History of Rugby Union in Scotland - Changes For The Professional Era

Changes For The Professional Era

When professionalism was introduced into rugby union in the 1990s, and the Heineken Cup created for clubs across Europe, the SRU decided that the existing clubs operating in the Scottish leagues were not competitive enough. They were predominantly amateur, or at best paid small wages; they had low supports and small old-fashioned venues; and the quality of their play was, by the nature of these factors, comparatively low versus new professional clubs and super-teams in other countries. As a rule their players trained only two nights a week.

After a short spell using District teams (effectively select teams drawing together the best amateur players from clubs in a given area), the SRU decided to create professional clubs to compete in the Celtic League, a competition which grew out of an Anglo-Welsh league (and for a time had a cup competition, the Celtic Cup. It is now known as the Magners League and consists of Scottish, Welsh and Irish sides. The aim of creating these 'pro-teams' or 'super-teams' was ensure that Scotland had fairly competitive sides operating in the European competitions, the Heineken Cup and European Challenge Cup (as well as the European Shield during its short existence), and to drive up standards of rugby in the country. Many of the traditional rugby union supporters in Scotland have viewed professionalism as contributing to a loss of a golden age, with some supporters mourning local and amateur players being replaced by hired professionals.

Originally, before the Celtic League started, the SRU created four pro-teams, based roughly on the old districts: the Border Reivers based in Galashiels (with occasional matches elsewhere), the Caledonia Reds based in Aberdeen and Perth, Edinburgh and Glasgow.