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Prestwick

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http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_unio...ish/6273308.stm

Things have come to a head between the SRU and Edinburgh owner Bob Curruthers after his brother Alex and managing director Graham Stirling resigned over a row with the SRU over player release and fees.

The SRU are threatening to terminate funding to the club while a fresh player exodus seems likely after French Rugby websites have started rumours that Chris Patterson (the greatest Scottish fly half of the last five years that Scotland never had) could be moving to Perpignan after the world cup.
 
Considering the state Scottish rugby is currently in, you'd think the SRU would do everything they could to help their franchises out.

Other unions should take heed of how bad things can turn with this totalitarianism attitude, especially the RFU.
 
I can see Rugby dying as a major sport in Scotland in the next ten years. I seriously do.
 
I know it's a real sport!! :D

However, I felt bored watching that 30 second clip, so I'm not really sure how well it would 'take off'...
 
Getting back on track.....



This is a complete shambles. McKie couldn't run a bath and he is seriously harming the game. There HAS to be an Edinburgh side, if we are reduced to one pro side we're stuffed. From what I gather, Bob Curruthers wants to take it to court and the fact the SRU are threatening Embra with closure suggests that McKie knows fine well he would have no legal footing. If the agreement was that Edinburgh players wouldn't go to Scotland training till July 13th then that's what should stand. I want a successful Scotland side, I do firmly believe in country before club BUT if an agreement is made it should be kept. The SRU is a complete disgrace and we need a complete change of board if the country is to make any progress. At this rate, pro rugby will die out here, and then what's next? Club rugby? At this rate with this SRU set up, there will be investors and we will struggle big time in the current years.

In all honestly, I don't think Edinburgh would be closed though. The legallity of the deal would probably prevent it and they are the team with the most backing in terms of fans and investors and McKie is a money man.
 
I heard that the SRU cocked up big time when Edinburgh Council suggested a purpose built stadium for Edinburgh Rugby fit for 15 - 20,000 people no?
 
Quite possibly. I saw plans in the Evening News but they were unpopular, though most fans would settle for a ground. The SRU probably decided against funding it and the council wouldn't fund it alone. Hell, they can't even afford to fix those damn pot holes in my street.
 
Yeah but surely there must be somewhere which could hold 5 - 10,000 fans and not be either Hib's or Hearts home ground or Murrayfield?!
 
Well the only other stadium in the city is Medowbank and it's a shambles. I don't know what it holds. It had been suggested Almondvale, Livingston's ground. But Livingston is a) a hell hole and B) not in Edinburgh so that's that out the window.

Edinburgh Rugby and the Council are keen to build a stadium for rugby and athletics, and I think that is the likliehood. However, the designs weren't popular and I think they are being re-done. I think the finance would be in place through Edinbugh, the council, sport scotland and various other governing bodies. There's certainly plenty of room in the city, even if it be on the outskirts as suggested.

Another option is redeveloping Medowbank. It probably wouldn't happen though, i don't think the SNP are keen on it. It would be an advantage in that it's near the city centre and easily accesable. Other sports use it too, so maybe those governing bodies would contribute something to the cost. However, it's so far gone and it would require massive redevlopment to turn it into the state of the art facillity Edinburgh chiefs want.

In any case, we're stuck at Murrayfield for the time being.
 
Personally in my five years I was in Scotland, I found it absolutely disgusting in the complete and utter lack of interest the Scottish Executive had in funding any kind of sport. There they were, all interested in flushing tens of millions of pounds down the drain on making Scotland "different to England" and compensating all of those oh-so-hard-done-by prisoners forced to clean out their own toilets and barely a penny gets spent on things which generate the most social change in communities: SPORT!
 
Well the SNP seem keen on sport, and I hope they do deliver. Certainly, it seems to fall to private clubs and organisations to get youngsters involved in sport. More and more clubs in Scotland are bringing in YDOs in order to get youngsters playing. All the public parks are a mess round my part of Edinburgh. The fitba' pitches get covered in dog ****, and bizarely the council take away the fitba' posts in the summer months...when kids are most likley to use them!! The only rugby pitches in the South West of Edinburgh are at Heriot Watt Uni and Malleny Park and even at that's only 4. After 4th year in high school, you no longer HAVE to do PE, which I think needs to be changed. I mean, if Scotland is to get any where socially we need a young and fit population. (sorry, this is turning into one of my politcal rants). Bottom line is the Scot. Exec. needs to step in here, and tell the SRU to get it sorted.
 
This is sad for Scotland. After closing down Borders it looks like they're gonna have trouble administering even just two pro teams. I feel sorry for Hadden and his guys who are trying to make things work in spite of it all.
 
I don't know exactly what would be the best. The SRU are experiencing hard time due to their financial issues.

The best maybe would be the Argentinian way i.e. to focus most of the resources to the development of the sport, to have a domestic semi-professional league and to let the best players to emigrate. They will still have the 6N and the RWC. Developing the base would secure their future and getting back from the professional Rugby outside of the Test Rugby would be more in line with their financial health. With a wider base and better finances returning to the professional Rugby can be envisioned.
 
Don, the only reason why the Argentines have a semi-professional league or have farmed out their players abroad isn't out of any administrative masterstroke, its purely out of the incompetence of the amateurish Union!

If Scotland dumped both pro teams and focused on its (frankly awful) internal leagues then that would sound the death knell for Scottish rugby as a major force in Europe. It would just go back to being the reserve of public (private) schools of the lowlands and North East of Scotland and of the Borders and people in the rest of Scotland (i.e. anyone outside of Edinburgh, Borders and Aberdeen) will just stop and think "hang on, whats the point in sending my kids to learn their trade in Rugby if we can't really compete with anyone anymore".

Don, the last thing Scotland needs to enter a period of enforced isolation, because of the fact that it'd probably never come out of it again. It'd be like never waking from an enforced coma.

What the SRU needs to do is cut their losses and franchise both teams out and give them an agreed level of funding without any administrative tricks or hiding behind clauses or whatever. Scotland needs David Moffett basically, they need someone from the outside to blitz the debt, balance the books and make some painful decisions which a Scot could never do. If not, they'll die a slow and painful death, simple as that.
 

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