Glasgow and Edinburgh: Ongoing Banter Thread VII

[George Carlin]

First topic message reminder :

Ye Olde Banter:

https://www.606v2.com/t48240-glasgow-and-edinburgh-ongoing-banter-thread
https://www.606v2.com/t51313-glasgow-and-edinburgh-ongoing-banter-thread-ii
https://www.606v2.com/t53119-glasgow-and-edinburgh-ongoing-banter-thread-iii
https://www.606v2.com/t54519-glasgow-and-edinburgh-ongoing-banter-thread-iv
https://www.606v2.com/t55409-glasgow-and-edinburgh-ongoing-banter-thread-v-the-fun-continues
https://www.606v2.com/t56913p950-glasgow-and-edinburgh-ongoing-banter-thread-vi-banter-boogaloo

A. Edinburgh
   

1. League Results

Fri 5 Sep: Munster Rugby 13 - 14 Edinburgh Rugby

Fri 12 Sep: Edinburgh Rugby 13 - 14 Connacht Rugby

Sun 21 Sep: Ospreys 62 - 13 Edinburgh Rugby

Fri 26 Sep: Edinburgh Rugby 20 - 20 Scarlets

Fri 3 Oct: Ulster Rugby 30 - 0 Edinburgh Rugby

Sat 11 Oct: Edinburgh Rugby 24 - 10 Newport Gwent Dragons

Fri 31 Oct: Leinster Rugby 33 - 8 Edinburgh Rugby

Sun 23 Nov: Edinburgh Rugby 28 - 13 Cardiff Blues

Sat 29 Nov: Zebre 18 - 10 Edinburgh Rugby

Fri 19 Dec: Edinburgh Rugby 48 - 0 Benetton Treviso

Sat 27 Dec: Glasgow Warriors 16 - 6 Edinburgh Rugby

Fri 2 Jan: Edinburgh Rugby - 20 - 8 Glasgow Warriors

Fri 9 Jan: Connacht Rugby 13 - 16 Edinburgh Rugby

Fri 13 Feb: Edinburgh Rugby 24 - 16 Ospreys

Fri 20 Feb: Edinburgh Rugby 17 - 20 Ulster Rugby

Sun 1 Mar: Cardiff Blues 21 - 15 Edinburgh Rugby

2. European Results

17/10/14: Bordeaux-Begles 13 - 15 Edinburgh Rugby

24/10/14: Edinburgh Rugby 25 - 17 Lyon

7/12/14: Edinburgh Rugby 25 - 13 London Welsh

14/12/14: London Welsh 6 - 24 Edinburgh Rugby

17/01/2015: Lyon 21 - 19 Edinburgh Rugby

23/01/2015: Edinburgh Rugby 38 - 20 Bordeaux-Begles

B. Glasgow


1. League Results

Sat 6 Sep: Glasgow Warriors 22 - 20 Leinster Rugby

Sun 14 Sep: Cardiff Blues 12 - 33 Glasgow Warriors

Sat 20 Sep: Newport Gwent Dragons 13 - 33 Glasgow Warriors

Fri 26 Sep: Glasgow Warriors 39 - 21 Connacht Rugby

Sun 5 Oct: Benetton Treviso 23 - 40 Glasgow Warriors

Sat 11 Oct: Ulster Rugby 29 - 9 Glasgow Warriors

Fri 31 Oct: Glasgow Warriors 17 - 9 Benetton Treviso

Fri 21 Nov: Scarlets 19 - 9 Glasgow Warriors

Sun 30 Nov: Glasgow Warriors 19 - 15 Newport Gwent Dragons

Sat 20 Dec: Glasgow Warriors 21 - 18 Munster Rugby

Sat 27 Dec: Glasgow Warriors 16 - 6 Edinburgh Rugby

Fri 2 Jan: Edinburgh Rugby 20 - 8 Glasgow Warriors

Fri 9 Jan: Glasgow Warriors 22 - 7 Scarlets

Sun 15 Feb: Zebre 10 - 54 Glasgow Warriors

Sat 21 Feb: Glasgow Warriors 19 - 16 Ospreys

Sat 28 Feb: Munster Rugby 22 - 10 Glasgow Warriors

2. European Results

18/10/14: Glasgow Warriors 37 - 10 Bath Rugby

25/10/14: Montpellier 13 - 15 Glasgow Warriors

7/12/14: Toulouse 19 - 11 Glasgow Warriors

13/12/14: Glasgow Warriors 9 - 12 Toulouse

18/01/2015: Glasgow Warriors 21 - 10 Montpellier

25/01/2015: Bath Rugby 20 - 15 Glasgow Warriors

[VinceWLB]

