Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ

Our rugby reporter in Scotland, Jim Mason, is making a television film on whether Scottish rugby has embraced professionalism or not.

And that got me thinking. Is it right that top level sport is professional and the participants only rest and play, for which they are paid, at their sport?

One of my favourite quotes comes from football World Cup-winning coach who said: "My priority is to ensure that players feel more amateur than professional. Thirty years ago, the effort was the other way. Now there is so much professionalism, we have to revert to urging players to like the game, love it, do it with joy."

So, what do you think? Do you think our sporting stars have the love and the joy, or are you gradually thinking, like me, that some of the joy of sport departs with most kick-offs, throw-ups, tip-offs, and starting guns?

I think we should start a book called "The Joy of Sport" and I volunteer for the action shots on pages three and seven.

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What should we make of seven-a-side rugby?

Is it a diversion from the theme of trying to win matches, or is it a core activity we should encourage much more?

Anyway, that was that was. A sunny day, and the local club beat the experts from the Southern Hemisphere in the final.

My band played a gig at night at the post match party, and today it's been a stunning drive through Border country to get home to Glasgow.

Absolutely shattered.

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What would you do to make Scottish rugby succeed?

I write this, as we get ready for a Sport Nation debate on the health of Scottish sport to be held at Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Scotland HQ. On the panel are former athlete Liz McColgan, top cyclist Graeme Obree, Scottish Rugby chief executive Gordon McKie, and sportswriter Tom English.

And the temptation is to be negative, as that's arguably a Scottish trait. But should we be negative about the state of Scottish sport and in particular rugby?

Because, when it comes to sport, despite having the most clueless politicians and local authority heads perhaps in the world - yes, there's just a 27% success rate in reaching the minimum two hours of PE for Scottish schoolchildren, which was set as a national target over five years ago - we are ranked ninth in the world in rugby. It was sixth.

The older I get the more I think that, actually, politicians don't deliver anything. Rather it's civil servants who steer politicians and, frankly, civil servants don't give a monkey's about sporting targets.

So let's forget about politicians and move on ourselves.

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