Back Tae Purritch An Auld Claes

FOR Scotland, the Autumn Internationals are over, and it is back to the purritch and auold claes of league play this weekend. At the professional level, it is to be hoped that Edinburgh's recent improved form will continue with a home win over Zebre this afternoon, while Glasgow, after their reserves were beaten at Llanelli last week, cannot, with the big guns back, allow the Dragons, who have been something of a hex team over them in the past, to get anything other than a hard time at Scotstoun tomorrow. 

 

In the BT Premiership, game of the day will surely be at Millbrae, where table-topping Ayr take on Glasgow Hawks, with the David Williams Cup, which signifies which of the two is currently "Best In The West" up for grabs. Ayr take a slim, two-point lead, from the first clash of the season, a very entertaining one at Balgray, into today's game.

 

The Scotland Club XV  training squad was announced this week, for the games with Ireland and France in February. A fair enough squad, which will be coached by Phil Smith of Heriot's. Phil likes his team to play a fast-paced, off-loading game, in the Scotland style, and this squad looks capable of playing it.

 

Nice to see Liam Steele, the great Billy's son, getting a mention.

 

 

 

I WATCHED the Bath v Harlequins match on BT Sport on Friday night. The top-flight in England really is ante-deluvian. Take the England players out of it and what's underneath is pretty dire. It's still all bish, bash, bosh up front. OK, it was peeing it down, the ball was like a bar of soap, but, the skill level was pretty poor.

 

Of course, the on-message commentators were frantically trying to convince us we were watching something special, instead of high-cost, low-quality mince. If we ever get a British Isles League, a combination of the English Premiership and the Guinness Pro12 - and if Diageo and the Murdoch Empire want it, it will happen, I would expect, in fairly short order, to see the Pro12 teams dominant.

 

Given the vast advantage they have in numbers, English rugby is fairly low in quality, for me.

 

 

Keep The Heid - We're In A Good Place, But, We've Got A way Still to Travel

I SPOTTED a few familiar faces at Rugby Park on Saturday - guys more-often seen there when Killie are at home than perhaps at Millbrae, Bellsland or even Scotstoun. Of course, taking an international to the ground made it an event, a good case for being able to say: "I was there", but, the demographic in the stands did show that when it comes to internationals there is perhaps a Scotland following rather than a specific rugby or football one.

 

But, this still doesn't answer a question which has troubled me of late. How come, the Scotland rugby fans can make such a good job of singing Flower of Scotland, while the Scotland football fans' performances are a constant embarrassment?

 

One of the shrewder thinkers in the football-writing fraternity has a theory, which is, without the band getting in the way of the second verse, the rugby Tartan Army can march at their own pace, whereas the football Tartan Army is always racing the band.

 

I don't know, I just wish the football guys would wise up and learn to sing it properly.

 

 

 

RANT over, back to reality. Where now stands Scotland in the rugby world? Interesting point to ponder. Yes, we had a good Autumn, but, we have had these before, then bombed when it came to the Six Nations - can we get it right this year?

 

I certainly hop and think so. We were in the same position as England and Wales found themselves against the All Blacks. We were in the game with some 20-minutes to go, but still lost. I don't think we collapsed as badly as did the English and the Welsh, but, that said, we weren't facing as-strong an ABs XV.

 

I think Steve Hanson and Co reckoned, it would take them an hour or more to subdue the English and Welsh threats, they maybe expected to have taken care of us by half-time, so, we perhaps took advantage of their under-estimating us.

 

Wales, I have long said, are not as good as their supporters in the media would have us believe. They are a one-dimensional, bish-bash-bosh side who, if they are stood up to, will back down. Their front row also cheats disgracefully at the scrums.

 

One of the things which got the ABs in front of them on Saturday was Wayne Barnes's ultimatum to Paul James: "Start propping or go off". If only more referees would be as firm with them.

 

England too have a pack which likes to bully people. Stand up to them and they are not so hot, while their continued failure to come up with a settled midfield will hurt them come the Six Nations. Again, their media has built them up as stars, which they aint; there are some seriusly-over-hyped individuals in that England side.

