Rugby, Australian Football: SRU considers switch

The Scottish Rugby Union will consider playing Scotland RBS Six Nations home matches away from Murrayfield if the autumn Test games at McDiarmid Park and Hampden Park prove successful.

Matt Williams' team will play host to Japan in Perth on November 13 before taking on Australia in Glasgow a week later.

SRU head of marketing Alasdair Russell will be looking closely at the reaction of supporters to games away from Murrayfield.

He told The Scotsman: "It's about taking rugby to the people.

"Always playing at Murrayfield can be a barrier to people attending matches, and so bringing it further north, in terms of Perth this time, and west, with Glasgow, is a positive move.

"We will review the autumn series and study the fan base and reaction from supporters, but, from a strategic point of view, we're very much looking at what we do to make the sport more accessible.

"Murrayfield will always be the dominant home of Scottish rugby.

"There is something special about Murrayfield, but that's not to say we wouldn't look at taking future matches away if it met our business needs.

"Potentially, that includes Six Nations games."

Sportinglife