The Kennedy Deal Is Very Interesting

I HAVE been a Sean Kennedy fan almost since the first time I saw him as a young nine with Stirling County. I will say, there was a period when I thought he had, as a lot of young players do, began to believe his own publicity, but, he got over that.

Sean Kennedy training with Warriors

I believe he was treated very badly by Alan Solomon at Edinburgh and he has never really recovered from the way he was side-lined at that club. So, hopefully, back home at Bridgehaugh, and training daily at Scotstoun, he can make-up for lost ground.

There could be change a coming after the World Cup. If Scotland has as good a tournament as we all wish for, it may be that Greig Laidlaw opts out of international rugby, to maybe prolong his lucrative club career in France. We might see a changing of the guard at Edinburgh, with Charlie Shiel becoming number one. So, somewhat belatedly, the Kennedy star could rise again.

He will surely get his chance to impress with Warriors, and I wish him well. Also, he might not be the only bigger name to feature in Super-6 this season. It is an interesting tale, his deal with Warriors and County. And we may see more similar deals as Super-6 evolves.

My favourite Kennedy moment came when I covered a pre-season game between Northampton Saints and Edinburgh, at Franklin's Gardens, one Friday night. The match, if memory serves me correctly, was Solomon's first as Edinburgh coach.

Any way, Kennedy fed his first scrum in the then predictable manner, straight into the Edinburgh second row; only thing was, unknown to him, the RFU's refereeing department had issued an edict, designed to halt that sort of thing that season. It didn't last past about the second week of the season, but, Kennedy was one of the first nines to be caught-out.

I will never forget the look, a mixture of surprise and contempt, which he gave the poor referee who had penalised him. Clearly, this was the first time in his career that Sean had ever been pinged for a squint feed. Priceless.

IT WAS interesting to hear that Chloe Rollie has come back from Lille, to sign for Harlequins' women's side, to play in England's Tyrrell Premier 15s next season. Rollie brings to 16 the number of Scottish players strutting their stuff in this top-flight of English Women's rugby.

Chloe Rollie - this quine is now a 'Quin

This can only be good for the Scottish national side, and, it got me wondering. Given how much money is being diverted to the women's game in England, can it be long before we perhaps see a Women's PRO14 competition kicking off?

Initially this would probably be a semi-pro set-up, akin to Super-6, but, I sense, it cannot be too-long before the calls for such a move will become louder and impossible to ignore.

CYNIC that I am, when I saw among the four headlined features on page one of the SRU website, something entitled “Everyone's Game,” my first thought was: “What the F*ck is this?” So, I clicked on it, and got the shock of my life.

Clearly this was not produced by Buddy Horler and the Crickets in the Media Department, this was slick, sensible and interesting – I sense the hand of Sheila Begbie and the Rugby Development department behind what is a very-informative and interesting guide to local clubs getting maximum traction from the Rugby World Cup. I commend this initiative to the House.

Mind you, there can be unknows when planning special events around matches on the other side of the world. I remember back in the 1980s, we at our club had the idea of a club breakfast, to watch one of the Lions' tests in New Zealand.

Since the kick-off was around 5am, we decided, the dress code would be pyjamas and dressing gowns. Any way, the Social Convener duly drove up to open the club at 4am, and, as he turned-in, round the corner came a Police car, so the two cops on-duty decided they should check-out what had caused a car to be driven in there at that ungodly hour.

They arrived at the car park, in time to see the Social Convener exit his vehicle, wearing a very fetching pair of pyjamas under a Paisley pattern silk dressing gown, and sporting a cravat. On seeing this the cop in the passenger seat said to him: “We thought it was suspicious, but, dressed like that, you must be a rugby club member.” The reason for the Social Convener's presence was explained and, yes, as you would expect from what was then Strathclyde's finest – they came back along for bacon rolls and a coffee and to watch a wee bit of the match.

Another funny encounter with the Polis came during a raucous Captain's Smoker in the 1970s. One of the ladies who had artistically divested herself of her clothing, for the delectation of the members, had only just escaped with her life, after she had got one of the props, an upstanding member of the agricultural community, over-excited.

Sorting-out the fall-out rather dampened the evening, and the ladies cancelled their final turn of the night. Any way, a prominent member of the Ayrshire legal fraternity saved the jerseys, by nipping home and returning with his projector and some “art films” which he possessed. This was in the days before the internet and “Porn Hub,” I should add.

Midway through the first film, one of the younger members, who was being educated by what he was seeing, blurted out: “'kin' 'elll, I hope the Polis don't arrive here any time soon;” only to hear a response from the back of the room: “too late son, we're here already.”

Yup, two guardians of the Law had come in to check that all was well.