Time For A Game Of Boardroom Musical Chairs?

I AM now, more than ever convinced, I may live long enough to see the Union Flag lowered over that new and very expensive UK Government in Scotland hub in Edinburgh, to be replaced by the Saltire, the flag of the once-again independent country of Scotland. And, when we recover from the equestrian party which will follow Independence (it will be at least a three-day event), we will begin to see many, but probably not all of the English carpetbagger whom the British Nationalist Unionists brought north: “Rebellious Scots to crush,” heading home to the sunny bank holiday weekends, warm beer and cricket and additional riches which they are being re-assured will arrive with Brexit.

I am telt, our glorious leader, TCD might well be one of the first through the repatriation gate at Carter Bar, in fact, I hear, if things go well, the head of The Junta might not even wait for Independence, before heading south.

Having failed to be appointed CEO of both the RFU and The Six Nations, I understand our favourite corporate warrior, is hoping to ingratiate himself sufficiently with CVC Partners, in their efforts to gain a considerable foothold in rugby, that they will offer him a nice lucrative post inside the organisation.

OOr Dominic models the new SRU corporate suit

And this could be just the break Scottish Rugby's answer to Lawrence Llewellyn-Bowen, oor ain Ayrshire COO, the Domster has been waiting for. You may ask why the reference to the fragrant Welsh dandy. Well, I have learned from one of the worker ants inside the EH12 Big Top, that, after finding five proffered rooms in the five-star hotel he was billeted in during an international trip didn't come up to his high standards, Dom was known as “Changing Rooms” to the HQ staff.

So Dom, henceforth, you will be referred-to in this blog by Mr Llewellyn-Bowen's initials – LL-B.

Apparently LL-B is already brown-nos.., sorry, positioning himself to succeed TCD in the top job. He has already mastered the basics of the job, automatically turning left at the door of an aircraft and so forth. Why, the youngish pretender has even managed to wangle himself a place on the high-powered SRU off-field team for the forthcoming Rugby World Cup in Japan.

TCD going, yes, that's ok – he's a World Rugby Executive Committee member, along with John Jeffrey and Lesley Thompson, they've got to be there. Dee Bradbury, as President of the Union, yes, no problem with Dee going'

But, is it really necessary for the Chief Operating Officer to be off to Japan on a jolly? Ah hae ma doots. What can he do over there which could not be done equally well, or perhaps better, by the CEO?

The hired help melting the plastic on the corporate credit card, unfettered by the non-executive directors who are supposed to hold them in-check on behalf of the shareholders is nothing knew, merely the sign of an organisation that has lost its way.

I would have no objection to LL-B's place on the Japanese junket going to one of the Council; I might not agree with every decision that body makes, and yes, I do feel they have allowed the hired help too-much rope in the past, and still are allowing them too-much, but, I know how hard our Council members work.

They deserve the occasional trip, all those pitches lined, balls inflated, coaching sessions carried-out, regional meetings attended on the way up, that sacrifice merits being introduced to the Princess Royal, the best seats inside Murrayfield and the best half-time purvey, and yes, the odd overseas trip.

But, in return, we, the pbi of the game, we ask that you test the decisions the hired help want you to agree to; question their motives, keep an eye on their performance and always remember – at the end of the day, it's your and our money they are spending.

Stop the mini-empires from being formed, and make sure, we get sufficient bang for our buck.

A couple of blogs ago I compared the management models of the four home unions. The Irish Union is still primarily run by its ELECTED committee, towhom the paid executives answer. The RFU and WRU have separate executive boards, their hired help run things day-to-day; HOWEVER – the ultimate power rests with their main boards and councils, where the ELECTED officials have oversight and the ultimate veto.

The SRU is run by the board of SRU Plc, and while in theory that board is balanced:

• Four ELECTED officials, currently – President Dee Bradbury, Council Members Willie Gardner, Adam Gray and Graeme Scott
  
  
• Four EXECUTIVE (i.e. paid) officials, currently TCD, LL-B, J Cheever Loophole and Finance Director Andrew Healy (I really must get a nickname for Andrew)
  
  
• Four INDEPENDENT directors, currently – Chairman Colin Grassie, Lesley Thomson, David McMillan and Julia Bracewell
  
  

In theory, the balance of power should rest with the four independents, if it comes down to an argument between the hired help and the elected officials. The view abroad at the moment is that TCD snaps his fingers and the rest jump – we could maybe do with the pendulum of power shifting to weigh more-positively on the side of the elected officials.

I would certainly like to see the seats, currently occupied by TCD's underlings, handed to elected officials, able to better reflect the views of the stakeholders.

