Double Blow To Scottish Rugby

SIXTY-TWO is no age at which to die. With modern medicine, it's obscenely young, but, that Gary Callander should pass at such a young age merely highlights what an unfair disease Pancreatic, or indeed any form of Cancer is.

I never met Gary. When he was at his height, I was covering football more than rugby, so I barely even saw him perform on television. But, from those who did, whose opinions I value, I can tell he was a top-class performer.

If he was playing today, he'd have a shed-load of caps, since changing the hooker after 55 minutes to an hour is almost mandatory in the modern game. But, when he was at his height, whoever got the starting number two shirt was there for the duration. And it was Gary's misfortune that his career overlapped with that of Hawick's Colin Deans – who was, let's not forget, a Lions as well as a Scotland captain.

Gary also spent a long time understudying Deans for The South, as well as Scotland and it speaks volumes about his quality that he got the games and the captaincy appointments he did.

He was an outstanding player and captain, in both the full-sized and short form, for Kelso at a time when the club was a power in the land. In fact, the Kelso septets he led were, at the time, the leading exponents of the short game in Scotland. Then, after hanging-up his boots, he was a very-fine coach at both his home clubs and elsewhere.

Gary, of course, played in the amateur era, when the top players had to fit their rugby commitments alongside the day job, which in Gary's case was as an electrician, eventually running his own company.

Like a good few top-class tight forwards, his later years were blighted by long-standing back problems, even before the Cancer hit him. But, he bore his misfortunes stoically.

My sincere condolences to his surviving family and friends, and everyone at Kelso at this sad time.

HARD ON the heels of the news of Gary's passing, came the news that Boroughmuir had lost that great club stalwart Bill Noble, who died suddenly.

Bill was a Meggetland institution. He went straight from the Boroughmuir school team to the club side, while still a pupil at Boroughmuir, and he was a fixture in the first-team squad for 20 seasons. He played in the 'Muir side which won the final Unofficial Championship in 1972-73, making his Edinburgh debut at prop the following season.

He enjoyed a sabbatical away from Meggetland, after moving to Peebles, but, back in the capital he was soon back at Meggetland, where he had a five-year spell as President from 2012.

Larger than life, with a great sense of humour, and a great supporter of young players, he was a massive influence within the club.

The 'Muir family is bereft at his passing, but, not nearly as much as wife Maureen, sons Chris and Adam and his grand-children. My condolences to them on their tragic loss.

I CAN understand how, with the fixtures mirroring the A team fixtures to be played the following day, the SRU might wish to play the Under-20 internationals at the DAM Health Stadium, behind the national one. And, they have to get bums on seats to help pay for it. But, this centralisation does mean, fewer chances for the rugby public more than half an hour from Edinburgh being able to cheer-on a Scotland side playing locally. And that is sad.

MY LAST blog post highlighted the number of games off on Saturday, thanks to player unavailability. I said 13 games, the true figure was 14. However, what I didn't know – probably because I'm a non-person in the eyes of the SRU, is that the Global Game Variants which I mentioned have already been picked-up by the SRU.

So basically, provided your XV can raise ten players, you can play. If that still isn't getting lower XV games played – BT Murrayfield – you have a problem, a huge problem.

Or is it, that the youth of today doesn't want to play when the weather gets bad? In which case, summer rugby here we come.

I NOTICED a World Under-23 team on Facebook the other day. They picked England's Tom Curry in the back-row, even though, already 23, he is clearly too-old for an Under-23 team, but, they have to pack any selection with England players, to keep their fans from sulking.

No Scots picked, naturally, but, it does highlight, how we are less-prone than other nations to cap our younger players. “If they're good enough – they're old enough,” doesn't seem to be a thought process at BT Murrayfield.

I DON'T often comment on other sports on here, but, I am not and never have been a Lewis Hamilton fan. I think he's an over-rated wee nyaff with a grossly-inflated sense of his own worth.

He's not fit to change Jackie Stewart's tyres, while Jim Clark was from a whole different galaxy.

This current fracas between him and Max Verstaapen, why don't they have a good old-fashioned Scottish “square go” on the front row of the grid, winner is World Champion, all proceeds to charity? Then we can get back to the motor racing.

