SCOTTISH Cup rugby is ringing the changes for the coming season.
The decision to scrap the old format along with the bowl, shield and plate tournaments was made at the annual general meeting of Scottish rugby clubs on Saturday.
Clubs voted to accept the recommendations of the season structure sub-committee at t
he meeting, which took place at Murrayfield.
Existing league competitions will remain in place for the forthcoming season, but the new structure for cup competitions will see Premier, National and Regional teams play in separate knock-out tournaments.
Hawick RFC secretary John Thorburn was present at the three-hour, 20-minute gathering and was pleased with the outcome of the cup debate.
He told TheSouthern: “The new format makes a lot more sense in that it will see an end to all the meaningless games which just clog up the fixture card at the end of the season.”
Also at the meeting, Jim Stevenson was re-elected president of the Scottish Rugby Union in a closely-fought contest which saw off challenges from former Gala coach Finlay Calder (Stewart’s-Melville FP) and Jim Gracie (Alloa), to win his second term as president.
Stevenson immediately pledged to continue to seek to champion the views of clubs in his role as president, council chairman and member of the Scottish Rugby Board.