 

We have a coach who will not panic, who will let the guys play and who knows how he wants us to play. We have a tight, together squad. Traditionally, we struggle in the years when we have to go to Paris and London, perhaps it is time to get over this.

 

I would not go so-far as to tip us to win the Six Nations, but, I fancy we can be top three this year, and I can see us having a good World Cup in less than a year's time.

 

Now, that, for Scottish rugby, is a good place to be.

For Once - I Am Looking Forward To The Six Nations

GIVEN how few and far between Scotland successes over a whole Five or Six Nations campaign have been: the Tartan Army (Rugby Branch) has long lived by the motto it was better to travel hopefully than to arrive.

 

In a few short weeks, once we have properly digested the Christmas Lunches, Ne'er Day Dinners and Burns Suppers, we will again set-off after the Holy Grail of Grand Slam, Triple Crown and Calcutta Cup. Only this time, hope will burn that bit brighter, rather than merely flicker. On the evidence of the Autumn Tests, we just might do better than finish third, or even exceed our baseline of second-bottom.

 

Wouldn't it be great if Scotland and Ireland could kick-on from their impressive Autumn performances to battle it out for the 6N's title? Right now, I would make them the favourites - with the Irish probably slightly ahead of us.

 

I have long thought the Welsh to be one-dimensional and over-rated. The way the ABs blasted them aside in the final quarter in Cardiff on Saturday, I think, demonstrated this to be the case. I can now see Scotland winning at least two of the games at BT Murrayfield this campaign - the Irish game could go either way, while, who knows what will happen in Paris?

 

Right now, the French are, seemingly, in disarray. They may still be come the tournament, or, they could come out and blow the other five nations away.

 

We are overdue a win at Twickenham. Should their media still be undermining the excellent Stuart Lancaster and his players, it would be great to see the wheels coming off the chariot, and all the nigels and Ruperts bursting into tears. However, Twickenham being Twickenham, that is the one game I really worry about.

 

 

 

OF COURSE, maybe I am getting carried away, after Rugby Park on Saturday. It was, after all, only Tonga we beat. However, as we know, they are one of these sides who can, and will, on a bad day for us, embarrass us.

 

That they didn't, speaks volumes for the new attitude BVC has forged and the growing belief in the squad. With everyone fit, Saturday's starting XV would not be our optimum choice. Scotland has a long history of being unable to field our presumed first-choice XV and falling flat. On Saturday we didn't, which shows, we now have squad depth and options.

 

We are back playing to Scotland's known strengths - or as much of these strengths as the current laws will allow. I would love to see that Scotland pack operating under real, proper rucking laws, which would guarantee faster ball - I think we would be quite something.

 

 

 

DID anyone notice how, after he was told by Wayne Barnes, early-on in the Wales v All Blacks match: "roll into a ball once more and you're going off", Paul James suddenly started to prop properly and the scrums thereafter were fairly well ordered.

 

Maybe the IRB should ordain, no penalties can be awarded at scrums; they simply be re-set until they are got right., but, properly police the feed and continue to award free kicks for squint feeds.

 

I reckon, if they did, the scrums would sort themselves out and we'd have a better game. Might be worth a trial.

 

 

I HAD a word with some of the ordinary polis on duty at Rugby Park on Saturday. The consensus was; "Why cannot we have this atmosphere here every week?"

 

Rugby supporters - much-nicer people than football ones. Except, on Saturday, there were a lot of folk there, who you will see back there for fitba matches.

 

I suppose, it is all in the mind-set.

Good Team - Let's Get A Good Result

I HAVE few quibbles about the squad BVC has named for the Test against Tonga at Rugby Park on Saturday. Mainly because, I have known him since he was a boy, I would like to have seen Gordon Reid given a start. However, I have been impressed by how Al Dickinson has performed in the two games so far. He's clearly the man in possesion and, given the attritional aspect we can expect from the Tongans' playing style, I suspect both Gordy and Ryan Grant will be introduced after an hour or so.

