Callum MacBurnie makes the breakthrough at Moseley RFC

Nov 19 2009 by Brian Dick, Birmingham Post

There is something inherently wrong in a sport when its risk-reward structure militates against the development of talented youngsters.

Ultimately, when the pressure of results holds primacy over the blooding of the next generation, there is only one direction in which to go.

Generally it’s known as the Road To Nowhere, paved with high-priced, medium-quality imports and strewn with the wrecks of shattered dreams and broken careers.

That is where we are now with professional rugby union and anyone at Twickenham on Saturday would have been able to bear witness to law of decreasing returns.

As the stakes have become higher, first in the Premiership and now in the Championship, the reward for taking a flier on an unproven rookie barely registers against the cost of losing a game or – God forbid – one’s league status.

As a result the traditional pathway between colts and senior rugby has become blocked by RFU academies, the contraction of second and third teams and the increasing physical and temporal demands of elite rugby.

Which makes Callum MacBurnie’s journey all the more commendable.

The 19-year-old became the first player since Stephen Halbert six years ago to come through Moseley’s colts and make it into their increasingly successful First XV.

Most notably he was the first since the club regained their place in the second tier in 2006 and while his debut at Goldington Road was not especially incident packed, it nevertheless filled sections of the club with pride.

Especially given the fact they had to press MacBurnie’s case and make sure he was ‘put under the noses that matter’.

That process began last season when the Oxford-born centre was captain of a relatively good Under-19s side.

Playing inside-centre MacBurnie presided over victory in the North Midlands Cup and advancement to the latter stages of the National knockout competition.

It was during this time that Don Caskie’s nose began to twitch at the whiff of home-grown produce and MacBurnie was invited to train with the senior squad.

“I was chucked in at the deep end,” he says.

“But when you have big lads like Neil Mason or Aly Muldowney running at you, you can’t really shy away.

“I was like ‘OK this is going to be very interesting’. At first you just try to get in the way and hold on.

“But those sessions really gave me confidence and the belief that I can make it in professional rugby.”

Further progress in pre-season brought a first contract and he has now become a fully-fledged member of Ian Smith’ squad.

What he does not admit is that belief must have been present in the first place.

While most players move to an area to play first team rugby, MacBurnie transferred up the M40 with a view to breaking into the colts side.

Your average fresh-out-of-school teenager needs more than a little gumption to do that.