Change is coming in rugby, but, we must always remember, at its heart, Scottish Rugby is all about the people who play and watch the game, the ordinary club members. Right now, they appear to be divorced from Murrayfield – it is time they got back to feeling it was their game, and they mattered, by having more genuine rugby men and women sitting on the Board.

Better News On The Issue Of SRU Governance

GOVERNANCE is a major issue within Scottish Rugby at the moment, with Bill Gammell and Norman Murray carrying out their independent review, prior to reporting to Gavin MacColl QC's standing committee on governance.

Bill Gammell - recovering lost ground and impressing by his approach

to his independent review on governance

I make no apologies for repeating, when Gammell was announced as the man to carry-out this review, I was sceptical, following the shambles of the Super-6 bidding process, in which he chaired the review body. However, in the past few days, I have been told by, firstly a member of the Great and the Good of Scottish Rugby, now outside looking in, and secondly by someone still inside the Big Top at BT Murrayfield – Gammell is making a good impression.

I hear he has already spoken with over 50 of the movers and shakers, asking probing questions, seeking opinions and gaining the respect of all he has spoken to. Norman Murray too is seen as “somewhat Establishment,” but, he too has impressed those he has spoken with. Time will tell, but, the initial impressions of what they are doing are good.

More concerning, however, is the decision to extend Chairman Colin Grassie's length of service – a decision made by the SRU Board's Nominations Sub-Committee – whose members include one Colin Grassie.

Colin Grassie - has been unimpressive, but is retained. Whny?

Not many people have been impressed by Grassie's term of office and certainly, he won few friends and impressed fewer at the 2018 AGM and at the mid-season SGM. There are suggestions that since the ramifications of the proposed CVC Capital Partners investment in the Six Nations and the PRO14 fall within his field of professional competence in his day job, Grassie is worth holding on to.

Some of the “Silverbacks” are also a wee bit concerned at the extension of tenure handed to Lesley Thomson QC. It would be fair to say, Lesley was handed a crock of shite when the Board, of which she was a member, invited her to review the conduct of fellow Board members TCD and J Cheever Loophole in respect of Russellgate.

If you want to find-out what she thought, well you will have to lift that lumpy corner of the carpet in J Cheever Loophole's office – the corner under which so-much that has been damaging to Scottish Rugby has been swept over recent years, and trawl through the shite you will find there.

That episode did “Cher's” reputation no favours. Many feel, at the very least, one, or indeed both of TCD and m'learned friend Mr Loophole, should have been handed a black bin bag, given 15 minutes to fill it with their personal belongings, than been escorted off the premises by the nationsl team's entire group of front five players.

However, this didn't happen, and, many in the ranks of the great and good believe Lesley's retention was handled improperly; believing moves to find an independent board member should have began at least six months before the end of that member's tenure. I hear this is the written protocol, which has not been followed of late.

I have heard suggestions, since the rules have not been followed, the SRU Council ought to have blocked ratification of the term extensions.

Ah! The Council. I have heard, following CVC's interest in rugby, other hedge funds are sniffing around the game's potential riches, which might drive-up the potential financial wind fall coming the SRU's way. However, I have also learned, the decision as to whether or not to sell a share in the Six Nations to CVC, or some other hedge fund – need not be unanimous. A simple majority would, as I understand it, suffice.

Now, we know the SRU and the Italian Federation, as the “weakest” nations, are concerned about the possible implementation of promotion and relegation to the second tier, which World Rugby is keen to promote. The need for unanimity was a safety valve, if this is withdrawn, oo err Missus.

There are also suggestions that any Six Nations windfall would come to SRU Plc, the “commercial” arm of the Scottish Rugby Union.

SRU Plc would not, some have suggested, be obliged to pass any of this windfall over to the clubs, the true stakeholders and custodians of the Scottish Rugby Union. I know, the high heid yins would like to spend some of any additional cash that comes in on upgrading the corporate entertaining facilities at Murrayfield, building state of the art facilities behind the East Stand is one suggestion I have heard, then there would surely be a temptation to build something better than “Legoland” as the new home for Edinburgh Rugby.

Some would like to see Oriam-type covered stadia built in Glasgow and Caledonia regions, while many clubmen want to see the clubs getting a bigger share of any cake for club developments.

The Council, therefore will be under huge pressure to decide what is best for Scottish Rugby and implement this, if and when the extra cash arrives.

I was reminded, in the course of my conversations this week: “SRU Plc was set-up, to better handle commercial investment in the two professional sides – only for the SRU to scupper any chance of this bringing meaningful investment, by insisting on maintaining a majority share-holding,

“The secondary aim was to exploit the real estate potential of the Murrayfield grounds, not to invest in third-rate teams in France and the USA.”

