DAVID SOLE
Mark Dodson’s Agenda 3 took a further step forward this week as the coaches were announced for the six teams who were successful in winning a franchise, despite the majority of clubs in National Leagues Two and Three voting to postpone the introduction of the Super 6.
It was also confirmed that the license agreements between the clubs and governing body had been signed.
Of the coach announcements, three out of the six are incumbent in their roles at their respective clubs – Peter Murchie at Ayr, Rob Chrystie at Melrose and Steve Lawrie at Watsonians.
Heriots, Boroughmuir and Stirling County will all have new coaches in position for the Super Six.
Ciaran Beattie, the former Scotland sevens player takes over from Phil Smith at Heriots, while Graeme Shiel replaces his former Scotland teammate at Boroughmuir, but most controversially, Ben Cairns, the current Currie Chieftains coach moves to Stirling County.
Currie Chieftains must be wondering what they have done to upset the SRU. Firstly, they were unsuccessful in their bid for a Super Six franchise and now their coach has been taken from them.
The club issued a statement of support for Ben Cairns, who also recorded his appreciation of his time at Currie, but privately the club must be very disappointed with this news.
‘ It was reported that Johnson is to leave his post in Scotland
It does beg the question as to how the unsuccessful incumbents at Heriots, Boroughmuir and Stirling must feel.
Whether they wanted to participate in this semi-professional game in Scotland is one thing, but it can’t be easy to turn your back on something you have invested years in building.
And despite the ongoing consultation with the clubs, and the desire to postpone the introduction of the Super Six, this week’s news is another indicator that Dodson is intent on ploughing ahead regardless.
In the same week it was reported in an Australian newspaper that Scott Johnson was due to leave his post in Scotland to take up an equivalent position in his native Australia.
The article suggested that Johnson, not Cotter or Townsend, had been credited with turning around the fortunes of Scotland’s national team and that he was returning to his homeland to do the same there.
Interestingly, Johnson’s record as a coach of the national team was far from illustrious as they lost 11 games out of 16 under his tenure.
Since transitioning from coach to Director of Rugby, the man who was rarely short of a soundbite, has been all but invisible.
The introduction of the Academies is likely to be his legacy in Scotland and that in itself is worthwhile. But whether he can turn around the fortunes of Australian rugby is another question.