AUSTIN HEALEY has always been an annoying wee shite. He's the sort of English player you prayed you would find at the foot of a ruck, back when rucking was allowed. Unfortunately, he continues to be an annoying wee shite as a pundit; which is a pity, because, when he isn't giving-off his “How wonderful I am” persona, he actually delivers a lot of good sense and insight. 

Healey has developed into a far-better match reader and analyser than the more-highly-regarded Moyne and Dallaglio. In fact, I would say he is the backs' equivalent of Brian Moore. He's that good – pity he seems incapable of reinventing himself as something other than a total prat.

A Timely Justification For World Rugby's Laws Variations

THIRTY-THREE scheduled matches in Scotland were not played on Saturday. Eleven were called off because of pitch issues, eight of the call-offs were down to Covid, one was down to transport issues, but the major cause of unplayed games, 13 call-offs in all, was “Insufficient players.”

That's 39% of the call-offs down to a lack of players. OK, if the conditions in this picture from Saturday's Aberdeen Grammar v Marr game were typical, I am surprised any games were played. Summer rugby anyone.

Eight of the 13 games off due to insufficient players – that's 61% - were lower XV fixtures. Looks to me as if the SRU should be paying serious attention to the new World Rugby law variations, which are aimed at getting more games played. Doing nothing, or blundering along as we are, these are not viable options.

DURING Saturday's Exeter v Saracens match, which I watched live on BT Sport, referee Luke Pearce, (pictured below)  marched Sarries back 20 metres after Billy Vunipola took exception to being penalised. Pearce then laid down the law on back chat to the visitors.

 Also on Saturday, in Durban, referee Jaco Peyper stopped the game between The Bulls and The Sharks to lay down the law to the respective hookers, Bismark du Plessis of The Bulls and Sharks' Bongi Mbonambi. He told them:

“Lads, I know you’re captain now [he said to Du Plessis]. The both of you, you speak to the officials at the moment, like you have no respect for us.

“It’s both of you. I know you’re big characters and good players, both Springboks, so please, come back to your values.”

I fear, if the clubs don't get a grip on player indiscipline, it will not be long before some referee [my money's on Wayne Barnes] brandishes a yellow card at the dissenters.

FURTHER to my long-running campaign to have our full-time professional sides stopped from signing second and third-rate non-Scots and giving young Scots a chance.

It's not a statistic I have paid too-much attention to before, but, after hearing the BBC Wales commentary from Scotstoun last night, I did a bit of digging. Only THREE members of the 23-strong Warriors squad on Saturday night, that's 13% is actually from the Glasgow area. Amazingly, for a city famed for its aggressive wee men, these are the three biggest men in the squad – starting locks Rob Harley and Richie Gray, and replacement Kiran McDonald-Seran (pictured).

The break-down of the Glasgow team was: English-born (4), Edinburgh-born (4), Glasgow-born (3), New Zealand-born (3), Australian-born (2), South African-born (2), Argentinian-born (2), Ulster-born, Inverness-born, Dundee-born (1 each).

Am I alone in thinking that the fact Scotland's biggest Region, the one with the most clubs, has such a poor representation in it's own professional team, is a very-sad indictment of the SRU and its development of native Scottish players?

And while I am at it – Ollie Kebble back at loose-head. What has happened to the let's convert him to a tight-head project?

And finally on the subject of Warriors v Dragons; I return to the BBC online commentary, which came from BBC Wales.

OK, we know, if it isn't Rangers or Celtic, it isn't sport in the eyes of the high heid yins at BBC Shortbread. But, to completely ignore one of Scotland's top sports teams, playing at home, well, says it all.

Maybe the SRU should withdraw those corporate hospitality invitations which go out to the BBC Scotland big hitters during the Six Nations, and cut considerably the number of BBC “faces” who free-load at the same games. Tell them, when they ask where their invitations are: “You'll enjoy our hospitality when we start to get decent coverage.”

But, to get back to Saturday night. There was half an hour of virtually “dead air” - you could hear the Scotstoun public address system, then, two minutes before the kick-off, we got a run-down of the Dragons' team and changes, before a breathless announcement of the Glasgow team.

