HERIOT'S and Boroughmuir have acquired reputations as "fancy dans" in the annals of Scottish club rugby, and if there was truth in that, then this afternoon's live televised Edinburgh derby could prove to be an entertaining affair.
Boroughmuir wiped the floor with Watsonians at Myreside last week to underline their desire to catch Ayr and retain the Scottish Hydro Electric Premier Division 1 title, but there is added intrigue when they return to Meggetland this afternoon, with
BBC Alba confirming that their full outside broadcast unit will also be in attendance to launch their foray into rugby coverage.
The Scotsman last week reported on the ten-match deal agreed by Division 1 clubs to welcome the cameras back into their grounds after a lengthy absence. There are no rights fees coming from the new Gaelic digital channel, but the SRU smoothed the path by offering £15,000 to the 12 Division 1 clubs, the biggest shares going to those who have agreed to host the five Sunday matches, necessary to tie in with Alba's football coverage on Saturdays.
Gordon McKie, the SRU chief executive, said: "We're delighted at the real enthusiasm from BBC Alba to work with us to increase the exposure of our game.
"Coverage begins with a live transmission of the match between Edinburgh rivals Boroughmuir and Heriot's and I very much hope we will be able to announce further details shortly of our relationship with BBC Alba, and the benefit it will generate for rugby at a number of levels." BBC Alba is found on Sky channel 168 and Freesat channel 110, and is expected to become available on cable at some point in the future and potentially on Freeview. The commentary will be in Gaelic, with no subtitles, but the post-match interviews and a half-time interview recorded with David Sole, the former Scotland captain, will be in English.
Alasdair Morrison, Chairman of MG Alba, said: "This is a winner for all rugby fans in Scotland. We are delighted to bring live Scottish rugby to television screens with the Boroughmuir and Heriot's match and look forward to delivering a brilliant rugby package through the season.
"The screening of live club rugby complements BBC Alba's 'as live' coverage on a Saturday evening of an SPL football match and the combination will provide an excellent sports service, which should be extremely attractive to both Gaelic and non-Gaelic viewers."
Both rugby clubs have welcomed the launch of the coverage, Boroughmuir coach Eamon John stating: "I think it's good for the club game and hopefully will increase interest."
Heriot's captain Tam McVie added: "Anything to try to raise the profile of club rugby is to be commended because there is a huge amount of good rugby to be seen."
That is not in doubt after an exciting start to the Scottish Hydro Electric Division 1 season, and this afternoon the championship could again be blown wide open.
Selkirk bounced back from their defeat at Hawick with victory over Watsonians when they returned to Philiphaugh, and have to do the same again after losing at Heriot's last week, but if they keep their lengthy unbeaten home run going against league-leaders Ayr, the title race will suddenly embrace half of the league table.
The full article contains 555 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
