Rugby Union: Hastings to lead in battles ahead: Scots look to long-term as New Zealand seek short-term answer

THE best news Scottish rugby has had this season is the exceptional form of Gavin Hastings, making yesterday's decision to continue his captaincy through to next year's World Cup in South Africa a pleasant formality. As Scotland are grouped with France, Tonga and Ivory Coast, quarter-final qualification at least in the second group place should be a pleasant formality, too.

Hastings, the 32-year-old Lions captain and full-back, would have been justifiably aggrieved if he had not been appointed but even so made the right diplomatic noises. 'Until you actually hear, you can't take it for granted,' he said. 'But I've started this season well and so have the club, so there can't be any complaints.'

Both Hastings and brother Scott reached 50 caps when Scotland lost to France at Murrayfield last March, and both, in common with most of Scotland's exhausted leading players, absented themselves from the ill-fated close- season tour to Argentina.

Enthusiasm and energy restored, they have been playing superbly for Watsonians, who were unbeaten in the McEwan's League until going down to Stirling County last Saturday. Hastings senior succeeded David Sole to the Scotland captaincy before the 1993 Five Nations and has now done the job eight times.

New Zealand rugby is in turmoil after a vicious National Championship final between Auckland and North Harbour in which two All Blacks - Eric Rush and Robin Brooke - were sent off, two others sin-binned and two more sent to the 'blood-bin' for urgent attention to injuries.

In the most trouble is Graham Dowd, the North Harbour prop, for kicking Mark Carter in the face, an incident graphically pictured in yesterday's New Zealand newspapers. Dowd, Rush and Brooke will appear before a New Zealand Rugby Football Union disciplinary hearing this week.

Rush, a North Harbour wing, was dismissed by the international referee Colin Hawke for flattening Brooke's brother Zinzan, while Robin Brooke went for over-vigorous rucking. 'We carried on and suffered the consequences,' Richard Turner, North Harbour's captain, said. As for the rugby, Auckland won 22-16.

John Banks, New Zealand's sports minister, described the match as 'a national disgrace'. 'It is sickening to watch these kinds of antics from grown men.' The 'disgrace' was also unfortunately timed, coming as it did in the middle of a 'Don't Get Ugly' campaign in New Zealand sport. Earlier in the season North Harbour, who broke away from the Auckland union in 1985, beat Auckland for the first time and Sunday's match and its build-up were riddled with tension.

In South Africa, the Eastern Province Rugby Union has denied it made payments to Mike Catt when the Bath stand-off played for them before coming to England. Catt alleges he received pounds 200 cash for each of his five Eastern Province appearances, to which Japie Wessels, the EP manager, retorted: 'We haven't paid him a cent. We've heard the story but we never, ever paid him.'

England have added Mark Regan, the Bristol hooker, to their 34-man squad.

Regan joins training at Marlow next Monday.

Alan Watkins, page 38