During the actual commentary, Glasgow were Glasgow, Dragons were “We” and “Us”. The final straw for me was, after his successful conversion had been the final act of the first half, Scotland internationalist ROSS THOMPSON was identified as the now depoarted South African BRANDON THOMSON.

At which point it was good night from me – and good night from a lot of other Warriors' fans I think.

However, if the Warrior Nation can thole the rabidly pro-Dragons commentary, they could always go into the BBC iplayer, navigate thei

A Reader Looks At Rugby World Cup Reform

CLUBFAN – deep thinker on the game, and friend of this blog, reckons I might be onto something with my suggestion of reducing the number of participating nations in the Rugby World Cup to 16, and having placings games, whereby losing teams would keep playing until they found their position among the entire 16 participants.

At the moment, the nations who qualify for the Rugby World Cup Finals are guaranteed only three group games. If they don't qualify for the last eight and the knock-out phase, that's it, off they go home. The eight qualifiers are guaranteed additional games, as long as they keep winning. Four will go home after one knock-out game, in the quarter-finals. The four semi-finalists get an additional two games, a semi-final and final, or a semi-final and third-place play-off games.

But, if positioning games were added: the eight teams finishing third or fourth in their group would be guaranteed five matches – the three group games plus a further two positioning games; while the eight teams reaching the quarter-finals would be guaranteed six games.

Clubfan has suggested World Rugby takes a leaf from the SRU's Scottish Cup and we have:

• A Rugby World Cup for the top 16 nations

• A Rugby World Shield for the nations ranked 17-32

• A Rugby World Bowl for the nations ranked 33-48

• A Rugby World Plate for the nations ranked 49-54

There are actually 109 nations listed in the current World Rugby Rankings, in current order, dividing them every 16 nations they are:

Top 16 – Rugby World Cup contenders: South Africa, New Zealand, England, Ireland, France, Australia, Scotland, Wales, Argentina, Japan, Fiji, Georgia, Samoa, Italy, Romania, Tonga.

Tier Two – Shield contenders: USA, Uruguay, Portugal, Spain, Canada, Hong Kong, Chile, Namibia, Russia, Netherlands, Belgium, Poland, Brazil, Germany, Korea, Colombia.

Tier Three – Bowl contenders: Zimbabwe, Kenya, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Ukraine, Malta, Tunisia, Ivory Coast, Phillipines, Mexico, Lithuania, Senegal, Croatia, Madagascar, Paraguay, Sri Lanka.

Tier Four – Plate contenders: Morocco, Malaysia, Uganda, Sweden, Trinidad and Tobago, Cook Islands, Singapore, Cayman Islands, Guyana, Moldova, Luxembourg, Israel, United Arab Emirates, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Hungary.

Tier Five: Chinese Taipai, Jamaica, Bermuda, Zambia, Nigeria, Bulgaria, Denmark, Slovenia, Guam, Peru, Thailand, Botswana, Venezuela, St Vincent and Grenadines, China, Barbados.

Tier Six: Bosnia Hertgovnia, Papua New Guinea, India, Ghana, Austria, Finland, Serbia, Uzbekistan, Algeria, Burkina Faso, Mauritius, Iran, Laos, Pakistan, Rwanda, Costa Rica.

Tier Seven: Niue, Tahiti, Bahamas, Norway, Burundi, Swaziland, Solomon Islands, Cameroon, Indonesia, Monaco, Greece, Vanuata, American Samoa.

I bet you didn't know, even half these nations were in membership of World Rugby. And if the boys in Dublin ever need a Head of Media Operations for the Tier Seven Championships in Tahiti – I'm their man.

I certainly know of one world governing body – The International Ice Hockey Federation, who organisations their World Championship in tiers, it can be done, and with promotion and relegation between the tiers, would certainly, I feel, stimulate growth in the game.

GLASGOW'S signing of giant South African lock JP du Preez has got my fellow keyboard warriors stirred-up across on TOL. I feel, David Barnes should perhaps offer Nigel Owens a temporary gig as BTL comments moderator, since, some of the comments really are deserving of one of Nigel's catch phrases.