Again, we look to the Council to challenge these decisions on behalf of the clubs they represent.

Over the past couple of years, aided by some pretty supine Council members not doing their jobs, TCD and J Cheever Loophole have galloped a massive dray, pulled by four bloody big Clydesdales through the checks and balances on their power. It is time for someone to gain control of the runaway horses.

This may indeed be happening. I hear the Minutes of the 2018 AGM had to be withdrawn from publication and considerably amended, after it was pointed out, what was published was anything but a true record of the meeting.

Aye, yet again I say: In Scottish Rugby, we live in interesting times.

SRU Management - Vee are ze masters now, unt vee vill tell you nuzink

WHEN it comes to commenting on The Junta currently ruining Scottish Rugby, I reckon, aged, decrepit and tired though I am, I am here for the long haul.

The Junta has seen/bought-off the mainstream media, where once the likes of Norman Mair, Bill McLaren or Bill McMurtrie could have, in the most-civil manner have spoken to Bill Hogg about something which was concerning them, had a civilised, but full and frank exchange of views then printed an erudite story which properly explained and tackled the issue. Today, the Junta's approach to the press is clear: “Our way or the highway; if we don't like what you are writing, you will rapidly become a non-person.”

The Herald and The Scotsman have been cowed and brought to heel, and while Alasdair Reid and Mark Palmer at The Times and Sunday Times do a good job in taking them to task when they mess-up, what they can get into their papers is dependent on what is happening in England – they don't allow their Jockistan subsidiaries a great deal of freedom.

Of course, David Barnes and the excellent The Offside Line is a constant irritant to The Junta, but is allowed a degree of freedom to criticise. I reckon because they are scared shitless of what “Wee Barney's” esteemed father, “Big Barney” might do if they come down hard on his son – you don't want to have one of the legendary Green Machine enforcers pinning you to the wall to discuss a matter of family honour.

Then, of course there is that old mad pest down there in Hole in the Wall, Ayrshire.

I spoke with the adjutant on one of the serious papers' sports desks last week, about the Dewhirst Scandal and the ramifications thereof. I had to speak to him, the CO is on leave – he didn't know what I was talking about.

This is the guy running a major newspaper sports desk, a paper where once you had to be a former Scotland cap to get the gig as Rugby Correspondent, that is where Scottish Rugby stands in the media estimation today. The guy running the Sports Desk didn't know about the story that was the talk of every Scottish Rugby club bar.

Clearly, The Junta are in the wrong jobs; they ought to be down there in Whitehall, advising Prime Minister Bo-Jo how: “with a heaving rush, rebellious Scots to crush.”

So, you see, holding The Junta to account, is not easy. And it doesn't help, when you examine the governance/management structure of the Scottish Rugby Union and compare how we run things up here, with what happens elsewhere in these her British Isles:

• SRU – 12-strong main board: 4 paid employees, 4 independent directors, 4 elected directors.
• SRU Council – 17 elected members (who are supposed to oversee the decisions of the main Board). 4 Council members are on the main board
• RFU – 14-strong main board: 3 paid employees, 3 independent directors, 8 elected members
• RFU Council – impossible to find out online, how many members the Council has, but, it may well be close to Will Carling's legendary “57 old farts.”
• WRU – day to day management in the hands of the 8-strong executive board, all paid employees. Their work is overseen by the 11-strong Main Board, comprising 11 elected members plus the Chief Executive
• WRU Council – 12-strong, all elected locally
• IRFU – run by a 25-strong General Committee, all of whom are elected locally. The paid officials answer to them.

As can be seen from the above, of the four Unions, the SRU is the one where the paid officials appear to have most-sway in the big decisions. As is the case elsewhere, ideally, for the security of the member clubs, the true stakeholders in the game, the elected officials should always be in the majority.

This does not happen at Murrayfield, where I can think of at least one paid employee who ought not to be on the main board, with a vote. That vote would be better in the hands of an elected official, in my view.

But, again, a lot depends on the quality of the elected officials put on the board, and, I fear one or two of the current elected/independent board members are too-easily led by the hired help.

Right now, The Junta is in trouble, it needs a good news story to deflect away from a string of depressing ones – and, when they got one, they fucking well blew it.

Leaving aside the disgusting behaviour of the 2018 Under-20 squad, the fact the 2019 Under-20s were so-poor, allied to the absolute pig's breakfast the Union has made of implementing Super-6 and Agenda-3 has meant, constant bad news. The Union has also, and whether this was a good or bad move is still with the jury, seen the loss of their Director of Performance Rugby – Scott Johnson, and left the Union open to suggestions they had taken their eye off the ball.

