England's show. This must not be allowed to happen in rugby, we, the SRU and the WRU must not sit back and let Twickenham take control. The Irish even the Ulstermen, will be eligible for a separate Irish squad - but, the Irish don't really play sevens anyway.

Curling is only really played in Scotland, but, there is a separate UK Curling Federation which only handles the Winter Olympics team. We invented sevens, we have to make sure there is Scottish input into the Team GB Olympic Games Sevens programme.

I hope the fact that England, Scotland and Wales are all competing at the Olympics will be used as an opportunity for the three nations to get together and put in place a viable and ultimately successful sevens programme for Rio and subsequent Olympics.

 

Wanted - Commentators Who Comment But Have Not Necessarily Been Capped

I MAY have mentioned this before, if so, apologies for the repetition. Last season, one of the former big-hitters in Scottish rugby journalism joined the workers in the press box at a Scottish Cup tie. When, at no-side, we workers revelaed we were off downstairs to ascertain the respective coaches' views on the game we had just witnessed, the old dinasaur said, dismissively: "In my day, it was my view of the game which counted".

 

To be fair, he had a point. I am old school enough to be a bit embarrassed at having to be the mouthpiece for a coach; a man who, particularly if his side has just lost, will generally move heaven and earth to justify the mince his men have just produced.

 

When reporting games, I will give the coaches their wee say, but, I still like to put across my own view on the game. Sadly, some of the young whipper-snappers with whom I now share press boxes, have come-up via football.

 

They use wrong phrases such as: "the captain's armband" and are, in some cases, totally wedded to being a mouthpiece for the coach.

 

Sadly, another football affectation is now polluting rugby - the absurd view that only if you had played the game at the highest level, do you have the knowledge to comment on events.

 

In football, this has seen the rise of a post-playing "media" career for men who, because they can use joined-up words, and played a wee bit, are seen as the font of all-knowledge.

 

Of course, these experts, are always unwilling to stick the boot in, even though that was, in some cases, the thing they did best when playing, They will in some cases, bend over backwards to avoid the thought which is at the front of their tiny brains: "This is shite".

 

Those commentators who refuse to comment honestly are seen at their best on BBC Scotland's Spostscene or Sportsound - where the first rule of retaining a well-paid gig is: you never criticise the half of the Old Firm you once played for.

 

But, that's football's problem. The talking head is now more and more, making his presence felt in rugby. I have no problems with Brian Moore - who tells it like he sees it. He's rugby's equivalent of football's Jimmy Hill, and not merely because most Scots cannot stand him.

 

Like the esteemed Mr Hill, 'Pit Bull' whilst assuredly an England fan, does not subscribe to the belief that everything England does is perfect. If they are bad, he says so.

 

Moore, most-certainly, is still scarred by what happened to him at Murrayfield in 1990, but, I feel he is, slowly, getting over it - unlike former team-mate Gerry Guscott, who can see nothing redeeming in Scottish rugby and rarely, if ever, sees England doing something wrong.

 

Then, there is Jonathan Fucking Davies - the walking, talking embodiment of Ian Kirkpatrick's assertion: "You never beat Wales, you only score more points than them".

 

All Welsh commentators are myopic, it's just, Davies is the worst.

 

Maybe it's because we are so even-handed about everything, but, there are few Scottish talking heads. Andy Nicol is currently our main man, who does a good job in reminding people that Scotland still plays a reasonably good game of rugby.

 

On radio, the main talking head is Peter Wright. Sadly, Peter is a former prop, who knows very little about what happens outside the front row. For all that, he has had a few good coaching jobs, before he was found-out and, certainly from his last outburst as an opinion-maker, I think Peter has "lost it" and has plumped for being controversial, for the sake of being controversial.

 

His outburst following the weekend's heavy loss to South Africa was a clear case of 20/20 hindsight. It added nothing to the debate, so, maybe Peter should reflect and, if he cannot say something nice, say nothing.

 

Sure, the result was hugely disappointing, and, after three steps forward, it was one step back. But, this is Scotland, we've been here before, we will be here again,

 

I am sure Vern Cotter and the squad will bounce back stronger from this loss. They didn't need Peter Wright's advice, thank you very much.

 

 

 

I SEE Edinburgh has bought another Saffer; and there was me thinking maybe the requirement: "Must be fluent in Afrikaans" had been deleted from Edinburgh's specification for a new signing.

 

I'd far rather have seen the likes of Heriot's Murray Douglas given a shot at earning a first team slot at Edinburgh. The club may speak about, encouraging young Scottish talent - the reality is somewhat different.