Scottish Rugby today welcomed the news that a programme showcasing the game at all levels is to be launched on stv this month.

The show, entitled Scotsport Rugby Sunday, will be a fast-paced look at what’s happening in the pro-scene with footage of Edinburgh and Glasgow Warriors in the Magners League, club rugby with highlights from the Scottish Hydro Electric Premiership, and features on other aspects of Scottish Rugby including schools, age-grade, sevens and the women’s game.

Presented by former Scotland age-grade international player and coach, Richie Gray, the first half hour show goes out on stv at 6pm on Sunday 11 November.

Each week on Scotsport Rugby Sunday, Richie Gray will be joined by regular guests, including former Scotland and British Lions lock Doddie Weir, and the show will feature all the top names from the rugby world.

Scottish Rugby’s Chief Executive Gordon McKie said: “This is great news. Coverage of the Rugby World Cup on ITV and the RBS 6 Nations Championship on the BBC is tremendous exposure for the international game and our pro-teams also feature on satellite and cable TV.

“Scottish Rugby has many other facets however and in order to show as many people as we can, particularly those who haven’t yet caught the rugby bug, what our game’s about, coverage on terrestrial television is hugely important to us.

“We’ve been speaking to broadcasters to try to get that coverage and we’re delighted that stv are embarking on this programme which aims to show the many aspects of Scottish Rugby. It’s also heartening to learn that ITV Border is considering transmitting the programme.”

Henry Eagles, Head of Sport at stv said: “We’re delighted to be working with Scottish Rugby to bring viewers a weekly show that we hope will become a must for all of Scotland’s rugby fans. Scotland’s matches in the Rugby World Cup were hugely popular with our viewers and we look forward to building an even better relationship with rugby fans in Scotland through this highlights programme.”

Sean Lineen, Glasgow Warriors’ head coach, said: “Rugby on telly can inspire kids and adults alike to get involved so I look forward to the programme starting.”

Craig Redpath, coach of Scottish Hydro Electric Premiership Division 1 club Ayr, said: “This is a very positive step for the club game. There’s some good rugby being played in Scotland and I think the more exposure we can get for the game in our country the better.”

As part of this agreement with the SRU, stv will initially produce ten episodes of the show, airing six programmes in 2007 and four programmes in 2008.

This article was posted on 1-Nov-2007, 23:11 by Hugh Barrow.