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SRU looking to the Premiership for 'third side'
By
Alex Shaw
Calcutta Cup week is rarely a quiet one.
The latest interesting piece of Anglo-Scottish news is that the Scottish Rugby Union (SRU) are looking into the prospect of investing in Aviva Premiership side, Newcastle Falcons.
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Per a report in The Times, the SRU are keen to buy a share in the club from the North-East, after their proposed takeover of Worcester Warriors fell through earlier this season.
With the SRU having just two professional sides in Scotland, the opportunity to control, or at least have a stake in, a Premiership club would bring about plenty of opportunities for them in terms of providing a destination for Scottish players leaving the Guinness PRO14, as well as creating an additional home for Scottish-qualified players from abroad.
This would help the SRU circumvent the significant financial and time costs involved in setting up a new professional side in Scotland and growing it to the point where it could be sustainable.
There would have been no end of complications with the proposed plan to takeover Worcester Warriors and it is likely something Premier Rugby Ltd would have blocked, but owning a partial share of Newcastle Falcons could be a lot less problematic.
Falcons are currently flying high in the Premiership, sitting 5th in the table, but they are just one point behind Gloucester and a spot in the Premiership playoffs come the season’s end.
The club are keen to capitalise on this impressive form and have plans to expand their Kingston Park stadium by 1,500 seats, as well as adding a new hospitality suite, in order to improve their revenue stream and help maintain their current success.
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There is also a strong Scottish influence already in place at Newcastle, with current or former internationals Scott Lawson, Jon Welsh, Chris Harris and Ally Hogg in the squad, as well as a handful of further Scottish-qualified players, much of which is due to the geographic proximity the club has to the border. Former Scotland second row Scott MacLeod is also employed by the club, as a lineout coach.
This is far from a done deal and there will be plenty of opposition to it, but if the SRU could get it over the line, there seems to be no better time to invest in the Falcons than right now.
