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Former Scotland captain Bryan Redpath on getting a proper job and watching son put on England shirt
These are strange days in the world of Bryan Redpath. For starters, the former Gloucester, Sale and Yorkshire Carnegie head coach has swapped the changing room for the boardroom, a tracksuit for a proper suit.
The former Scotland captain and scrum-half is seven months into his role as head of sport for Afex, a global payment company which trades £20 billion a year, and is still getting his head around the novelty of lunchtime pints and free weekends after 30 continuous years inside the rugby bubble.
“Rugby was almost everything I had ever known,” Redpath tells The Daily Telegraph in between meetings at the Grand Pacific in central Manchester. “You are coming out of something where you have a hell of a lot knowledge and suddenly you are a fish out of water. That’s hard. You have to accept you know nothing.”
Even more discombobulating is the sight of his son, Cameron, wearing an England shirt. Last Friday, the 18-year-old fly-half trained with the senior England team in an open session at Twickenham. He also roomed with James Haskell, which must count as a rite of passage.
Born in France during the period that Redpath played for Narbonne, and raised in England, Cameron was on the books of West Bromwich Albion’s academy before representing Scotland Under-16s. The Sedbergh School pupil and Sale Sharks academy product was then invited into the England camp.
He played later for England Under-18s against Scotland and ended up singing both anthems. “I think he was a bit confused,” Redpath says with a chuckle. “From a very young age, he was singing Flower of Scotland all the time.” The younger Redpath is not involved in the corresponding Under-20 fixture tonight and could be involved in Sale Sharks’ Premiership squad against Bath for the first time.
As conflicted as he outwardly appears, Redpath takes a pragmatic view on his son swapping the thistle for the rose. “England’s development programme through the age groups and the academy system is so strong,” Redpath said. “It would be very hard to neglect that pathway and what you can gain from it. When he was 15-16, he had three or four opportunities to train at Pennyhill Park with Jonny Wilkinson. Imagine what that must be like for a teenager? George Ford and Owen Farrell have also been very good with him and he loved being at Twickenham last week seeing the level of fitness, intensity and the speed that it is done at.”
Until Cameron represents England at senior level or in the disbanded Saxons, then the option to switch back remains tantalisingly available.
“If you are based it on emotion then of course I would want him to play for Scotland, 100 per cent,” Redpath said. “But you can’t ignore the financial realities. Being an English qualified player is a lot more valuable to Premiership clubs and both Sale and Sedbergh have been outstanding in his development. As long as he is enjoying his rugby and happy in his decision then we will support him whichever way he goes.” Redpath smiles even as he instinctively grits his teeth.
The opportunity of spending more time with his children Cameron, Amy (19) and Murray (15) played a large role in his resignation as Yorkshire Carnegie head coach last year. Redpath is surprisingly at peace with his decision. It is only on particularly sunny days that he pines to be out of the office and coaching again.
“That’s the best part of coaching – seeing the boys prepare well and then put it out on the pitch,” Redpath said. “Will I ever get that buzz back? I don’t know.”
What he does not miss is the pressure that seeps into every pore. Even the buzz of victory could not stop hundreds of questions pouring into his head. What if we win the next two games? Can we afford to renew that player’s contract?
“Rugby is a business,” Redpath said. “It is not becoming a business, it is one and that means some of the fun element of sport disappears. It is like football. The pressure for results is far greater than it was 5-10 years ago. Chairmen demand a lot, understandably so because it is their money. So do fans who are so passionate about their club. Nearly of all that falls on to the coach at the top.”
Rugby has taken a heavy toll on Redpath. Next week he will undergo operation No 12 of his battered body on his knee. No 13 (shoulder) is also on the horizon. He does not completely rule out a return to coaching, but is enjoying his foray into the world of finance. “It is all very different,” Redpath says. “Everything in rugby is built around the collaborative whereas here targets are a lot more individual.”
Redpath will be watching this weekend’s Calcutta Cup from a bar in London. . His eternal hope is countered by an admiration of the belligerence of Eddie Jones’s England. “To beat England, you will need some fortune,” Redpath said. “You need rain, lightning or something along those lines. Otherwise you will probably need England to play at 60-70 per cent because I think this is right up there as one of the best-ever England sides.
“I actually think Finn Russell will play well. Gregor [Townsend] has shown a lot of support which will mean a lot to him. It wouldn’t surprise me if he has a big game and makes something happen. Stranger things have happened.” As strange as a Scotland captain’s son representing the Auld Enemy.