 

It will, however, be interesting to see which of the replacements plays where, since both are primarily loose-head rather than tight-head props. With Euan Murray injured, Jon Welsh just back from injury and Zander Fargeson being still, exciting prospect though he is, too-young for Test rugby, we are a wee bit short on that side of the scrum.

 

Again, after the way he performed following his early introduction as replacement for Mark Bennett, Sean Lamont deserves to wear the number 13 shirt. Also, with Sean Maitland injured, Tim Visser was the obvious man to recall. He will know, however - he needs a big game on Saturday.

 

 

 

OBVIOUSLY, with Wales facing the All Blacks on Saturday, the Scarlets v Glasgow Pro12 clash will be very-much a case of dirt tracking (as it is known to Lions afficianados) on a grand scale.

 

For the uninitiated, the Lions "Dirt Trackers" are the non-Test squad players, condemned to spend their midweeks having the shit kicked out of them by the non-Test wannabees of the Southern Hemisphere. Their job is to, fly the flag, take the cheap shots, keep the heid and keep winning.

 

That, in brief, is the task facing the Warriors in Llanelli on Friday night. There is, however, a core of steel running through the Warriors' squad, and, while it will be hard - they are capable of winning down there in deepest, Welshest Wales. Always assuming, of course, the man with the whistle isn't as much of a homer as the two Welsh touch judges and the Welsh TMO will be.

 

 

Some Day We Will Beat The Blacks - I Hope It Is Soon

I MIGHT be running out of time, but, I still believe I will see a Scotland team beat an All Blacks one in a full Test match. That said, I do not think we will have many more chances as good as the one we let slip through our fingers yesterday at BT Murrayfield.

 

However, fair is fair. As I said pre-match, there is no such thing as a poor All Blacks team; the squad which bested us yesterday all had something to prove in the match - not least the pride in that iconic black jersey. Lesser teams would have wilted in the face of the up-tempo aggressive performance which Scotland produced; the Blacks didn't, for all their errors and at times uncertainties - they found a way to win on a bad day - respect.

 

I fancy us to do well in the Six Nations, provided we stick to this Scottish-style pattern of play which BVC is getting the boys to play. I feel he has a bit of tinkering still to do with his back row; I accept, we lack a wee bit of depth in the squad, but, after two Tests, we are in much-stronger place than we were this time last season.

 

We just might, if this squad stays together and avoids too-many injuries, go far in the 2015 World Cup.

 

 

 

PARKING around Murrayfield is a bit of a lottery for even the press. We don't get special parking priveleges - WHY THE FUCK NOT? So, it pays to be early. Having had a go at the SRU for not handing-out car park passes to the Fourth Estate, I must at least praise them for the high quality of the lunch they put on, and for the facilities at the Stadium.

 

Pre-match, I was one of the group watching theSky broadcast of the England v South Africa game, at Twickenham. Another keen observer was an Edinburgh-based South African journalist.

 

At the end, while we shallow Scots were giving it yahoo!! On the age-old grounds that: It matters not who won or lost - provided England got beaten; this Saffer was an unhappy bunny.

 

"That was a terrible display by a poor South African team", he opined.

 

"To only beat such a had England side by a handful of points was a terrible display".

 

I don't think he will be getting a gig in London, covering rugby, any time soon.

 

 

 

IT WILL be interesting to see how BVC utilises his squad against Tonga. I would fancy Ayrshire boy Gordon Reid will get the number one shirt at Kilmarnock. Also, with  Euan Murray picking-up a groin strain against the Blacks, after the excellent shift Dr Cross put-in as replacement, I fancy he will be at three, while, Fraser Brown should perhaps complete an all-new front row, to show what he can do.

 

I also fancy back row changes, but, for me, big Rob Hartley has now claimed the six shirt - Richie McCaw, for one, knows, Gingers from Glasgow are hard nuts.

 

I thought Sean Lamont had a terrific game at 13, once he replaced Mark Bennett. Aye, selection will be interesting.

 

 

 

 

This Time, We Have A Chance - Let's Take It

AS everyone who has been around international rugby for more than one game can tell you - there is no such thing as a poor All Blacks team. We have good AB XVs, we have marvellous ones, and we have some that are so-good the scare the bejaisus out of everyone - you don't get close to pulling-on that iconic black shirt, unless you really know your way around the paddock.