Saw a post by Sean Maitland on Instagram last night and he has been in for shoulder surgery at the weekend I think. Would imagine he will be out until the end of the season now!

To be fair, with DTH, Seymour and Hogg, Maitland has been a luxury Glasgow couldn't afford. I still can't quite pardon him why he didn't pass it to Seymour at the end against Bath showed why he is a good player only, not a great one.

Still a bit sad we wont probably see him in a Glasgow shirt again.

[funnyExiledScot]

The begining of next season is going to be very interesting in the Pro 12 as a lot of teams will be giviing a lot of players away to their respective world cup squads and so previous form may well be going out of the window.

I am actually looking this as a positive thing, as it will allow a lot of the youngsters to get a bit more game time than they would do normally and we might unearth a few more diamonds in the process.

Agreed - Edinburgh could do well during this period:

1.Sutherland 2.Cochrane 3.Andress 4.Bresler 5.MacKenzie 6.Coman 7.Grant 8.Manu 9.Kennedy 10.Te Rure 11.Hoyland 12.Burleigh 13.Beard 14.Fife 15.Cuthbert

That's assuming we don't sign anyone else between now and the start of next season. If Fife makes the squad then add in Jamie Farndale.

That's a really strong pack in particular, and a very attack minded half back pairing. I even managed to ignore Strauss and Blake, and if we keep hold of Bezzy, then we can avoid the headless chicken at 10.

[EWT Spoons]

The begining of next season is going to be very interesting in the Pro 12 as a lot of teams will be giviing a lot of players away to their respective world cup squads and so previous form may well be going out of the window.

I am actually looking this as a positive thing, as it will allow a lot of the youngsters to get a bit more game time than they would do normally and we might unearth a few more diamonds in the process.

Agreed - Edinburgh could do well during this period:

1.Sutherland 2.Cochrane 3.Andress 4.Bresler 5.MacKenzie 6.Coman 7.Grant 8.Manu 9.Kennedy 10.Te Rure 11.Hoyland 12.Burleigh 13.Beard 14.Fife 15.Cuthbert

That's assuming we don't sign anyone else between now and the start of next season. If Fife makes the squad then add in Jamie Farndale.

That's a really strong pack in particular, and a very attack minded half back pairing. I even managed to ignore Strauss and Blake, and if we keep hold of Bezzy, then we can avoid the headless chicken at 10.

Decent looking team, but would rather Andress wasn’t starting, with any luck Berghan steps up, or AN other.

Also I think Bezzy’s contract is up in the summer, so would be surprised if he was still about considering how little he’s played (is he injured?)

[InjuredYetAgain]

A decent team fES but I can only hope that Andress gets himself sorted out or we might struggle.
Not totally convinced by the half backs eithrr but we haven't seen too much of Te Rure to know what he is like.

[RDW]

haven't seen too much of Te Rure to know what he is like.

He's rubbish.

[Nematode]

Te Rure is heading off at the end of the season is he not?

Anyone know what the situation is with Piers Francis's contract? Is he off at the end of the season? Surely a new FH signing is in the pipeworks?

[RDW]

Francis left ages ago!

[Nematode]

Francis left ages ago!

[RDW]

At the end of last season in fact!

[Nematode]

I thought he'd joined Nikki Walker (alumni), Joaquin Dominguez and Murray McConnell spooks appreciation society of the SRU.

[jimbopip]

The begining of next season is going to be very interesting in the Pro 12 as a lot of teams will be giviing a lot of players away to their respective world cup squads and so previous form may well be going out of the window.

