Scottish Rugby’s communications department is at pains to point out that Townsend’s deal on rugby strategy is with Red Bull, the global brand, rather than with Newcastle Red Bulls, the one rugby club that the global brand actually owns.
Maybe it was a fear of failing foul of conflict of interest rules, but there was a fair amount of dancing on the head of a pin from some at Murrayfield.
If Townsend has no involvement with Red Bull’s rugby team in the Premiership, who, exactly, is he advising on rugby strategy, philosophy and culture?
Perhaps these things are entirely unconnected but Wednesday brought further news from Newcastle Red Bulls.
-
Jonny Petrie, a former Scotland team-mate of Townsend’s, is their new managing director.
-
Neil McIlroy, Townsend’s fellow Borderer, is the new sporting director/general manager.
-
John Fletcher, currently head of pathways at the SRU, will become Newcastle Red Bulls academy and pathways director later in the year.
It’s already been termed by some fans as a Scottish takeover. If Townsend is not advising the rugby club, these new additions must be a series of coincidences.
There is a hope – expressed quietly within Murrayfield – that connections with a giant organisation such as Red Bull will have benefits not just for Townsend and his hunger for knowledge, but also for the SRU.
The SRU has no money to create a much-needed third professional team to sit alongside Glasgow and Edinburgh. They need to get more games into their younger players and they have limited scope to do it.
There is no business link between the SRU and the Red Bulls, but if underplayed young Scots can be loaned out to this ambitious new club and given more game time than they might get at home, that could help their development.
No discussion of this sort has taken place, and maybe none will, but Townsend now having a foot in the Red Bull world could be of use down the line – to him and to the SRU in general.
A source close to Murrayfield said that if a relationship with Red Bull blossomed to the point that their rugby team could become a sort of third outlet for Scottish players then the SRU would “up for that conversation”.
