THE SCOTSMAN WRITES

Scott Hastings interview: Hastings harks back to humble Heineken Cup beginnings



Published Date: 23 May 2009
By David Ferguson
THE return of the Heineken Cup final to Murrayfield stirs memories; the mind's pictures of the first year of the competition in 1995 when Scottish teams crept into the unknown and were battered senseless by clubs in England and France far better prepared for the new step-up that professional rugby had brought.
Leaving aside the 80-point defeat on opening day in Pau, Borderers will recall the only Scottish win of that first season in Europe when Gary Parker kicked the Reivers to victory over Frano Botica's Llanelli in Hawick on an electric Wednesday night. ADVERTISEMENT

In Glasgow it is easier to remember the second year where wins home and away over Ulster and at home to Swansea clinched a quarter-final play-off, before that stark reminder of the gulf that stretched across the English Border provided by Leicester's 90 points at Welford Road.

Yet, that made the day in 1999 when the Glasgow Caledonians brought the Tigers crashing to the Perth earth all the more memorable. Edinburgh's fate that year ended on an interception pass at Myreside that let Ulster steal a win, and they duly turned qualification for the last eight at the Scots' expense into an uplifting tournament win.

At 44, Scott Hastings has a good memory and each of those moments in a blue Edinburgh jersey, or a white, red or black Edinburgh Reivers one, contributes to his ongoing love affair with the Heineken Cup. When he was asked to be an ambassador for the competition, it is fair to say he almost bit their hands off. The sponsors might not have had to pay him to travel to the parts other Scottish rugby players cannot reach.

"It is a wonderful tournament; great, brilliant, and this final could be fantastic," he insisted this week, failing abjectly to contain his excitement for today's finale.

"It is great actually to think back to those first games. They really were a step into the unknown. At that time the Super 12 tournament was just starting up, and we toured New Zealand in 1996 still as amateurs but were in negotiation with the SRU to turn professional when we came back to compete in the first-ever Europe-wide cup.

"I recently came across my original letter from that time and it was interesting being reminded of the preparations we had. The clubs had first call on the players, even though we weren't paid by them, so at Edinburgh we were only released for three or four days of preparation before facing a fully-fledged Bath team that had been fully pro since the summer."

The Bath back line included Jon Callard, new rugby league recruits Jason Robinson and Henry Paul, Jeremy Guscott, Adedayo Adebayo and Mike Catt, and their pack featured Andy Robinson, the current Edinburgh head coach, Victor Obogu, Kevin Yates, Nigel Redman and Steve Ojomoh.

Edinburgh were coached by Ian Barnes and Graham Hogg, but skipper Hastings was the 31-year-old veteran among a fresh-faced crop of still-uncapped Edinburgh backs – Derrick Lee, Steven Reed, Chris Simmers, Stuart Lang, Duncan Hodge and Graeme Burns – with a similar youthful look about the forwards.

"At half-time we were staring down the barrel of a 75-pointer," recalled Hastings. "We were 38-9 adrift, but just so far off the pace it wasn't real. But we made a fist of it in the second half and though we lost heavily (55-26] I was proud of how the guys stuck in and tackled their hearts out in the second half, and Hodgey and Dessie Lee scored two good tries.

"You have to realise the differences then. Bath had been fully professional for at least four months, maybe more, and I was still having to take time off work to play in those games, with a handful of training sessions. It was a very uneven playing field.

"But you had to start somewhere. I was fortunate to play for Scotland in the first World Cup, in 1987, and that felt similar to some extent. It was a bit strange, going into the unknown, but you knew that it was right and would grow, and crucial that Scotland had a presence on that stage."

Hastings is also a fan of the format, which has drawn critics for spreading the tournament from October to May, and creating regular jumps between domestic to European and international levels.

"There are reasons why it would be better to see the Heineken Cup in a block, but when you look at the level of rugby, the intensity, it actually works very well," he says. "Ask any player and they will tell you the Heineken Cup is a step up from the Magners League and Guinness Premiership, but I actually think the Heineken Cup is a step-up in intensity from the Super 14 as well.