This is not soccer, so why should Glasgow Warriors follow Glasgow Celtic and Glasgow Rangers down the route of recruiting second and third rate non-Scots while largely ignoring local talent?

The Bigot Brothers are not owned by the SFA, they do not have a responsibility to develop young Scottish talent for the national team – Warriors do – so they do not need to be signing the likes of du Preez.

If du Preez was any good, he'd already have a few South African caps, and would probably be playing in France. I feel he's a waste of money.

I spent a few years involved in basketball, the sport above all others where height is might. Really big men – six foot eight and upwards – were in a lot of cases in basketball seen as a necessary evil. As one basketball veteran explained to me: “Very few big guys are athletes, you use the ones you have to fill space in the key.”

The sought after big men were the six-five, six-six “leapers” - the guys who could almost bite the top of the backboard when they were airborne.

Scotland's best-ever basketball player is the late Robert Archibald, the only Scots-born player ever to make it all the way to the NBA, where he was a second round pick out of University of Illinois in the 2002 draft.

Robert was six-eleven, but, and this is a big but – he could leap, so he made it to The Show. His Dad, Bobby Archibald – now, there's a different animal. I am convinced, had Big Bobby gone to rugby-playing Paisley Grammar School, rather than Camphill Secondary, where hockey and basketball were the sports – he'd have been an all-time great at rugby for Scotland, just as he is in basketball.

Bobby was six foot six, leapt tall buildings in a stride and oozed smiling aggression, Bobby and his younger and only slightly smaller Paisley and MIM team mate Ian MacLean would have been fantastic successors to Gordon Brown and Al McHarg in the Scotland boiler house. But, it wasn't to be.

As an American basketball coach of my acquaintance once said to me: “Given time, I can teach anyone to play this game, but, I cannot teach them to be six foot eight or taller.”

I think maybe the SRU and Glasgow should stop buying-in partially-ready non-Scots and trying to improve them – they've probably already picked-up bad habits. Instead, go looking for Scottish-born and reared diamonds in the rough whom they can polish.

We don't need to buy-in non-Scottish mercenaries, we should be training our own guys, and only buy non-Scottish when we have no alternative.

A Sad Loss And A Questionable Gain

SUDDEN DEATH is always a shock, but, when the person passing is a young, fit, international athlete – then the shock is greater, as are the unanswered questions. Therefore, the entire Scottish rugby family is stunned and sad at the passing of Siobhan Cattigan, whose sudden death, aged just 26, was announced earlier this week.

Her Scotland squad colleagues, her Stirling County club-mates and her many friends in Stirling and further afield, will be gutted at the passing of the 19-times-capped back rower. My sympathies are with her family and all her friends.

THERE IS taking the piss – and taking the piss to extremes, which I think is what the SRU and Glasgow Warriors are doing with the signing of JP du Preez from Sale Sharks.

Look, he's 27, he's the height of nonsense, but, HE HAS NEVER PLAYED FOR THE SPRINGBOKS. If the guy was any good, he'd have a shed-load of SA caps. Buying him is another case of The Junta wasting our money.

OK, I accept, Glasgow are short and under-powered at lock. But, they have a couple of massive Academy locks: Alex Samuel and Max Williamson, who could develop into the real thing – if the Glasgow coaches were prepared to give them the same opportunities Edinburgh gave to Jamie Hodgson and Marshall Sykes.

Ayrshire Bulls wanted to blood Samuel in the Super6, but Glasgow wouldn't release him – the boy is at the age where he needs to play – so, get him in the team, with Lewis Bean or Richie Gray to mentor him. Ditto with young Williamson, who impressed in Stirling County's S6 team. Then there is young Rory Jackson, another who hasn't looked out of place in the Bulls' S6 campaign, or with Marr in the Premiership.

As I keep saying – there is no relegation in the URC, the competition doesn't play during international windows – so, WE DON'T NEED TO EMPLOY FOREIGN MERCENARIES. Believe in young Scots.

Yes, we should continue to use, as now, Scottish-qualified players from England and abroad, but we do not need non-Scots such as du Preez, who would take five years to qualify for Scotland on residential grounds. A young Scottish player could grow a great deal as a player in a five-year term.

