The glum statistic about this weekend's Scotland squad
The dwindling impact of the once mighty Borders rugby production factory reaches a nadir this weekend with a Scotland squad selected for the first time since the war without a single Borderer included.
The one region in Scotland where rugby has always been the no1 working class game, with versions developed through several centuries, and which has produced more international rugby players per head of population than any other, has become somewhat cut off from the supply of the country’s leading players.
Scotland has become a byword for the impact of exiles on teams around the globe, and in this Six Nations Championship is the squad most heavily dependent on players from elsewhere. The statistics show Scotland with over 52 percent of its squad being born outside Scotland, compared to 23 percent in the Italian side, 21 percent with Ireland, 13 percent in England’s squad, 12 percent of the Welsh squad and 11 percent with France. While Italy and Ireland both have more than 80 percent home-grown players and France, England and Wales more than 90 percent, the Scots have just 48 percent of its squad developed in Scotland.
With Sam Skinner having only returned from injury for Edinburgh two weeks ago, there was a possibility that Glen Young would have stepped into the Borders vacancy left by the injured Darcy Graham, retirement of Stuart Hogg and dropped prop Rory Sutherland. But Gregor Townsend and John Dalziel, his forwards chief, ironically both Borderers, have opted for a not yet fully fit Skinner over Young on account of his experience.
Young could yet force his way in, however, as he is an underrated player. A full-back until his mid-teens, he grew up in Jedburgh with cousins Gregor and Lewis Young, two fine back three players who would go on to play for Scotland at sevens. Young’s handling skills and surety under the high ball are testament to those days growing up as a back, before his continued growth to an eventual 6ft 6ins had coaches pushing him into the second and back rows.
He is keen to push for his chance in coming weeks, but like many players from small towns he speaks about the honour of selection as being much more than his, something shared across his community.
“This is my first Six Nations, so I’m really excited about being involved,” he said. “It’s the one I grew up watching. You had the World Cup every four years, which as exciting but I don’t remember watching that too much, but I remember watching every Six Nations and dreaming of playing for Scotland. At half times you would always go out into my street and play, pretending you were playing for Scotland.
“I can just remember watching boys like Ross Ford and Mossy playing, and just loving it. We used to go out and play 2 v 2, full contact on the concrete. I don’t think any of us got our head split open or anything, but we’d pretend at half-time we were playing so it’s amazing to be here now. I have a lot of boy cousins, but I’m the biggest which is good.
“It means a lot to me and the people of the town. Greig Laidlaw obviously is a Jed boy, and to see the reaction he got when he started playing for Scotland, and he way the town got behind him, was amazing. They are so passionate about it and when I have been involved in camps, they get so behind you. When I saw that Greig could do it, and he’s just a regular, Jed guy, it didn’t look too far out of reach.
“I’ve got fly the flag for the Borders. It’s disappointing not having Darcy here, but all the towns are so passionate about it and you see how Hawick get behind the Hawick boys, and so it’s good to represent them.”
On its own, Scotland’s reliance on players identified from scouring the globe for Scottish connections is not alarming, as they, and most nations, have done it for decades. Even going back to Scotland’s first Grand Slam of 1925, a key player was wing Johnnie Wallace, an Australian. The Grand Slam squad of 1984 was a strong Scottish one, and intriguingly was more than 50 percent Borderers, but the 1990 squad had a handful of players with backgrounds across England, South Africa and New Zealand.
It has been crucial for Scotland’s survival at the top table. Scotland has the smallest number of rugby players by some distance, with only around 5,000 adult men involved in regular rugby, just over 100 professional players in the country and, as a result of the lack of numbers, a far less cohesive, competitive development system between the key ages of 16 and 21 than their rivals.
France, second to England in number of players, have quite deliberately turned around their worrying reliance on flown-in overseas players by adopting the ‘JIFF’ system, where clubs must develop its own talent through the ‘espoirs’ and field a large percentage of French-qualified players in every matchday squad. Not only have their national teams improved, their support has risen significantly, unsurprisingly, because sport owes much to affinity and affinity is stronger when supporters know who they are watching.
It is ironic that the trend has become so sharp under Gregor Townsend and his forwards coach, John Dalziel, both proud Borderers hailing from Galashiels. Centurion caps Ross Ford, Chris Paterson and Stuart Hogg have perhaps put a gloss on Borders’ influence in the past two decades, and Townsend would like it to be very different, with a squad drawn from players produced across Scotland inspiring their towns and cities and all who follow their paths. But, he is a realist and will leave no stone unturned to achieve the aim of leading Scotland to a Six Nations title.
The real concerns lie with a Scottish Rugby system that shut down a professional presence in the Borders, not once but twice in the first decade of professionalism, and then turned its back on the one area where legends roam, pubs will be packed in the coming weeks and children still reel off the names of Six Nations stars in their sleep – when they’re not bashing each other in the street.
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*In 2017, Scotland defeated Australia 53-24 at Murrayfield without a Borderer in squad – Hogg had been selected but went down with an injury in the warm-up.
Credit: Kevin Millar for his help with statistics
Comments on RugbyPass
Well if Parling is an Australian citizen then I suppose that’s OK. It’s more than can be said for The Hobbit in Absentia. I’m guessing Jordan Useless won’t be getting a call up to the Wallabies then because the Melbourne Rebels lineout coached by Parling has been a complete disaster. Parling had better prove himself or it’s out. He’ll be flattered by having one of the best lineout operators in world rugby in Rodda hopefully. If Parling can teach the Wallabies one thing it would be to also teach Australian players to make a serious effort on charge downs. Only Frost and Rodda make an effort. The rest are half hearted and lazy, bar Harry Wilson’s effort last week. There are lots of big missed opportunities.