 

So, how do we assess the men in black who will facwe Scotland at BT Murrayfield tomorrow? Realistically, this has to be merely a good ABs XV. Certainly Steve Hanson has sprinkled stardust over an otherwise workmanlike side by sending-out Dan Carter and the Emperor Richie, and, I am not forgetting, we've been comprehensively rolled over by shadow AB XVs in the past, and, as such am loath to suggest - tomorrow will be THE  DAY - the one when, finally, at the 30th time of asking, we beat the buggers.

 

But, I have that feeling - maybe, just maybe, we can do it.

 

I reckon we perhaps hold the age in the tight five, which is where so-many games are won and lost. If our grunt 'n' heave department can get on top, and we can have even the majestic McCaw operating on the back foot, then we can unleash the scoring potential of our back line.

 

Well, we have to believe.

 

But, let no Scot be in any doubt, we have to play as well for 80 minutes as we did for 60 against Argentina last week - AND THEN SOME, and, we have to hope that these "reserves" whom Hansen has called-up really are second-rate All Blacks. Furthermore, we then need the third team - the match officials, to do us some favours; and, we just might scrape home.

 

I am in my seventh decade. The first All Blacks XV I was remotely aware of was the 1953-4 tourists, whose big player was full back Bob Scott. Since then I've watched them all - from Don Clark, Wilson Whineray and Colin Meads, via Chris Laidlaw, Sid Going, Ian Kirkpatrick, Andy Haden, Bernie Fraser, Murray Mexted, Andy Dalton, on through Buck Shelford, John Kirwan, Zinzan Brooke, Sean Fitzpatrick, Ian Jones, Grant Fox, Jonah Lomu and so on right up to McCaw and Carter.

 

I live in hope that I will live long enough to see the Blacks beaten, please, let it be tomorrow.

Ah! The Good Old Days - Watch This, They Really Were Better.

WHILE browsing the Guardian's website yesterday, I chanced upon a link to a You Tube clip: the entire, nearly one-hour long BBC Rugby Special film of the English North Division's 1979 win over the Ninth All Blacks, at Otley.

 

To be fair, Graham Mourie's Ninth All Blacks were not a vintage ABs outfit. Sure, they had Stu Wilson and Bernie Fraser on the wings, Andy Dalton at hooker, Andy Haden in the boilerhouse and Mourie and Murray Mexted in the back row, but, many of the other nine were barely household names in their own household.

 

On the other hand, the Northern Division XV included some stellar names - the future 'Cotton Traders' millionaires, old Fran himself and Steve Smith were there - the back row of Roger Uttley, Peter Dixon and Tony Narey would surely get en-bloc votes in any competition to name England's best back row, while the XV was captained by Bill Beaumont.

 

The North won, and won well, while there were some cracking tries scored. But, for all that, had ABs full back Richard Wilson had his kicking boots on, the ABs would have won - he left some 18 points out there.

 

OK, we accept that the modern game offers higher levels of fitness; 21st centurry defences are tighter than those of 35-years ago, whilst laws changes in the intervening years have changed many aspects of the game.

 

But, for an old dinosaur like me, that Otley match still offered more entertainment than we get today.

 

One area which did strike me was the scrum. NOT ONE scrum caved-in. Indeed, the referee, my old pal Alan Hosie, only had to intervene three times, to square things up and to remind Fran Cotton he wasn't binding to his, Hosie's, satisfaction - not that Fran was actually doing anything wrong under the scrum laws of the time.

 

Most times, the front rows locked together when the ball was well away from the set-piece, but, there was no shoving and jostling, and, as I mentioned above, no going to ground and having a re-set.

 

WHY THE FUCK cannot we have this today? The basic principle of the scrum - that it is a means of re-starting play after it has broken down - has not changed; it is still an eight men v eight men competition. WHERE HAVE WE GONE WRONG?

 

I should add, three times, Mr Hosie pinged either Smith or opposite number Donaldson fro squint feeds. That's three time in one game - you don't see three penalties for squint feeds in an entire Six Nations tournament nowadays - yet we all know EVERY feed these days is squint.

