THE HERALD REPORTS
KEVIN FERRIE, Chief Rugby Writer June 05 2009
The need to give up-and-coming Scottish coaches opportunities within the professional game is set to be reflected in the management reshuffle that Edinburgh will be forced into following Andy Robinson's promotion.

The only confirmed long-term appointment to Robinson's management team is that of his fellow Englishman, Graham Steadman, the highly regarded defence coach who has worked with Scotland since the start of the season.

Gregor Townsend, the former Scotland utility back who was attack coach during the RBS 6 Nations and goes with the A team to the IRB Nations Cup in Romania, will probably be put in charge of the national team's backs. However, his lack of coaching experience remains a concern and highlights a major issue for the SRU.

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While there is no reason to doubt that Robinson is the best man for the job, the absence of a serious Scottish contender for the post is a shameful indictment of the governing body's structures.

Gordon McKie, the SRU's chief executive, yesterday admitted to looking anew at how better to develop homegrown coaches and give them the opportunities to contend for the job that should be the managerial pinnacle for any Scot.

"In terms of Scottish coaches and succession planning, we are looking very closely now at the whole structure, trying to encourage more Scottish coaches to come through the system and Andy supports that principle," said McKie.

"The system at the moment is that Premier One coaches potentially go into age grade, others go straight into age grade. We are looking at the whole structure of the academy at the moment and with the new cross-border competition we can potentially create a new coaching structure around the team playing in that tournament. Obviously, at the pro teams we have four coaches and, now that Andy's moved upstairs, we probably need six so there's two vacancies."

It is, though, overstating things to call it a system. For example, appointments such as Townsend's and that of Tom Smith, his fellow British & Irish Lion, who subsequently had to withdraw from coaching the Scotland Under-20 team's forwards, look to be based on little more than spur-of-the- moment hunches.

It is vital that aspiring coaches know the route to the top and how to get there. Central to that is understanding that in a country where resources are so small, the entire professional set-up must work together.

Robinson yesterday said he saw that as a potential strength of the Scottish game, noting that he would be maintaining close links with the pro teams as well as looking to get greater access to the Exiles, working in conjunction with their clubs.

Whoever comes into Edinburgh will, then, be expected to work closely with the new national coach, even if he is not, according to McKie, going to be answerable to Robinson, since the chief executive stressed that his role will not extend towards that of director of rugby.

"Andy's primary task is to coach the Scotland team," he went on. "He will have views and I'm sure he will have influence, but ultimately he's not responsible and nor is he accountable for whatever these changes may be. We're looking at the whole structure just now. We haven't concluded that review process."

The obvious short-term solution would be to promote Rob Moffat, Robinson's backs coach at Edinburgh with whom he has worked closely and harmoniously, generating what appears to be genuine mutual respect, in order to guarantee continuity.

Moffat is currently in charge of the Scotland Under-20s squad taking part in their World Cup, yet for all that he has worked with both Edinburgh and Glasgow Warriors, as well as the defunct Border Reivers, and has taken charge of the national sevens side, he seems most comfortable in the assistant's role.

His steadying presence could, then, provide the opportunity for a relatively young, up-and-coming coach to be thrown in.

With Moffat already there as a backs specialist that would seem to favour a forwards coach such as Peter Wright, the Glasgow Hawks director of rugby, or Bob McKillop, Heriot's cup-winning coach.

The most important thing of all is that a signal is sent to the country's coaches that there is a way to the top job if they have the creativity and the work ethic to match that of Andy Robinson.

This article was posted on 5-Jun-2009, 07:15 by Hugh Barrow.