27 Go to commentsGreat read thanks and glad he’s committed to Aus rugby! The comment from the no 8 saying he’s never done lineouts before doesn’t surprise me. There often isn’t the same upbringing with rugby here as there is in nz and parts of Europe. Seems like he’s doing a great job at the Rebels
27 Go to commentsScott Barrett. End of story.
1 Go to commentsDu Plessis Kirifi will not be selected by the All Blacks. He is nowhere near 6’0” tall. He looks good in Super Rugby in wide open , fast pace rugby. That is not Test rugby. He would be rag dolled by South Africa, Ireland, France, and England.
7 Go to commentsIt’s Razor so Blackadder and Grace for starters. Although on second thoughts K Read looked in great shape on TV the other day.
34 Go to commentsGreat piece Nick, plenty to chew on. Loved this ‘biases’ line from Geoff, shows he is a thinker - “If you asked me for a shortlist of coaches who appealed to my biases, he would be on it.” I think Schmidt is towing a similar line to Rennie in regards to OS players, he is publicly saying he prefers local talent, but almost certainly will be fighting to have the likes of skelton in the team. Interesting to hear the backroom on the rebels and what a cockup that is, just when you think RA admin has hit rock bottom it digs deeper. Other bit that caught my eye was his skills focus on things like passing from 7s at the base of the lineout, great little details. but also scary that a SR level 8 didn’t know how to operate within a lineout - telling!
27 Go to commentsThoroughly enjoyed this thanks Nick. ‘The lineout starts on the ground…’ wish I’d thought of that line when discussing Will’s place in the Wallabies.
27 Go to commentsShannon Frizell’s second year is optional is how I heard it. Given nothing has been confirmed yet it gets more and more likely he signs to return next year. Cant wait to see Finau doing more work on Internal players.
34 Go to commentsBlindside flankers should be hard hitting defenders, good lineout jumper with height, and a hard worker who hits and cleans rucks. If he can be a destructive ball carrier it’s a bonus but not a necessity. Samipeni Fineau and Cullen Grace are excellent at those core skills and my choice at blindside. Brad Shields is dismissed because he is 33 but not sure why that should be a consideration for this season. Shields too does these core roles well. Just don’t pick an 8 and shift him to 6 like the wingers on The Breakdown suggest, as if 6 and 8 are interchangeable. They are not. An 8 is first and foremost a dynamic ball carrier, not necessarily a destructive defender as a 6 should be. Devon Flanders and Akira Ioane are #8 s forced to play blindside because their teams have better options at 8 than them. Do not pick them at blindside
34 Go to commentsSaints obviously didn’t get the memo, or needed an ego boost?
1 Go to commentsReturning to the Chiefs would be another good change that could only put him into a better position to succeed in black
7 Go to commentsSimply outrageous and demonstrably false to say Finau’s tackle on Lynagh was “2 seconds late” In reality it was probably 0.5 seconds after he passed the ball. If you carry the ball at speed to within 5m of the defensive line you can expect to get tackled. Finau could have pulled out of it and not absolutely flattened him for sure, but there was going to be contact either way. He seems like a high risk selection at the moment, but there is no one else like him in NZ at the moment. His big tackles make the highlight reels but he is also a great athlete, very fast for such a big man, spent most of his days at lock so also very strong in the line out.
34 Go to commentsYes, Finau looks like the best option. Blackadder is not big enough for an international 6 - he should join the queue at 7. Frizzell had the power and heft and line-out height to play lock, so maybe that is where the ABs should be looking, not at a 7 who’s not big enough for 6, but at a lock who might have the agility to play 6, like Scott Barrett, or… Natai Ah Kuoi, who absolutely fits that bill, but seldom gets to play 6 because the Chiefs have so many loosies.
34 Go to commentsPaul Quinn was a National MP.
7 Go to commentsNo need to worry about losers’ mentality hysteria from Australia. Finau has all the attributes, I don't recall a high or no arms tackle from him, and his timing has been controlled very well since the round 3 Lynagh tackle. It's an easy decision for Razor, the only question is who should back him up from the bench. He can't be overworked like Squire was in his first full season.
34 Go to comments“Reds coach Les Kiss saying later: “I think every player has the right to feel safe.” Maybe Rugby is the wrong sport for people who want to feel safe..?
34 Go to commentsNot sure what the context was, but the highlights showed one scrum against Aussie where the baby Blacks were going backwards at a pace. The pack has been the issue since 2017, so they might be in for another reality check soon. This tournament should really have been two rounds, would have learned a lot more.
1 Go to commentsPeter Lakai has a ‘lot of size’? Since when? To Kirifi maybe. I think Laidlaw clearly saw he’s too small for 6 or 8, so plonked him at 7. Has potential to be Ardies understudy in black for 7.
7 Go to commentsDalton for skipper?
16 Go to commentsOh he's ‘Irish qualified’ isn't that convenient. If Ireland get any more Kiwis (and Aussie) in their backline they might need to run out in green and black kit soon. How is the supposed best rugby system in the world in need of trawling for journeyman Kiwi players?
2 Go to comments