I am actually looking this as a positive thing, as it will allow a lot of the youngsters to get a bit more game time than they would do normally and we might unearth a few more diamonds in the process.

Agreed - Edinburgh could do well during this period:

1.Sutherland 2.Cochrane 3.Andress 4.Bresler 5.MacKenzie 6.Coman 7.Grant 8.Manu 9.Kennedy 10.Te Rure 11.Hoyland 12.Burleigh 13.Beard 14.Fife 15.Cuthbert

That's assuming we don't sign anyone else between now and the start of next season. If Fife makes the squad then add in Jamie Farndale.

That's a really strong pack in particular, and a very attack minded half back pairing. I even managed to ignore Strauss and Blake, and if we keep hold of Bezzy, then we can avoid the headless chicken at 10.

A decent looking team, Fes, but no Tonks which echoes my thoughts that he shouldn't be considered for the World Cup squad. If he can't get a start for the MFL what hope is there for him?

[InjuredYetAgain]

haven't seen too much of Te Rure to know what he is like.

He's rubbish.

There will be no splinters in your arse from sitting on a fence then RDW.

[RDW]

Long running theme - I've been fairly vocal in my opinions on him!

[InjuredYetAgain]

Clearly

[InjuredYetAgain]

Right, change of tack.
Any reckon there will any surprises for the summer WC training squad? I imagine Strauss and Nel will be there (even though, Strauss won't be SQ by early summer, I guess that there is nothing preventing him as it is only a training camp) but I can't see anyone who wasn't involved in the 6N squad apart from anyone who was injured coming in this late on. And I include Hugh Blake in that last category.
Self-edit - if Rory Sutherland wasn't included in any of the 6N enlarged squads, he might be the only late bolter that I can think of

[Nematode]

I reckon the following players are on the periphery:

Rory Sutherland, (Stuart McInally, Pat MacArthur), (Ben Toolis, Jim Hamilton, Tim Swinson), (Chris Cusiter, Henry Pyrgos), Duncan Taylor

[funnyExiledScot]

The begining of next season is going to be very interesting in the Pro 12 as a lot of teams will be giviing a lot of players away to their respective world cup squads and so previous form may well be going out of the window.

I am actually looking this as a positive thing, as it will allow a lot of the youngsters to get a bit more game time than they would do normally and we might unearth a few more diamonds in the process.

Agreed - Edinburgh could do well during this period:

1.Sutherland 2.Cochrane 3.Andress 4.Bresler 5.MacKenzie 6.Coman 7.Grant 8.Manu 9.Kennedy 10.Te Rure 11.Hoyland 12.Burleigh 13.Beard 14.Fife 15.Cuthbert

That's assuming we don't sign anyone else between now and the start of next season. If Fife makes the squad then add in Jamie Farndale.

That's a really strong pack in particular, and a very attack minded half back pairing. I even managed to ignore Strauss and Blake, and if we keep hold of Bezzy, then we can avoid the headless chicken at 10.

A decent looking team, Fes, but no Tonks which echoes my thoughts that he shouldn't be considered for the World Cup squad. If he can't get a start for the MFL what hope is there for him?

I didn't include Tonks because I think he'll almost certainly be included in the WC squad as a 3rd choice 10 and cover at 15.

[jimbopip]

Sorry Fes but you really need to start taking the medication again.
Jack Cuthbert is preferred to Tonks at fullback: says it all, Cuthbert is a solid team player but milk turns quicker.
He (Tonks) isn't really the MFL first choice 10 either is he? Which would be alright if you had a Dan Carter type keeping him out.
The Finnocent One is the first choice, then Wee Dunky if he is fit, ditto Rhuaridh. Then Hornee Furra Linee as utility back (10, 12 15, weddings and Bar Mitzvahs)
As for bolters look no further than Richie V. The most improved player in the northern hemisphere and truly world class.
Of course whether Jamesie Cotter and Rab C Johnson are wise enough to see these self evident truths....

[RDW]

Do you even watch Edinburgh games pip?  

The reason Cuthbert starts at 15 is because Tonks has been regularly starting at 10 - and doing well.

