Autumn series offers intrigue and also opportunities
VERN COTTER showed a side of his character few had experienced over his tenure as Scottish coach this week – a sense of humour.
When asked why WP Nel wasn’t in the squad for the autumn internationals, he cited the South African Scot’s neck injury. He added he was surprised, as he didn’t think the tight head had a neck!
Nel’s absence gives young Zander Fagerson a great opportunity to get more experience of international rugby.
A relatively new convert to the front row, Fagerson was thrown in at the deep end in the Calcutta Cup match last year and really struggled.
Since then he has had more starts for Glasgow and is improving. The autumn internationals will provide him with a tough test, given Argentina and Georgia are well known for their set-piece play.
Surprisingly, Matt Scott has been dropped from the squad, despite playing well for his new club, Gloucester. His omission was the one real shock as, for once, the squad has a settled feel about it.
The one concern is around No. 8 where there is no obvious stand-out candidate. Adam Ashe has the potential to make the position his own but is currently injured.
Josh Strauss would be the obvious starter, given Ryan Wilson’s indiscipline and tendency to drift in and out of games.
It promises to be an intriguing set of matches, as Australia seem to be in a state of transition. It will be the first meeting since the heartbreaking quarter-final in last year’s Rugby World Cup, while Argentina have proved they are worth their place in the Rugby Championship – the southern hemisphere’s Six Nations.
Meanwhile, at Murrayfield on Friday, club representatives voted overwhelmingly to support the partial sale of Glasgow and Edinburgh so that external investment is attracted to support the professional game in Scotland.
Interestingly, Scottish Rugby’s CEO Mark Dodson said that if someone approached the SRU to buy a controlling share then they would look at this possibility.
In my view, no external investor would put money into Scottish Rugby without taking a controlling interest. For to be at the behest of the governing body doesn’t make any sense, unless you are investing for purely altruistic reasons.
Dodson goes to market early next year and he has placed his reputation at stake in driving through this change.
It is no secret that, despite the sponsorship deals that Dodson & Co have secured, the ongoing finances of Scottish Rugby aren’t in great shape and it desperately needs fresh investment to keep going.
It will be interesting to see how the market reacts and whether he can find someone to sell some shares to.