Russell keeps his fingers crossed for SRU museum

The 81-year-old Moray House club stalwart, who was still playing up until eight years ago - "medics gave me a new hip but told me to stop playing" he says - has campaigned for years without success and now feels compelled to formally present an AGM motion requiring up to 250,000 to be spent on the scheme.

"The previous museum was lost when a stand was re-built but the artefacts are still there in cardboard boxes.

"It is important to retain Scotland's rugby heritage for a future generation especially when I hear talk of 300,000 being paid to keep one pro player in the country.

"It seems all the money we have is going into the pro game. We have sacrificed enough for the pro game and this would complement the Bill McLaren museum planned for Hawick," said Russell who added: "I made a promise to Adam Robson (a previous SRU President and museum curator now dead) to restore the museum but if unsuccessful this time somebody else will have to take the task on."

Other debates at tomorrow's AGM will centre on whether to make leagues more compact to ensure the club season runs from September to late March with travel costs more affordable.

Also there will be attempts to restore a representative for Scottish Exiles rugby.

The SRU has made 1.3 million profit from a record turnover of 35m. Overdraft dropped by 2.3m to 2.73m but income was reduced by 600,000.