On a brighter note, with Tom Everard off to Jersey Reds, there's a vacancy in the Bulls' boiler house, which could be filled by one of the young Scots I have named, on his way (hopefully) to the Warriors.

 

 

I RECALL in at least one past blog, referencing an enjoyable interview I did with Richie Dixon back in the 1990s. During our conversation Richie mentioned he had been in Sweden at the behest of the SRU, attempting to help the Swedish Rugby Union, which only joined the IRB in 1988, advance the game in that country.

Richie told me this was an (as the body then was) International Rugby Board initiative, whereby Tier One nations like Scotland “adopted” a lower-ranked nation to try to give them a leg up.

Today, Sweden, ranked 52 by World Rugby, plays internationally in Rugby Europe's Conference 1 North, which, if we take the Six Nations as Tier One of European Rugby, means the Swedes are in Tier Four, along with Czech Republic, Hungary, Latvia and Luxembourg. The Swedes are currently second in the table, behind the Czechs, having beaten Luxembourg 51-5 in the only match they have as yet played.

Since rugby is, for fairly-obvious reasons, a summer sport in Sweden, they will not play internationally again until the end of April, start of May, when they play their other three Conference 1 North internationals.

Readers, you may be wondering why I raise this point at this time – well, here's why. World Rugby appears, like other world sports governing bodies such as those awfully-nice chaps at FIFA and the IOC that no major sporting jamboree can be too-big.

“Bigger is Better” or “Never Mind The Quality – Feel The Width,” these are their mottos. It doesn't matter if you get score lines such as these:

New Zealand 63 Canada 0

New Zealand 71 Namibia 9

Scotland 61 Russia 0

South Africa 66 Canada 7

South Africa 57 Namibia 3

all from the 2019 Rugby World Cup, expanding the competition is what matters.

This, I think, is bollocks – quality, closer games, involving more-skilled teams, that is what we need to advance the game. We need fewer nations competing, but at a higher level.

So, rather than wasting millions bringing together the top 20, or as they are now suggesting 24 nations, maybe World Rugby should be spending more on that now seemingly abandoned concept from the last century – of the bigger nations trying to give the smaller ones a leg-up.

How about, a Tier One nation such as Scotland hosts an event such as Rugby Europe's Conference North 1, entering as a sixth competitor, a team such as the Scotland Club XV, to give an equal number of games each week.

The host nation gets a chance to recognise the best of their non-professional players, playing at a competitive level. The smaller nations get a chance to see what facilities a club can aspire to. The host nation could not win the event, but, would give the other five nations a benchmark against which to measure themselves. While it would provide summer rugby for the local fan base – who might even, as memorably happened in the North-East of England during the 1966 football World Cup, adopt a visiting nation to support.

Putting amateur teams from Tier One nations in against the minnows, would also defuse any resentment over a simultaneous move to reduce the teams competing in the full Rugby World Cup to 16.

Speaking of which, reducing to 16 would enable, as happens in the Under-20 Rugby World Cup, to have play-offs for the minor placings. So, while the top eight were playing for the big prize, the other nations could keep playing to decide places 9 to 16.

A Game At Sixes And Sevens

NEXT YEAR, 2022, is going to be a big year for Sevens Rugby. Although the new South African variant might mean changes, as things stand, the World Rugby/HSBC circuit is set to resume, firing on all cylinders, while, of course, it's a Commonwealth Games year, plus the quadrennial Sevens Rugby World Cup, which is always big for the short game.

This year, with the Olympic Games, Team GB was the main event in Sevens in this country, but, come next year – Scotland is back. So, it was interesting to see the SRU announce the Scotland Sevens core squad yesterday. The 12-strong squad, announced by Coach Ciaran Beattie, comprises:

Kaleem Barreto, Alec Coombes, Matt Davidson, Jordan Edmunds, Harvey Elms, Jamie Farndale, Lee Jones, Paddy Kelly, Gavin Lowe, Ross McCann, Femi Sofolarin, Callum Young.

