Second-tier English rugby club London Scottish and the Scottish Rugby Union have "resurrected their partnership, despite the announcement of an acrimonious-looking split just a couple of weeks ago," according to Tim Groves of RUNNING RUGBY. The SRU revealed at the end of last month that it was ending the partnership that was agreed back in January because of an unsatisfactory “performance environment” and London Scottish Chair David Reid "angrily refuted some claims about the business model and viability of the club in a strongly worded press release." However, the two parties "seem to have now kissed and made up and a revised player development pathway has been announced" for the '16-17 season that will see up to eight players seconded from Scotland to the Championship outfit. The announcement that the arrangement is back on confirms that it will “now operate on a more modest and achievable scale better suited to the support available from London Scottish and will build on the success of the trial last season.” Reid said, “We fully recognize that the concerns expressed by Scottish Rugby's Board over the financial commitment and infrastructure needed from London Scottish under the previous arrangements were entirely legitimate" (RUNNING RUGBY, 6/16). In Edinburgh, Iain Morrison reported SRU CEO Mark Dodson said that he sees this as a 12-month deal, "suggesting that London Scottish should not rely on SRU contracted labour in the future." In truth, the club was "unlikely to do so after being left in the lurch at the end of May." But Dodson "appears to have been forced into a climbdown by the backlash over not only the original decision to part company with London Scottish but the manner of it, coming so late in the day that the London club would be hard pressed to recruit 14 Championship standard players when most players are already contracted" (SCOTSMAN, 6/16).
