GEORGE Jack will stand for a second and final year as SRU president and, signifying a more strident leadership style, he is to propose a new league structure without a Scottish Cup.
Jack took on the new role of ambassadorial leader from Andy Irvine last summer, pipping Peter Brown and Jim Stevenson in an extremely close vote at the SRU agm. He has taken a much more low-key approach to Irvine, following through with his promise
to spend less time at the political end of Scottish rugby and more at the grassroots by visiting all 64 Premiership and National League clubs in the past ten months.
A clear message he says he has picked up from clubs in that time has been a need for more decisive leadership from Murrayfield and he spent yesterday afternoon in an SRU board meeting securing agreement for a new structure for the club season.
That has become a monotonously moveable feast over the past decade, with shifts from eight-club divisions to 12, to ten and back to 12; the introduction of a cup tournament and subsequent splitting into four competitions; and regular complaints over clashes with international matches and the development of age-grade squads.
Disagreement has been rife and for Jack it has reached a point where decisive action is necessary. But he accepts that plotting a new path would ensure a rockier period as president if he was to win again, and perhaps even create enemies before the election.
In a proposal to go before the agm in June, the major change suggested is dropping the cup. Jack explained: "The structure of the season is one of the bug-bears of people's lives and I know many people in the game feel we've been staggering around for years continually making changes with little real benefit.
"The message I've received from many clubs is that the SRU has to take a firmer lead – listen to views, develop a plan of action and act. I won't duck that so that's what we've done and while I know it will never please everyone my hope is that clubs come together to make it work and give us something to build on and improve from.
"The proposal going to the clubs would be that the cup is scrapped for one year to allow other things to be developed, but not necessarily go forever, unless that was what the clubs wanted. But this would give us a bit of breathing space and allow us to look at enhancing the club season. A major concern was the support of the sponsors, but Scottish Hydro Electric are comfortable with this proposal and may even get involved with new aspects."
One "aspect" being promoted, and which SHE is said to be interested in, is more local league and/or cup competitions. The Border League attracts bigger crowds and generates more bar takings at many of its local derbies than league and cup fixtures, and it is believed that similar Glasgow, Edinburgh and Caledonia set-ups might provide an attractive second competition after the league championships.
The cup, which holds its 13th final tomorrow week, was launched in 1995-96 with Hawick the first winners, yet the Borders club has recently called for it to be scrapped, citing costs and the poor cup final crowds as major problems. Other clubs believe it remains a terrific tournament, providing lower-league clubs with great one-off events against the big names.
Jack stated that he welcomes the competition for presidency from Stevenson, the Cambuslang president, but it is clear he has a deep desire to continue and help effect change.
"I do feel I have a bit of unfinished business," he added. "It's not so much what goes on with the cup or league structure, though I'd be delighted if that helped the club game, but I set out with the intention of wearing out some shoe leather by getting around all the Premiership and National League clubs, and taking members of the Scottish Rugby Council and executive board with me, to help our game come together.
"Now I'd like to get around the regional league clubs – clubs like Garioch, Cumnock and Orkney. It's not about 'George Jack' walking in there and talking to them, but SRU officials showing willingness to engage and genuinely listen, which is vital."
• Melrose face the possibility of three big games in ten days if they are to seal a Scottish Cup and Border League double.
The Greenyards club will play Jed-Forest on Tuesday, 6 May, three days after the SHE Cup final with Heriot's at Murrayfield, to determine who face Selkirk in the Border League play-off final on 12 May. Selkirk qualified for the final this week by beating Hawick 23-22, tries from Ross Armstrong, Ross Nixon and Scott Hendrie hauling back a 22-5 half-time deficit.
The full article contains 823 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