 

Also, that 1979 game was played under the old laws of real rucking - when the ball had to be played out of the breakdown by feet. To my mind it made for much-quicker, cleaner ball than they get today, and, with the scrum-halves keen to get the ball out to the backs at once, it made for a more-fluid game.

 

Somewhere between 1979 and today, Rugby lost its way. It is time it re-discovered it.

 

For those who are interested, here is the link to the You Tube footage:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLACRKq9ZuM

We Won, But, We Are Still A Long Way From Being The Finished Article

WE won; we beat Argentina, in spite of our own inadequacies, despite what seemed, to watching Scots, to be the determination - yet again - of Wayne Barnes and George Clancy, to do us down.

 

OK, this being Scotland, we contrived to make it difficult for ourselves, but, unlike some previous Scottish sides, we managed to avoid snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, but, unless we improve greatly, we will get a doing from the All Blacks on Saturday - however, nothing new in that.

 

As a former player with Cumnock Rugby Club, I so wanted Mark Bennett to do well; I longed for a first cap to remember, perhaps a career-defining performance. It didn't happen. Try as I might, I could only give young Marko five or six out of ten. But, that may be no bad thing. He has dipped his toe in the testing waters of Test-match rugby and survived.

 

He will do better next time, and, there will be many next times.

 

I played against the Troon Broons. Not many people know this, but, despite their, for the era, lengthy international careers - Peter and Gordon only ever locked the Scotland scrum together for less than half an international, on-tour in Australia.

 

At least the Grays got more than an hour together, before Richie was subed-off, and, in that hour, they demonstrated, BVC made a mistake when he named Grant Gilchrist as his captain. The Gray boys surely should start as our boilerhouse pairing, even when Gilchrist is fit.

 

OK, maybe all those lost lines-out, all the miscommunication, wasn't Ross Ford's fault. He certainly nailed his jumpers yesterday, and battered across the gain line as of yore. He emerged from the Last Chance Saloon with renewed confidence and vigour - nice one son.

 

Lat year, two or three years ago, the Pumas would have mauled us - without the help of Barnes. Yesterday, they didn't. Which is progress of a sort.

 

There remains work to be done before we are in the place we Scotland fans want us to be, but, yesterday, offered the hope that, we can get there.

 

 

 

I HAVE long held that Wales are over-rated; that, in domestic rugby, they cheat terribly and get away with it.

 

This is generally proved when they face one of the Southern Hemisphere big boys, as they did Australia on Saturday.

 

Given Rugby Union's place in Australian sport, the Wallabies have long over-achieved. When they have a good team, they are usually very, very good, but, like Scotland, they suffer from shortage of numbers.

 

This current Aussie side is not yet the real deal; however, from the way they won in Cardiff on Saturday, it would be foolish to write them off as perhaps the outside bet for the World Cup next year. They certainly deserved to win and, though the Taffia will again, fail to pay proper heed -they again showed us what an over-rated lot the Welsh are.

 

 

 

I BOW to nobody in my distaste for the English media hype machine. There is a good team inside Twickenham, just not as good as my dear friends in the English media would have us believe.

 

They gave the Blacks a game, but, they still lost. And nothing summed-up the gap this potentially great England team has to bridge than those ten minutes when the Blacks were a man short, yet totally dominated play.

 

The All Blacks are something else, and still, by a distance, the team to emulate.

 

By the way, Nigel Owens got it 80% right when he yellow-carded the AB's hooker for that kick out at Dylan Hartley. It was stupid, but, he was retaliating to foul play - if Nigel had at the same time, binned Hartley, I might have donated to a Gay charity.

 

Nothing wrong with yellow-carding retaliation, but, the original perpertrator of foul play should go to the naughty step too.

 

 

 

STILL on referees. If the Clancy/Barnes yellow card for big Rob Hartley was the day's worst decision, the REAL concern about refereeing continues to be their failure to get the scrums correct.