There is a hard core of experience in the squad, Lee Jones, late of Glasgow Warriors, is back for his first outing in the Sevens squad since 2018, looking to add to his 25 previous tournaments. Also back are Alec Coombs and Ross McCann, who were in the Team GB squad at the Tokyo Olympics, while Paddy Kelly and Jamie Farndale, who were both in the Team GB World Sevens squad also return to the Scotland fold.

Gavin Lowe, who overcame some serious injuries to feature for Ayrshire Bulls in their FOSROC Super6 win is also back, to add to his 40 previous tournament appearances. The Mauchline Man is one of seven recruits from S6, the others are Boroughmuir Bears' scrum-half Kaleem Barreto, Harvey Elms from Watsonians and Jed-forest man Callum Young, late of Heriot's – all have previous Sevens experience, while the new blood comes in the form of Boroughmuir finisher Jordan Edmonds and Bulls' full-back Matt Davidson. The final squad member is Femi Sofolarin, who will combine his Sevens duties with studying at Newcastle University.

This is the first Scotland squad since March, 2020 and after such a long break, Coach Beattie is keen to get back into action and hoping for a successful season.

“With both the Commonwealth Games and the Sevens World Cup, it promises to be a special year, and one that, as a group, we will embrace,' said the coach.

WORLD RUGBY'S Game-On Global Law Variations, announced this week, are certainly worth considering. If they eventually find their way permanently into the Law book, the game will never be the same.

There are ten areas under review from the new initiative, and as World Rugby says in its press release – modified contact, weight-banded matches and lowered tackle height are at the heart of the variations, which will impact the community game and are designed to further advance accessibility and player welfare.

The new variations include flexibility in the number of players, game duration, pitch size, ball size as well as variations around the scrum, lines-out and kicking. National unions can implemented the changes from January, 2022, but, which laws they implement will be optional and up to the Union to determine.

One of the new laws harks back to when I was a boy – teams no longer have to have 15 players. For a game to go ahead, they need at least 10, but, provided each team has the same number of players, it can go ahead with fewer than 15. This move alone, could reduce the too-high number of unplayed matches at second and lower XV and at Regional League level. If one team turns up with 12 players to meet opponents having 15, then the short-handed team can insist on numbers being equal, however, the unused players from the bigger-numbered team, can still be used as substitutes.

Game duration can be altered. The World Rugby announcement suggests:

• 10-a-side – 40 minutes maximum

• 11-a-side – 50 minutes

• 12 or 13-a-side – 60 minutes

• 14-a-side – 70 minutes

• 15-a-side – 80 minutes.

There is additional flexibility in that games can be split into halves, quarters or thirds.

Rolling substitutes, with uninjured players allowed to return, will also be allowed, while the new variations set-out minimum numbers in scrums – five-man scrums for 10-a-side, up to full eights for 15-a-side. The Unions can also, if they wish, implement the Under-19 law variation which only allows a scrum to be moved 1.5 metres.

There is also a suggestion, if a scrum is incomplete, it re-starts with a free-kick to the side which had the put-in. (Ah hae ma doots on that one, I must confess).

Teams may also agree to uncontested lines-out, or not to lift. But, if uncontested lines-out are agreed, the ball has to be passed to the scrum-half – (no mauls then).

In many ways, the suggested variation are offering an a la carte menu for unions and competitions. Choose which variations to use and use them. For instance, a union might decide that in the community game:

• Penalties and free kicks can only be kicked from inside a team's own half

• All conversions to be taken from in front of the posts

• Kicks in the attacking 22 cannot be marked.

Pitch sizes can also be altered. World Rugby suggests, for instance, that 10-a-side matches be played across half of a full-sized pitch, with all conversions taken from in front of the one set of posts.

While no SR|U representatives are named in the Working Group who came up with these variations, I hope they have been reading this blog. They have suggested that smaller, size 4 or 4.5 balls could be used. I have long advocated this change for the Women's game.

World Rugby is also looking seriously at weight-graded rugby as a means of assisting player retention between youth and adult rugby.

The suggested variations include a call for the lowering from the tackle height, from shoulder-high to nipple-high, or even to waist high – at the discretion of the domestic union. But, as with everything else in Game On, it's up to each union to decide which variations they implement.

Prepare for some interesting discussion and debate.