Latest news with #MattScott
Times
22-05-2025
- Sport
- Times
‘I knew I was done' – Matt Scott's Edinburgh highs and lows
When he first broke through in season 2011/12, Matt Scott signalled a new era in Scottish centre play, bringing a flash of power and panache to an arena which had long been dominated by honest plodders and basic bashers. Stuart Hogg burst onto the scene at almost exactly the same time, fired by a rich running game and exquisite spatial awareness, and when Finn Russell followed suit a couple of years later, the national team had the right conductor to pull the whole thing together. In the meantime, Scott had swiftly established himself as a centre of class, composure and so few clunky elements that it was easy to forget he himself had long been identified as the future at number 10. 'I was playing
The Star
15-05-2025
- Sport
- The Star
Rugby-English second tier becomes 'Champ Rugby' with promise of easier promotion
FILE PHOTO: Rugby Union - Premiership Rugby Cup - Semi Final - Ealing Trailfinders vs Leicester Tigers - Trailfinders Rugby Club, London, Britain - February 18, 2024 Leicester Tigers' Matt Scott scores a try. Andy Couldridge/Action Images/File Photo LONDON (Reuters) -The second tier of English club rugby is to be relaunched as 'Champ Rugby' with a new promotion and relegation structure and promises of an easier pathway into the Premiership for ambitious clubs previously stymied by exacting demands on ground capacity. Revealed by the RFU on Thursday, the 14-team league for next season will include the 12 current clubs, a re-formed Worcester, who went bust and dropped out of the Premiership 2022, and Richmond, champions of the third tier National League this season. All teams will play each other in home and away fixtures over 26 rounds, leading to playoffs and a final. The champions will then face the Premiership's bottom club in a two-legged playoff, with promotion subject to the Champ club meeting the minimum standards criteria that have caused so much disquiet in recent years. There will also be relegation and playoffs at the bottom end of the table. Ealing Trailfinders and others have routinely been kept out of the top tier by strict rules that demand a phased ground capacity of 10,001, or evidence of plans to be able to introduce such a development, as well as other financial commitments. The clubs have argued that it is unreasonable and unrealistic to expect them to spend huge amounts on plans, let alone development, to reach a capacity they might never need. Simon Gillham, Tier 2 Board Chair, told a media briefing that the way things happened this season (with only one club, Doncaster, ruled suitable for promotion) was "not satisfactory". "It strikes one as a closed shop and protectionism and those are things that we really don't want to see in sport," he said. "We have an oral commitment that we will be revising those minimum standards. There needs to be a runway and a three-year plan and then if you don't meet that plan you have committed to after a year, then you are out.' This new-found appreciation of a pathway to the top – with Exeter's climb through the ranks to be crowned champions always held up as the ultimate example - remains at odds with the thoughts of many Premiership clubs and RFU CEO Bill Sweeney, who said last month that he thought the Premiership should be a closed shop, with new clubs joining only as part of a franchise model. The issue of funding that might enable a promoted club to be competitive also remains far from clear. The RFU's funding of Championship clubs has plummeted from 600,000 pounds ($797,280) per club to 160,000 in recent years. "It is absolutely right that the current gap in funding makes it difficult for someone who goes up to stay up," Gillham said. There will be a "centralised resource dedicated to the championship", while discussions are ongoing with potential sponsors. Conor O'Shea, the RFU's director of performance rugby, said there were "grown up conversations" taking place about funding but said he saw the relaunch as part of a potentially glorious period for English rugby with the Champ playing a hugely important part in the development of young players. 'Our focus is the step change we want to make in the Champ. It's already a great competition, but we want all the standards across the board to grow," he said. New rules will mean 18 players in a matchday squad must be English-qualified, with an allowance of six players per matchday squad dual-registered with a Premiership club. The launch promotion highlighted how several of the new British and Irish Lions squad cut their teeth in the second tier, with Northampton's breakthrough star Henry Pollock playing for Bedford last season. "Henry is the first cab off the rank of three to four generational players," O'Shea said. "Our job is to create the structure for the players to fulfil their talent. This is going to be a very special time if we get it right." ($1 = 0.7526 pounds) (Reporting by Mitch Phillips, editing by Toby Davis)
BBC News
14-05-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Boffelli among 12 Edinburgh departures
Argentina star Emiliano Boffelli is one of 12 players who will depart Edinburgh at the end of the has made just one appearance in an injury-hit campaign and will move on this internationals Jamie Ritchie, who has agreed to join Perpignan, Dave Cherry and Ali Price are the other high-profile Tuesday, Matt Scott announced he will retire this summer, while Edinburgh say the next club destination for Scotland caps Mark Bennett and Javan Sebastian are "yet to be confirmed"."As the season nears its end, we bid farewell to a group of players who have each contributed significantly to Edinburgh Rugby," head coach Sean Everitt said."I want to express my sincere gratitude for their unwavering efforts, their commitment to the jersey and the passion they've shown for this club and our supporters. "Every player who departs does so with our best wishes for their future endeavours, both on and off the field."Edinburgh leavers in full: Jamie Ritchie, Mark Bennett, Dave Cherry, Matt Scott, Jamie Hodgson, Ali Price, Emiliano Boffelli, Robin Hislop, Javan Sebastian, Jake Henry, Nathan Sweeney and Jack Hocking.