 

Last week-end, at Old Anniesland, two Scottish rugby legends: John Beattie and Iain Milne, were asked about the scrummage. they both blamed today's ills at the set-piece on the part referees now play - all this lecturing, this wait for my signal nonsense.

 

"Crouch, touch, set", or whatever the instructions are, WOULD, I am convinced, work if the ball was put-in FUCKING STRAIGHT on "set".

 

Back in the Jurassic Age, when I was playing in the front row, you knew after the first scrum, or in many cases when you took the field, you were up against a bigger pack, so, your plan then, on your put-in, was: get bound, get down and get the ball in and out sharpish, so you didn't get caught-up in an arm wrestle or power battle.

 

We knew back then, the benefits of Channel One Ball - a concept unknown to today's tight forwards. Even against a more-powerful scrum, our hookers could and did hook. Then the administrators started fucking about with things and we arrived at today's scrum chaos.

 

Get the referees to butt-out, let the front rows sort things out and the game would be faster and better - it isn't rocket science.

No Complainta About The Team - Now, Let's Go

IT IS difficult to come up with too-many complaints as regards Big Vern Cotter's (hereafter referred to as BVC) squad for Saturday's BT Murrayfield clash with Los Pumas.

OK, I think the Scottish Rugby "family" is of the majority opinion that Ross Ford is, once again, drinking in the Last Chance Saloon; I'd probably have given Gordy Reid the number 1 shirt and we have a bunch of back-row forwards any three of whom could and would do a job.

I like the idea of the Gray Brothers in the boilerhouse, I am absolutely over the moon at Mark Bennett's selection and, apart from re-affirming my belief that Pat McArthur has been hard done by, I have no other quibbles.

I honestly fancy our chances in this one, and, would love to think a win over the Pumas could be the stepping stone to something we have waited for for longer than I have been alive - a win over the All Blacks.

We journalists were given an unintentional laugh when, in their press release naming the starting line-up and the bench, the SRU managed to overlook Jim Hamilton.

Aye, it's an easy mistake to make, to not notice a six-foot-eight inch, near 20-stones, multi-tattooed second row with over 50 caps.



IT MIGHT be a small, niggling and relatively unimportant point - but: isn't it time rugby came up with a uniform system when it comes to announcing team line-ups?

When I was a boy, attending my first Murrayfield internationals - there was a unifority about things; the programme cover, diagonally split between the navy blue of Scotland, with the thistle logo and the opposition's shirt colour and logo. Inside there were pen-pictures of the players and a couple of reminiscences from Jock Wemyss, who, with the ageless Norman Mair, formed a sort of two-man Scottish press corps.

You knew where you were back then. And, when it came to team line-ups, there was near-uniformity. The teams were set-out in number order, with the full-back wearing 1, the three-quarters, right-to-left numbered 2 to 5, the half-backs wearing 6 and 7 and the forwards numbered 8 to 15, starting with the front row and numbered in 3-2-3 formation.

The French, of course were different. Their line-up still saw the pack listed in 3-2-3 formation, but, they were numbered 1 - 8, with the backs numbered 9 - 15, from scrum-half out.

Suddenly, around 1959 - 1960, this French system became the norm and it has continued to be so until today.

However, I noticed when reading an English newspaper this week, that the All Blacks now list their team 15 to 9  (full-back to scrum-half) as normal, however, they list their pack - 8; 7, 6 5, 4; 3, 2, 1.

Let's have a bit of uniformity please. for instance, this seeming adherence to a 3-2-3 scrum formation, even if it now 6, 7, 8, rather than 6, 8, 7, in the back-row, when everyone knows scrums now line-up 3-4-1 rather than 3-2-3. In fact, if it was done properly, the blind-side flanker would wear 4, the locks 5 and 6 and the open-side flanker 7.

And, why do we start with the full-back? My old club, perverse though we are, has always listed the teams 1 to 15. This to me, makes perfect sense; just think how a team lines-up, the pack are at the front (forwards see), with the backs behind them, simples. Mind you, I still reckon, from 10 to 15 the jersey order should be: inside centre wearing 11, outside centre 12, with the back three as are 11, 14, 15.

