Kenny Logan in talkative mood as he reflects on his year in Glasgow"There was a lot of speculation around me coming up to Glasgow, people asking why I was coming back, but I’ve enjoyed my time in Glasgow, and it’s been good for me. My original plan was to come up for two years, but what with the twins, and other stuff, it felt like I would just be playing on for the money, and for me, it’s never really been about the money. I worried about playing for another year, and was beginning to get sore. I didn’t want to end up crippled and wanted to leave while I was still playing at a decent level."
"One of the highlights of my year in Glasgow was captaining the side, but it’s been great to see younger players coming through and maturing – players like Euan Murray and Rory Lamont. A lot of them are now playing for Scotland, but that’s why you need some experience in a squad. A whole lot of good young players is great, but for some games, it is important to have that experience, to dig in and get a win. The whole year was a great experience for me – apart from getting knocked out against Llanelli!"
"It’s been good just coming up to meet these younger players and find out how the teams are being run up here – and to understand what sort of things can help find us a new direction."
Kenny was frustrated to see how few changes there have been since he last played in ScotlandObviously, it’s been about 8 years since Kenny was last playing in Scotland, so what were his impressions on his return? "Well, I basically turned up, and it was the same way it was when I left – nothing had changed, the stadium was still the same, but I knew to expect that when I came back. Bringing Mark Bitcon up with me was one of the best things I could have done – he’s made the biggest improvements, and most of the players think the sun shines out of his arse – but don’t tell him that! From that point of view, I’m really pleased that I encouraged him to come, and he’s really enjoying it up here."
"More than anything else, the biggest thing is how frustrating it’s been. Not through the coaches, but the way everything’s run. For me, I’ve known what its like to be looked after, at that level where everything’s right for you but here there’s ten things that are right or wrong. But it’s also hard for the coaches, they’ve got to patch these things up – training here, playing there, driving all over the place, not a big enough physio room, the weights in the training room…"
Kenny is quite clear on what Glasgow’s strengths are – "We’ve got a lot of heart, and obviously Hugh (Campbell) is very keen to learn and move the team on. We’ve got a fantastic medical system. And good coaches – they’ve got a lot to learn, but they are willing to learn. They’ve got to look beyond Scotland and learn from other people. It’s no disrespect to the coaches, they just haven’t been outside of Scotland, but they’ve got a really good team, and some really good players – you’ve got Rory Lamont, who’s going to be even better than his brother, Euan Murray, Dan Turner, Jonny Petrie, Donnie Macfadyen, Johnnie Beattie, Johnny Barclay – a lot of good players, and hopefully, players like Dan Parks and Calvin Howarth can step up to become the senior and more experienced players, and really stand out. I still think we lack a bit of professionalism, but I think next year we can be even more professional – we’re learning all the time. We’ve got a lot of positives. This season’s the best we’ve had in a while, so we’ve got to build on that. Losing Gordi Bulloch is a loss of experience, but Scotty Lawson was practically keeping him out anyway, so we’ll just be missing his experience. Mike Roberts, who’s coming from Wasps, he’s quick, so he’ll be good cover for Sean Lamont. We could do with a couple of big signings, but it’s hard with our budgets…"
Kenny has high hopes for Glasgow's performance next seasonSo, on the theme of looking ahead, what does Kenny think we should achieve next season? "We should be looking to win two or three Heineken Cup games – I don’t think we’re in a position yet to qualify, but that should come next year. I mean, don’t get me wrong, we should be looking to do it this season, but it’s very hard to go from losing all your games to qualifying. You’ve got to be realistic. We should be aiming to be in the top 4, improve on this year in the Celtic League – and still be top Scottish side to get the best Heineken Cup draw. We just need to get a good start to the season, get our defence right. But we can definitely win our home games – we know we can beat Leinster at home. It’s just very hard to go from bottom to top."
As for Scotland, Kenny is well placed to discuss the national side’s current situation, having played for them, and more recently, against them. But does he think Scotland has turned a corner? "The players are happy. And they’re playing with confidence, but I don’t think they’ve turned a corner – beating the Barbarians and beating Romania isn’t turning a corner. Beating Argentina, and beating Samoa will be turning a corner, so after the November games we’ll be able to see if we’ve improved. I think the players are ready to turn that corner, we just need the right management in place, and the right coaches. It looks like Frank might get the job, he’s got the players with a smile on their faces, and he’s got them expressing themselves, so let’s see if he can take them to the next level."
We are very grateful to Kenny for taking the time to chat to us, and would like to wish him and his family all the best for the future.