Yes Weir and Jackson will be back but we don't know when, certainly not this season, and given Tonks run in with Edinburgh and his recent selection on the bench for Scotland he's certainly in the mix.

[jimbopip]

RDW, I try to watch the Luvvies. I really do. But after the rich fare they serve up at Scotstoun...

Tonks will be in the mix but that's a mix that looks like having Frodo as first choice scrum half FFS.

I was at Twickenham watching both Scott (12) and Tonks fail to stand in for Alex Dunbar. We would have been better served , defensively, having Richie V in the first 40 as he would at least have tackled Joseph once in a while. Hornee in the second 40 would have been able to get us out of our half of the pitch. Actually with the service Frodo the Ponderous was giving the love child of Barry John and Stephen Larkham would have struggled to get us moving.

[EWT Spoons]

Tonks has been doing well at 10 for Edinburgh and is indeed first choice for the club. I think he’ll be included in the WC squad (injuries aside) as he’s a good fullback and standoff. Horne would really be the only challenger given our other 10s are unlikely to be back from injury. Could be a toss up between them, but I think Tonks possibly edges it. But that could be my Edinburgh bias, also given players are dropping like flies (especially in the centre) there could also be the argument that both will go. Tonks at 10, Horne at 12

On that theme, if Ritchie V can continue the form he showed in the last game, then he could easily be in with a shout given at 12 we really only have Scott, who’s not been great and is apparently injured again, Dunbar is almost certainly out, so that leaves Taylor who seems to be somewhat out in the cold from a Scotland perspective, Horne (who will probably go) and not really much else, or more specifically no on else I can remember at the moment. However, it's early days for Vernon and he needs to keep it up.

[jimbopip]

Agreed Spoons . We have gone from two outstanding 12s, Dunbar and Scott (12), to struggling to find anyone fit and in form enough to warrant a place. Jamesie Cotter will either decide on Scott and play him in every one of the warm up games in the hope he finds his form of old or he will give starts to ; Taylor, Vernon, Horne and Tonks. Given how he has stuck with Frodo I think I can predict how it will go. Scott, Scott and Scott. Then he gets injured in the final warm up game.
Russell-Vernon-Messiah. You know it makes sense. With Hornee on the bench covering all three, because you can never have too much world class.

[RDW]

I think the jury is still out on Vernon - he had a barnstorming game against Leinster but that was very much a one off since his positional switch. He's not done much wrong and has shown the odd flash of promise, but the Leinster game was the first time he put in a full performance.

So let's see him do that over a number of games before pencilling him in to the Scotland 12 shirt!

[BigGee]

If Horne could remotely bring his Glasgow form into the international team, then he would be the man. Unfortunately he still has that to prove.

Don't write off Duncan Taylor either, he has been injured and that is why he has not played. A decent player who would certainly do a job.

Duncan Weir was hoping for a comeback this week, it will be interesting to see if he makes the bench, especially if FR has not got over his twisted ankle. It may well be wise to give him another week off in any case and save him for the big games that are coming up.

Schalk Brits was back playing for Saracens last week after doing his ACL earlier in the season, so a 5-6 month recovery is possible, if unlikely. We can't completely rule Jacko or Dunbar out yet, both may be fit by September.

Our best WC squad may yet come together, despite all of this years injuries.

[Nematode]

ER just put out a tweet:

"Cheer us on as we aim to be the 1st ever Scottish team to reach a European Semi final"

I thought they already were in the semi-final - and had got to a semi final vs Ulster?

[funnyExiledScot]

Sorry Fes but you really need to start taking the medication again.
Jack Cuthbert is preferred to Tonks at fullback: says it all, Cuthbert is a solid team player but milk turns quicker.
He (Tonks) isn't really the MFL first choice 10 either is he? Which would be alright if you had a Dan Carter type keeping him out.
The Finnocent One is the first choice, then Wee Dunky if he is fit, ditto Rhuaridh. Then Hornee Furra Linee as utility back (10, 12 15, weddings and Bar Mitzvahs)
As for bolters look no further than Richie V. The most improved player in the northern hemisphere and truly world class.
Of course whether Jamesie Cotter and Rab C Johnson are wise enough to see these self evident truths....