Numbering, however, is not just a rugby problem. We still list football teams in the time-honoured 2-3-5 formation, which went out sometime between Hungary beating England 6-3 in 1953 and Brazil winning the World Cup in 1958.

That said, I once worked with one of the pioneering female football writers, who insisted in listing teams in 2-3-5 formation, but, left-to-right rather than right-to-left, as was the norm.

With typical female logic, she insisted since every other listing was left-to-right (names in a team picture for instance), surely the teams should also be listed thus.

Eventually, the subs decided to go with this - it was easier than trying to change a woman's mind, should such an organ ever be found!!



I HOPE we haven't missed-out on a good 'un, with Semesa Rokodoguni's selection for England, against the All Blacks.

He is, after all, Lance-corporal Rokodoguni of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards - I reckon, since that's a Scottish regiment, we should put a block on him representing England.

If he's in the real Tartan Army, he should be playing for Scotland.

I Say Again - The BT Premiership Is A Cracking Competition

SLOWLY but surely, those mainstream Scottish newspapers whose core readership is likely to be as interested in rugby than football, are cottoning-on to the fact: the BT Premiership is a cracking competition.

 

Across in Edinburgh, the club game has always been well-supported in the press, now, interest is growing at the top of Renfield Street, which is all to the good of rugby.

 

And rightly so. At the start of the season, it didn't take a genius to work out that Ayr, Gala, Heriot's and Melrose would be the likely pace-setters in the league. Now, as the clubs take a break from league action, to coincide with the Autumn Tests, while the Big Four continue to set the pace, it is significant that the rest are starting to close the considerable gap which existed between the Big four and the Rest.

 

It might well be that the recent run of fixtures, which saw the top clubs going head-to-head, have affected things, however, Stirling County are now a mere point behind fourth-placed Gala - who suffered badly from the mid-season mini-series between the big guns.

 

Boroughmuir and Edinburgh Accies are in danger of being cast adrift at the bottom, which leaves us with two pods of four above them. Aye, the action will be keen when hostilities resume at the end of the month.

 

Although, this season, the final destination of the BT Premiership title will be decided after the top four play-off, Ayr, topping the table for the first time after their win at Netherdale on Saturday, and Heriot's, knocked of fthe top by a great display from Hawks, are the favourites to top the table at the end of the actual league campaign.

 

With home advantage when the top two meet and their injury list shortening, plus the quality of their three-quarter play in their last two games, it is Ayr who will be favourites, but, this season, nothing can be taken as read.

 

 

 

I KNOW where I will be on Saturday, when Scotland takes on Argentina at Murrayfield. Since all the indications are that Mark Bennett will win his first cap, I will be at Cumnock's Broomfield ground, for their West Bowl quarter-final against Wigtownshire, then the international.

 

Should Marko score and Scotland win - the post-game post-mortem might turn into a three-day event!!

 

 

 

GOOD to see Ryan Grant back in the national squad. By all accounts he had a stormer against Treviso, which was over-due, given he apparently went through the motions for Ayr against Heriot's in his previous work-out.

 

Grantie is a big match player, we may, therefore, need him against the All Blacks. Mind you, I think to put him straight in would be unfair on Gordy Reid, who has, in spite of a lakc of media presence, simply by his work-rate and application, made himself, in my view, our top loose-head at the moment.

 

And, speaking of Glasgow props - Jon Welsh has been playing terrific rugby for Ayr, as he fights his way back to fitness. He was, by a distance, more-impressive than Grant against Heriot's, following that display up with a further two crackers againsst Melrose and Gala.

 

Welshie has one other crucial attribute - he can put in a solid shift on either side of the front row.

 

 

 

FINALLY, some words of wisdom from Iain Milne and John Beattie, who produced a very funny, but also illuminating double-act at the pre-match Old Anniesland lunch before Hawks met Heriot's.

 

Asked why the scrums were such a mess these days, these two leg-ends were in agreement: it's the fault of the referees, now they are involved with all those pre-scrum instructions to crouch, bind, engage, or whatever.

 

"Get down, get it in, get it away" worked in Milne's day - it should still work today, if the referees butted-out.

 

Such a pity, it will never happen.