Irb To Mediate Scottish Rugby Row

The International Rugby Board is to intervene in a dispute between Scottish Rugby and the Guinness Premiership over player availability.

Scottish Rugby complained to the IRB after England-based players were not released for a squad camp by the Guinness Premiership’s umbrella body, Premier Rugby.

The short training camp at Murrayfield was the first Scotland get-together since the summer tour of Argentina in June and was scheduled in as a training session ahead of the three Autumn Tests against New Zealand, South Africa and Canada.

However Premier Rugby prevented 10 players from attending, saying it is only obliged to release players five days before an agreed quota of 11 Test matches a year.

This is in accordance with an agreement at an IRB conference last November.

However, details surrounding player-release for squad sessions outside international weeks have still to be ratified.

‘There is a differing attitude here towards what custom and practice is for squad sessions at the moment,’ added the IRB spokesman.

‘Premier Rugby have got no problem releasing players five days before Test matches, but it’s slightly different now that Scotland want release for squad sessions.

‘The rule in question – Regulation 9 – is undergoing a major review. The whole idea is to have a Regulation 9 that fits the modern game. In the last five or six years a gentleman’s agreement between unions and clubs has worked very well.

‘But, hopefully next year we will have new regulations in place, agreed by everybody, which will set the platform for player release in the future. We have to facilitate an agreement between all senior professional unions so everybody is happy with it.’

The agreement is due to be finalised at another meeting after Scotland’s Test series in November.
However, Scottish Rugby wants the issue resolved sooner commenting: ‘With the IRB deciding to determine the 2011 World Cup draw based upon world rankings at 30th November, it is absolutely imperative that this matter is clarified quickly and well before our final preparations begin for the critical Autumn Test matches.’

Premier Rugby has a separate, more flexible voluntary agreement with the England national side.