Yes he is.

Cuthbert is "preferred" to Tonks at 15 because Tonks is playing at 10. Not even Al Kellock mastered playing two positions at once.

There is a legitimate debate to be had over whether to select Horne or Tonks as the utility option, but because Tonks is a better player I'd go with him.

[madmaccas]

D'arcy Rae has been loaned to LS for the rest of the season.

Reckon this is a good move as he needs more game time and could be handy for the Championship playoffs.

[Nematode]

D'arcy Rae has been loaned to LS for the rest of the season.

Reckon this is a good move as he needs more game time and could be handy for the Championship playoffs.

He'll be fairly racking up the air miles the amount he's been loaned out...

[funnyExiledScot]

Good move for him. With Welsh still about, Cusack back and needing action plus De Klerk showing promise better for him to get some gametime with LS.

[BigGee]

Pretty impressive team Glasgow are sending down to the sevens on Saturday. Niko, Eddie, Lyle, Blake, Spinks, Byrce G and Hughes amongst others. A lot of pace and power there and will take a bit of beating you would imagine.

I guess if they are turning up for a tournament like that then they need to take it seriously and they are!

[funnyExiledScot]

Agreed - Niko is a complete menace on a 7s field and there are plenty good players around him - Hughes in particular is pretty handy.

What's Sean Lamont doing with himself at the moment? Could be a pretty handy forward in 7s.

[RDW]

Lamont is out for the rest of the season I think.

I know the crowd want to see Niko, but is it really worth Glasgow losing one of their most potent attacking weapons for a must-win game?

[Majestic83]

Good squad being put out by Glasgow, not sure if it's as strong as last years though with not quite as much pace.
Think they should still be good enough to retain the title though.

[BigGee]

Lamont is out for the rest of the season I think.

I know the crowd want to see Niko, but is it really worth Glasgow losing one of their most potent attacking weapons for a must-win game?

Always 2 sides to Niko remember, he almost cost us the match v Leinster!

I don't think that is why he is playing sevens though, once Henners was back and ready for a start, Niko was always likely to be playing in Melrose, an experience, judging by last year that he enjoys anyway. Maybe he fancies playing for Fiji in the Olympics and wants to keep his hand in, they are planning to bring some of their overseas players back for that.

Henry is likely to start the big games for the rest of the season and Niko will bench, that is probably the natural order of things at Glasgow now. Niko still has not really shown us that he is a starting SH.

Toonie will rotate and trusts his players to do a job. If they don't beat the Blues it will not be because he has sent Niko to Melrose.

[BigGee]

Good squad being put out by Glasgow, not sure if it's as strong as last years though with not quite as much pace.
Think they should still be good enough to retain the title though.

Pretty much any side that loses Carlin Isles, who seems to have gone from strength to strength on the sevens circuit this year, is not going to have as much pace!

[RDW]

Anyone fancy doing an Edinburgh-Munster thread?

I'm worried all this chat about the Euro Semi has detracted from what is a massive game on Saturday night. Hopefully the players don't see it that way!

[Nematode]

Anyone fancy doing an Edinburgh-Munster thread?

I'm worried all this chat about the Euro Semi has detracted from what is a massive game on Saturday night.  Hopefully the players don't see it that way!

I'll give it a shot. Won't be as good as the usual threads, but at least somewhere to put comments.

[Scottish White Line Fever]

The BBC are reporting that the SRU may disband the 7s team as Glasgow is losing the right to host a World Series leg. Although the 7s circuit is a good place for youngsters to learn their trade, that money might be better served invested in grass roots rugby or paying off the SRU debt with a view to developing a third pro team. http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/rugby-union/32237563

It's also been confirmed that Maitland is out for the rest of the season. On a separate note, Ruaridh Jackson's tweets suggest that he's into the final stages of his rehab but hasn't started full training yet. So he should be fit for the WC warm-ups, but I doubt he'll feature over the remainder of the season.

[Nematode]

Are there any notable players of late that have grown from the sevens team i.e. it's been an indispensable part of their career?