So, proper distress management demanded that something be done. They already have an independent review of governance procedures under way, being conducted by Bill Gammell.

So, why not a concise press release, something along the lines of:

“Following the recent relegation of the Under-20 squad from the top tier of that age group at world level and a recent unsavoury court case involving a former Under-20 player, while on Scotland duty, the SRU has invited former Fijian Sevens coach Ben Ryan to undertake a review of the Academy and performance structures within the Union.

Mr Ryan is a highly-esteemed expert on such matters and he has carte-blanche to look into all aspects of our age group/performance structures and practices. Mr Ryan will report to the full SRU Board when he has completed his review.”

Something like that would have cut the feet from under the critics and shown a board in control of a nasty situation.

Hiring Ben Ryan should have been shouted from the roof-tops

not left for Mark Palmer to break the story - and well done to him

Instead, nothing, zilch, silence, until Mark Palmer broke the story in yesterday's Sunday Times. Even then, silence from the SRU.

Yes, the SRU's Media Department can produce a readable “good news story,” but, when real PR work is called for, or damage limitation has to be undertaken – their limitations are all-too-quickly evident.

AND FINALLY, it was announced over the weekend that SRU Chairman Colin Grassie and Independent Board Member Lesley Thomas have had their terms of service extended.

The recommendation of the Board's Nominations Committee, that they be re-appointed, well let's say it did not play well in Kansas.

Chairman Grassie's contribution to the Russellgate debate was accepted like a bucket of cold sick by the body of the kirk at last year's agm. He then gave a less than stellar performance at the SGM, after which he, TCD and J Cheever Loophole, the Union's General Counsel were viewed as a Scottish version of The Three Stooges.

I would hazard a guess, Boris Johnson is more-popular in Scotland.

It might be unfair, but, some are seeing Lesley Thomson's re-appointment for undertaking “Mission Impossible,” attempting to polish the turn that was left by TCD's and J Cheever Loophole's mis-handling – no scrub that – world-class balls-up over Russellgate.

For my money, most of the SRU balls-ups in recent years have been in areas which apparently are in the learned Mr Loophole's bailiewick – just saying like.

And another thing: just who are on the Nominations Committee? In any well-run organisation, board members' fields of responsibility are made clear, but not at the SRU, who, in some matters, could give the Freemasons lessons in secrecy.

The SRU Keeps Telling Us - Lessons Have Been Learned. Have They?

IN MY last blog, I asked the slightly rhetorical question: Why Does So-Much Shite Happen To The SRU?

Drink having been taken, and mixed with the high level of testosterone which flows around rugby – well misbehaviour follows, it's a sequence which is as old as time in rugby. We all know this, it is learned behaviour over many decades.

We've all seen the incidents, from the British Lions wrecking hotels in South Africa, via the legendary boys having fun exploits of the Barbarians in South Wales. Then there is the omerta of rugby: “What goes on on-tour, stays on-tour.”

At club level, misbehaviour is normal. In my own wee club, we old farts still re-tell tales of serious misbehaviour going back to our early days in the 1960s.

But, that was then and this is now, and a trawl through recent exploits around Scottish Rugby does not make pleasant reading:

• 2009 – Dan Parks dropped by Glasgow after a drunk-driving charge.
  
  
• 2010 – Max Evans cleared of “glassing” someone in a night club brawl.
  
  
• 2013 – The Kebab Shop affray, which saw Ryan Wilson fined £750 and a couple of other Scotland caps extremely-lucky not to also be in the dock.
  
  
• 2015 – The Pieter Rossouw de Klerk Breach of the Peace case.
  
  
• 2017 – The Howe of Fife initiation ceremony, which saw players and officials suspended by the SRU.
  
  
• 2017 – Magnus Bradbury suspended after a night out went wrong.
  
  
• 2017 – John Hardie suspended for alleged cocaine use.
  
  
• 2018 – The SRU's reputation for clear governance tarnished by Russellgate – the botched sacking of Keith Russell.
  
  
• 2018 - Under-20 coaches disciplined after a night-out in Wales got out of hand
  
  
• 2019 – The Paddy Dewhirst Scandal.
  
  

Now that's a fairly shameful crime list. But, we should not get the impression the SRU is the only Union harbouring players across the spectrum of “Easily led,” “Daft boys,” “Unable to handle drink” “Sociopaths” to “Downright psychopaths.” But, while say English players can, provided they avoid dwarf-throwing competitions, perhaps hide their bad behaviour in larger communities, Scotland is still in sporting terms a bit of a village, and you can bet, if any player does something daft – news of the event will leak out.

