Signs are good as season draws to a close

Schools and youth rugby have all but signed off for a season in which the high points were the Scotland Under-18 side’s victories over England, France and Ireland in the inaugural Six Nations Festival.

What this suggests is a system, at the elite end, that is working. Moreover it confirms that the search for Scottish-qualified players based outside Scotland is efficient, evident, too, at the recent Colwyn Bay Under-16 Festival in North Wales, where a Scottish exiles team, colourfully named ‘The Greens’ performed well.

The Greens, in fact, were one of three teams, all colour coded, fielded by Scotland at Colwyn Bay and this willingness to involve so many at this age level in representative rugby counters criticism of shutting the door on youngsters at too early an age.

Scottish Rugby also invested in Under-17 age grade rugby and this month’s Academy District Championship certainly provided opportunities for a number of players who in the past, might have been overlooked simply because they did not play for the ‘right’ school or club.

In the event Caledonia won the title by defeating East Lothian and Borders in the final. But what was hugely encouraging was the high proportion of state school and club players in the East Lothian and Borders side, notably the representatives from Preston Lodge, a school/ club which targeted resources have been intelligently directed.

Among other factors that have contributed to their improvement, being part of the school conferences has been beneficial to Preston Lodge, but the East Lothian outfit still have some way to go before they are playing at the top levels in these competitions.

The stark reality is that a number of leading schools have created a massive gap between them and the rest, Watson’ s, Strathallan, Stewart’s- melville and merc hist on becoming centres of excellence.

Strathallan confirmed their top status in senior schools rugby by winning the Scottish Schools Under-18 Cup by an unhealthily large margin over their Perthshire neighbours, Glenalmond, bringing into question the matter of an unseeded draw.

In club rugby at youth level, Stirling County led the way by winning the Under-18 Cup with victory over Ayr while Boroughmuir, profiting from the success of their new academy, took the Under-16 title. But there remains an unwillingness in Scottish rugby to embrace integration of schools and clubs in meaningful competitions.