[TJ]

I've no problem with them dropping the sevens. we do not have the resources financial or players and it splits the effort. Not sdure how relevant it is to the 15 game nowadays anyway

[George Carlin]

Are there any notable players of late that have grown from the sevens team i.e. it's been an indispensable part of their career?

Not unless you count Lee Jones looking considerably less urine poor on a rugby pitch.

It's been done to death already on these boards but I think that 7s is a howling waste of money and if this slight is the excuse that we need to get out of the cash commitment, then I would support it without reservation. At best, 7s has been a tool to get Glasgow and Edinburgh players back to fitness post-injury but then again, so is playing for your allocated Hydro club sides and that's completely free.

More irritatingly, 7s has been a way to deny talented players the chance of starting for their pro sides (Farndale, Fleming and Hoyland leap to mind), has doubled as a holding pen for players that aren't good enough at 15 a side to ease their way to retirement (hirple forward, Colin Gregor) or has acted as a useful means for important players to get crocked just as the national side needs them (Lamont, Bennett).

I am aware that we only have 2 pro sides and getting players who are at the least developing core skills in a collegiate set up is worthwhile to a degree but it's a chicken and egg situation and we need to feed the grass roots.

I don't want to poo in the salad too much as I enjoy watching 7s, but the bottom line can be best illustrated by looking over the garden fence at Ireland, which does not have a 7s team. You tell me. How is Irish rugby doing?

[BigGee]

I think given our heritage with seven a side rugby, we invented it for goodness sake and it remains a very popular part of Scottish rugby culture, it would be a terrible shame if we stopped participating in it at the top level.

That is even more pertinent when, after many years trying, we have eventually put together a team that seems to be competitive at this level. This is the best season we have ever had, leading on from the CG and the Olympics to come.

It does not make a lot of sense why we have lost our tournament. It was maybe not the best attended, but plenty of others don't fill their stadiums either. I don't think we stood out as the one that needed to go. Places like Singapore have no rugby history and may or may not be a successful venue. Why not expand the whole series rather than kill off existing successful tournaments?

[TJ]

We have never really participated at the top level have we?

[InjuredYetAgain]

I used to defend the 7s team (well, they certainly couldn't do any defending judging by previous years' results but, even though they seem to have turned a corner this season, their time has passed. In fact, looking at the half empty stadia everywhere on the circuit apart from HK and Twickenham, I think 7's is on the wane in the wider picture.
We did try to tie the Evans brothers to Scotland via 7s but, beyond that, it hasn't been a fertile breeding ground. The fact that they had to recruit non-specialist "star names" like Stuart Hogg for the Commonwealth Games spoke volumes for the quality of player we have. I believe that 7's used to be a net contributor the SRU's finances hence why we persisted at it but I also believe that this may have changed. Time to use the cash elsewhere (and let Colin Gregor go back to sleeping rough)

[BigGee]

Are there any notable players of late that have grown from the sevens team i.e. it's been an indispensable part of their career?

Not unless you count Lee Jones looking considerably less urine poor on a rugby pitch.

It's been done to death already on these boards but I think that 7s is a howling waste of money and if this slight is the excuse that we need to get out of the cash commitment, then I would support it without reservation. At best, 7s has been a tool to get Glasgow and Edinburgh players back to fitness post-injury but then again, so is playing for your allocated Hydro club sides and that's completely free.

More irritatingly, 7s has been a way to deny talented players the chance of starting for their pro sides (Farndale, Fleming and Hoyland leap to mind), has doubled as a holding pen for players that aren't good enough at 15 a side to ease their way to retirement (hirple forward, Colin Gregor) or has acted as a useful means for important players to get crocked just as the national side needs them (Lamont, Bennett).

I am aware that we only have 2 pro sides and getting players who are at the least developing core skills in a collegiate set up is worthwhile to a degree but it's a chicken and egg situation and we need to feed the grass roots.

I don't want to poo in the salad too much as I enjoy watching 7s, but the bottom line can be best illustrated by looking over the garden fence at Ireland, which does not have a 7s team. You tell me. How is Irish rugby doing?

