WILL CLARK – Glasgow Warriors match in Inverness proved neutral venues can add spectacle to sporting clashes
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
As a huge rugby fan, my heart sank when I received word that the Glasgow Warriors pre-season friendly in Inverness with Worcester Warriors was called off last Wednesday due to the English club having massive financial problems.
Thankfully, there was a Plan B, with Ayrshire Bulls coming in as late replacements to ensure the pre-season friendly could go ahead.
Thankfully it paid off, as 3087 fans were in attendance at the Caledonian Stadium on Friday to watch the Warriors edge the Bulls 22–17 in a thrilling encounter.
But the real winner were the rugby fans who were in attendance. Granted, I thought the event may have attracted more people to the ground, but those who were there enjoyed a fantastic spectacle.
I hope this becomes an annual event where rugby fans in the north are treated to watching a top professional team packed full of internationals in action right on their doorstep.
When it comes to pre-season friendlies, in any sport, but predominantly football, I would usually rather watch creosote dry.
With the greatest respect, these are occasions where teams are only really concerned about getting up match fitness and treating the matches no more than training sessions.
I had to agree with Ross County’s attitude to pres-season training, going to Italy but only concentrating on exercise rather than taking part in any pre-season friendlies.
However, there was something special about watching a top European team such as Glasgow Warriors play in the Highland capital.
Other sports have proven to be successful in staging competitive matches at neutral venues. The NFL annually come to London to play three league matches which are always to sell-out crowds.
I’m not sure how that goes down with fans back in the United States.
But the idea didn’t go down well with fans of Rangers who ended up pulling out of the Sydney Super Cup, which Celtic were also invited to in Australia, planned for the World Cup break. Despite it only being a friendly tournament, the Ibrox club cited several concerns for pulling out.
I think shifting league matches to other countries and venues may be wrong for fans at their home venues.
But I don’t see the problem of two teams from different areas playing at a neutral venue if it is only a friendly.
I was impressed with the organisation of the clash between Glasgow Warriors and Ayrshire Bulls.
The fact that it drew bigger crowds than Caley Thistle did for most of their home matches last season should show there is scope of this idea to grow.
It might be asking a bit much for the Scotland team to play a test match at a stadium which only holds just over 7000 people.
But could the venue be used to stage Scotland Under-21 matches or Scotland Women’s matches in the future?
The stadium would be ideal to host matches of those calibre in the future and I hope it is a venue which Scottish Rugby might consider.
Meanwhile, I was really impressed with how Glasgow Warriors players took the time to meet with fans after the match, pose for selfies and sign autographs. That will go a long way to help promoting the sport in the north.