Scotsman
13-05-2025
- Sport
- Scotsman
Scotland Rugby World Cup star and English title winner hangs up his boots
Centre to pursue new career after three stints at Edinburgh Sign up to our Rugby Union newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Matt Scott, the 40-times capped Scotland international, has announced his retirement. Matt Scott celebrates Scotland's win over Samoa in Newcastle at the 2015 Rugby World Cup. | Getty Images The gifted centre was part of the last Scotland squad to reach the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals and played four matches at the tournament in 2015. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad In the club game, he achieved notable success in England, helping Leicester Tigers win the Gallagher Premiership in 2021-22. Matt Scott celebrates Scotland's win over Samoa in Newcastle at the 2015 Rugby World Cup. | Getty Images Scott, 34, returned to Edinburgh last summer for his third stint with the club but injuries have curtailed his involvement. An ongoing neck issue has limited him to only six games this season but in the last of those, against Ospreys in October, he made his 100th appearance for the club. Born in Dunfermline and educated at Currie High School in Edinburgh, he also played for Gloucester. He now plans to pursue a new career as a financial adviser. 'After 14 unforgettable years, it's time to hang up the boots,' Scott said in a statement. 'My overwhelming emotion is one of gratitude. Playing for my country and representing three amazing clubs in Edinburgh, Gloucester and Leicester Tigers has been beyond anything I could have dreamed of as a young lad from Currie who just loved the sport. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'As for what's next, a career as a financial advisor beckons but, for the moment, I'm looking forward to enjoying the last moments with my Edinburgh Rugby team-mates and reminiscing about the good times.' Matt Scott on the attack for Leicester Tigers in their win over Saracens in the Gallagher Premiership final at Twickenham in 2022. | Getty Images Edinburgh, meanwhile, have announced that back-row forwards Luke Crosbie, Tom Dodd and Connor Boyle have agreed new deals with the club. Crosbie and Dodd have both signed two-year contracts, while Boyle has extended his by one year. Scotland international Crosbie, 28, has made more than 100 appearances for Edinburgh, 27-year-old Dodd joined from Coventry in 2023, and 25-year-old Boyle has been with the club his whole professional career. All three will be hoping to feature more prominently next season after being hindered by injuries. Boyle in particular has had tough luck and has not played for the first team for over a year after sustaining a serious knee injury while playing for the Edinburgh A team. He is due to return to training in September.
BBC News
13-05-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Edinburgh & Scotland centre Scott announces retirement
Edinburgh centre Matt Scott has announced he will retire from professional rugby at the end of the 34, made 40 appearances for Scotland and also represented Gloucester and Leicester Tigers at club made his 100th appearance for the capital club against Ospreys in October 2024."After 14 unforgettable years, it's time to hang up the boots," Scott said in a statement."My overwhelming emotion is one of gratitude. Rugby is the ultimate team game and to have had the opportunity to be fully immersed in this sport for so long has been such a joy."Playing for my country and representing three amazing clubs in Edinburgh, Gloucester and Leicester Tigers has been beyond anything I could have dreamt of as a young lad from Currie who just loved the sport."As for what's next, a career as a financial advisor beckons, but for the moment, I'm looking forward to enjoying the last moments with my Edinburgh teammates and reminiscing about the good times."