Going to disagree with you George, I think sevens is a good tool for young players to develop and to help them make the transition from decent juniors to pros. Hoyland and Dean were in no way ready for Pro rugby this year, but may well be after a full year of playing competitive sevens and the conditioning that goes with it. Lyle I am sure has benefitted as well, as have Eddie and Jones, who have been kept sharp and hungry in a way that they would not have playing for premiership clubs.

Ireland have a set up of 4 Pro teams already, they don't have a history of sevens like we do, nor do they need it, but you do hear that they are interested in it, especially once it becomes an Olympic sport. Getting rid of our sevens team won't bring on a third team any quicker. It may free up a little money, but probably not much, as by the sound of things money from the tournament was pivotal to funding them anyway. Nor will it solve the other problems of them not having a league to play in, nor an audience to play to, which are the main reasons we don't have one anyway.

We would be much better at sticking with it for now. It is likely to become more and more popular. The CG event showed that people who don't normally watch rugby can go and enjoy it and that the potential support for it is there. If we try to get back on the bandwagon in the future, we will be so far left behind.

Sevens was invented in Scotland, there is a thriving scene here in the club game, unlike most parts of the world. It is part of our heritage and it would be very irresponsible to walk away from it.

[TJ]

We do not have to walk from amateur sevens. Pro 7s divides our efforts. we simply do not have the player base.

[InjuredYetAgain]

Sevens was invented in Scotland, there is a thriving scene here in the club game, unlike most parts of the world. It is part of our heritage and it would be very irresponsible to walk away from it.

I saw this only semi-facetiously. Sectarianism, a god awful diet, Alex Salmond and Glasgow are all part of our heritage but, let's be honest, we wouldn't (or didn't!) want to keep any of them. I know what you are saying but the likes of the guys you mentioned might gain more for playing development games against e.g. English academy sides, Pro12 development sides, using the money for travel that would otherwise have been spent on flying the 7s squad round the world on a jolly

[BigGee]

I think sevens becoming part of the Olympics is going to take it to a new level. The success of British cycling on the road now is down to the success obtained in the Olympic velodrome. It is a shop window for a sport like no other. There would be some Scottish players in the GB, seven, but probably not if we are not playing the game competitively.

That could be one of the sparks to get the next generation of kids to take up rugby.

[RDW]

I've got to say I'm in the Pro 7s camp.

Yes there are some players who are 7s players only and wouldn't make it with any of the pro teams (Gregor, Riddell, Robertson, Turnbull, Shaw etc), but then there are exciting youngsters coming through who will be learning a hell of a lot from the experience. And the fact is, you need a core group of players that play year in year out so the youngsters come in to a settled environment - you can't start a brand new squad every year.

The fact is that if the 7s team wasn't there, then what else would the young players have available to them? Are people really saying that Hoyland and Dean would benefit more from playing for Edinburgh Accies against Boroughmuir on a wet and minging November afternoon than playing against some of the fastest and most explosive athletes in the game on a dry track?

Until there is a viable alternative for fringe squad players and young players coming through (which is a long way off), the 7s team is all we have just now.

Also, given we don't pay anything towards it what is the big deal??

[BigGee]

I've got to say I'm in the Pro 7s camp.

Yes there are some players who are 7s players only and wouldn't make it with any of the pro teams (Gregor, Riddell, Robertson, Turnbull, Shaw etc), but then there are exciting youngsters coming through who will be learning a hell of a lot from the experience.  And the fact is, you need a core group of players that play year in year out so the youngsters come in to a settled environment - you can't start a brand new squad every year.

The fact is that if the 7s team wasn't there, then what else would the young players have available to them? Are people really saying that Hoyland and Dean would benefit more from playing for Edinburgh Accies against Boroughmuir on a wet and minging November afternoon than playing against some of the fastest and most explosive athletes in the game on a dry track?

Until there is a viable alternative for fringe squad players and young players coming through (which is a long way off), the 7s team is all we have just now.

Also, given we don't pay anything towards it what is the big deal??

It sounds like that is the problem though. If we lose the home sevens leg, we will be out of pocket and will have to start paying for them. If that was not happening then we would not be having this conversation.

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