"If you compare all the games because we have a format of only playing back-to-back three times, spaced out, as opposed to playing every week as the Super 14 do. You can't keep up that intensity week after week after week, so the quality of the games are bound to suffer. We have a great stepping stone from domestic to international rugby now and this 2009 final, with a near-full Murrayfield, a great atmosphere and lots of internationalists involved, will not be far off a full-blooded Test match."

The gregarious, proud Scot, a passionate defender of his home city as much as Scottish rugby, also enthused over how the competition had opened up travel for rugby players and supporters outside the traditional spring trips to the Six Nations capitals. He spoke of warm welcomes in Pontypridd, Swansea, Limerick and Belfast, visits to the great rugby hotbeds of Leicester, Bath and Northampton and the decidedly warmer destinations of Biarritz, Pau, Brive and Treviso.

Yet, there is the one missing link – Scottish teams' ability to remain involved in the competition to the knockout stages. Hastings believes Edinburgh and Glasgow are edging nearer that solitary quarter-final appearance in 13 years made by Frank Hadden's capital side in 2004, from what he has seen this year, but he bemoans the ability of clubs around Europe to use the competition to drive up crowds while Edinburgh and Glasgow attract fewer supporters than his sides did more than a decade ago.

"I knew there would be a demand for this kind of tournament from the start and you only have to look at the recent Munster v Leinster semi-final at Croke Park – 82,000 supporters – to see how much that demand has just grown in all the other countries.

"I was in Toulouse commentating for Sky when Glasgow ended Toulouse's two-year unbeaten record in the Stade Ernest Wallon. They played out of their skins to silence a crowd that expected their team to pitch up and take the points. Edinburgh beating Castres home and way was also brilliant this year, and I believe that these results will have raised the profile and respect of Scottish teams.

"But we're here talking about 13 years of Scottish teams in Europe and only once have we featured in the quarter-finals. We need to find a real consistency of performance to be able to go and compete in the knockout stages of the tournament, and grow our brand in the same way that Munster, Leinster and Leicester have.

"Edinburgh have done really well to finish runners-up in the Magners League, so they have the quality to compete at this level. But we generated bigger crowds when I played for Watsonians, never mind Edinburgh. Cities the size of Edinburgh and Glasgow should be able to attract bigger crowds, especially when you think of how many troop into Murrayfield for internationals every year or go to Melrose Sevens every year.

"Edinburgh got 12,000-plus for a derby match with the link to the autumn test tickets, so there are people there interested in top-quality rugby, and the atmosphere around that, yet we are still asking in Scotland, 'Is the appetite for professional rugby there?' I don't know. From a marketing perspective we need to go out and find out what the punter wants; where they want to watch rugby. If Dan Carter was signed by either team, that would pull people in, but the SRU don't have the money to do that. And playing in Murrayfield with 60,000 empty seats it is hard to generate the atmosphere and grow the attraction and the brand.

"There are a host of reasons why we're not getting more crowds and it has the knock-on effect of not bringing in the money to then invest in professional facilities. I do feel a bit of envy when I travel round Europe for games and see what other clubs have, and I feel for our players and coaches to be honest, trying to compete when we are still not on a level playing field."

Hastings has few answers, but does suggest the SRU looks again at taking Edinburgh to club grounds next season, both in the city and the Borders, to create a more attractive atmosphere across the rugby community. He is hopeful, however, that staging the Heineken Cup final, with its on-field and off-field attractions, can help to inspire Scottish players and supporters to want to grasp a bigger role next season. "It has become the leading club event in world rugby and if you love rugby you want to be at the heart of that," he added. "I'm hoping the fact that Leicester have won the Premiership will allow them to play with a more expansive style of rugby, and Leinster will want to move the ball because backs like Brian O'Driscoll can hurt Leicester.

"It's fantastic for Edinburgh and I'm confident that this weekend will again show that we can put on a great show. And here's hoping that we get the chance to do that on the pitch some time soon."

This article was posted on 23-May-2009, 07:52 by Hugh Barrow.