I have listed the ten most-high-profile cases os bad and unacceptable behaviour above, and nine of them involve SRU employees. What does that say about the culture within that body? It is not a good look for any national governing body of a sport, dependant on good public relations and a positive image in the health and well-being field.

The Dewhirst Affair, however, has upped the ante somewhat, the implications of this distasteful case could be far-reaching – so, what is the SRU doing in the field of damage limitation?

We know they (eventually) suspended Paddy, but not before six months had passed. But, that aside, what else have they done?

• What support did they offer to the victim, the girl filmed without her consent?
  
  
• What support did they offer to the other girls in the performance department, who learned of their friend's ordeal while in the gym?
  
  
• Was Paddy the only player disciplined? After all, the video was circulated among a 28-strong player pool.
  
  
• Is there evidence of the video being circulated outside the player pool, and, if it has, has the player or players who circulated it also been disciplined?
  
  
• Were the mobile phones examined to ascertain if that was the only unacceptable video?
  
  
• Was all the video footage deleted from every mobile?
  
  
• Were the boys sat down and made aware of the seriousness of the matter?
  
  
• Were the FOSROC Academy staff given training in how to spot this sort of unacceptable behaviour and stamp it out?
  
  
• Have the concerns raised by the girls been adequately addressed?
  
  
• Have those staff who, when the original complaints were put to the, didn't really want to know, and gave the impression they wanted it all to go away, been offered, or better still, received training designed to solve their short comings?
  
  
• Have the girls been given feed-back on what is happening next?
  
  
• The SRU now employs more female staff than ever, have steps been taken to protect them from any consequences of the sort of behaviour exhibited by Paddy Dewhirst and his mates.
  
  
• Did the well-publicised Paddy Jackson case not register on the SRU's and their players' and staff's radar?
  
  

The girls within the Academy, and those in the national squads MUST be assured, they are valued, they will be protected from misbehaving players and, that when things go awry – and regardless of the best-laid plans, at some point they will – that any concerns or complaints they have will be taken seriously and rigorously investigated.

This was not something that happened in the fall-out of Paddy's stupidity becoming known. Then, the SRU adopted their default stance when things have gone wrong, they hoped it would go away of its own accord.

We were assured, in the wake of Russellgate: “Lessons have been learned and changes will be made.”

Aye right!! I get the impression, compared to the SRU, the Titanic could have altered course faster. It is all very well beefing-up the HR department, and bringing-in new protocols, but, we all know the default position in Scottish Rugby: “Aye, but, it's aye been din this wey.”

That, however, will no longer wash. Sure, there might be a chance the guys at the top will prevaricate, bluster, then do the minimum to sort out this mess – however, it was stated in court, the incident took place on 23 May, 2018, and did not become public knowledge until last week, 14 months later.

The SRU has therefore had oodles of time to clean-up the mess, and discipline those, players and officials alike, in addition to Paddy Dewhirst, who ought to have been disciplined for their failings over this. They clearly have not done so and yet again, following the shambles of Russellgate, after which: “Lessons have been learned,” it seems you could not beat lessons into some within the Junta with a three-pronged Lochgelly, wielded by a bad-tempered former Scotland cap turned gym teacher.

Also, look at the upper reaches of the Union:

• President – Mrs Dee Bradbury
  
  
• Board member – Ms Lesley Thomson
  
  
• Board member – Ms Julia Bracewell
  
  
• Council member - Rosy Hume
  
  
• Council member – Hazel Swankie
  
  
• Head of Rugby Development – Sheila Begbie
  
  
• Head of Women's Rugby – Gemma Fay
  
  

There we are, seven intelligent and highly-competent women, at the top of the Union. How must they feel reading of the events of the Dewhirst case. I do not see them simply allowing the matter to drop.

Can Dee Bradbury, as SRU President, honestly let the whole matter lie where it currently is. She must know how unsatisfactory this is. Rather than lifting up the corner of the carpet in J Cheever Loophole's office to sweep the dirt from Paddygate in alongside that of Russellgate, and the many other inadequately-handled awkward situations of recent years – Dee, with the backing of the other formidable women named above – simply has to make sure, all the guilty, the other squad members, and more-particularly the SRU staff, who have not done their jobs during this affair, are brought to task.

As I have shown above, scandals in Scottish Rugby are becoming a recurring issue. Something needs to be done, as a matter of urgency, to stop the rot.