Up Wi The Bunnets

BACK IN the black and white television days of the 1960s, Pete Seeger was the acceptable face of the growing political protest singing movement. He brought his blend of Tom Paxton and Woody Guthrie songs, such as Paxton's 'What Did We Learn In School Today' to Sunday Night At The London Palladium.

I mention Seeger, because it was a case of what did we learn at BT Murrayfield today? From yesterday's comprehensive victory over the Tongans. In truth, not a lot. The visitors were, by common consent, short at least half a XV. On the Scottish side, it could have been, had Gregor Townsend had everyone available, that only seven of our starting XV would have taken the field for the kick-off.

If we hadn't won with a full team available, well Head of Sport Graham Bean might well have been calling-up his pre-set Disaster For Scotland headline for Scotland on Sunday – is Pittodrie 2012 far enough in our past that we can mention the possibility of a loss to a Tier Two nation?

So, that's one thing we have learned, we've probably got greater depth of resources than we had a decade or so ago. However, I will be interested to see how many of the tyros, pictured below,  who so-impressed on Saturday keep their places for the tougher test of Australia a week today.

 You can only beat what is in front of you, however; and while I have no wish to rain on the parade of the eight latest members of Scotland's capped club, I believe we are now at the point where we need to have a look at the whole status of international matches.

I write this because, I suppose at heart I am a traditionalist. I want to tell you a story about a Scottish internationalist from the old days of amateurism. There was this player I know who had gone to one of our old public schools – one which had, since the 1870s, been producing Scotland caps – that school is still churning them out today, incidentally.

He made a 100-mile round trip, twice a week to train and once a week for home games, to play for one of the founding clubs of the SRU. He played in a very-good club side, but, for some reason, his face didn't seem to fit. He only got into the District side if the two or three alternatives in his position were unavailable, and, while the selectors of the time were always at his club games, checking on the four or five of his team mates who were in the then Scotland squad, he was not regularly in the frame for a cap.

Until disasters struck and the several players ahead of him in the pecking order for his position all got injured at once. Very-reluctantly, the SRU capped him. He only made two appearances in the national side, but, in two of Scotland's finest wins of the amateur era – then he was swiftly discarded, in favour of the Chairman of Selectors' son-in-law.

But, since – unless you rack-up 100 appearances - you only ever get the one Scotland cap, he's got his item of fancy head-gear, they can never take it away from him. And he is justly proud of that keep-sake, it's on display in a glass case in his living room – and why not.

I believe a Scotland cap means that much to every player who receives one. I had another friend, sadly no longer with us, who was first capped off the bench in a ten minute injury replacement cameo. He kept his cap in its box in his bottom drawer for two years, until he actually started an international. Only then did he consider himself a capped Scotland player.

One of the men who helped inflict me on the world of Scottish rugby writing had been an athlete in his youth, a 200 metres sprinter. He ran for the famous Birchfield Harriers club, but, while he was a competitive club runner, he never seriously dreamt of becoming an Olympian. However, one night, in the late 1950s, he got the call, to represent Great Britain against the USA in a televised meet at the old White City in London.

“Of course I went, the American number one was past me, the GB number two, before the stagger had unwound and I trailed in last, but, my position counted, I got to keep my white GB vest, with the red and blue rings and I got an impressive badge from the AAA (Amateur Athletic Association) which signified I was GB Team standard.”

He's another of my mates who is no longer here, it gets to be a fact of life when you're in your seventies, but, his son still values that AAA badge his father left him.

This is something I saw discussed in the below the line (btl) comments in The Guardian over the weekend, the value of games such as Saturday's, and, should full caps be awarded? I don't wish to go down the road of the old SFA diktat, whereby a giant of the game of football such as Eddie Turnbull could play nine times for Scotland, but have to wait until 2006 to get his cap, because, back in the 1940s and 1950s, when he was playing for Scotland, you only got an actual cap if you played against England, Northern Ireland or Wales.

However, we have to maintain the value of internationals and caps somehow. It's a ticklish subject, we should perhaps curtail the greed of the professional sports administrators by decreeing that “internationals” played outside the agreed World Rugby International Window don't merit caps, since they are, in effect, warm-up games. If World Rugby does succeed in compiling an international calendar on which all its member countries agree, such a protocol could yet be forced on the member unions.

From a purely Scottish perspective, the eight players who were capped yesterday will never forget the occasion and the experience. Hopefully, all eight will go on to win further caps, but, if by some mischance they don't – the one cap they have got cannot be taken away.

Now, look at this list, which I compiled with the aid of my copy of the SRU?Scotsman publication of 1994: International Rugby Union – a compendium of Scotland's matches, compiled by John Davidson:

• Argentina 1969 – Ian Murchie (West of Scotland), Arthur Orr (London Scottish), Bruce Laidlaw (Royal HSFP).

• Japan 1976 – David Ashton (Ayr), Jim Carswell (Old Grammarians and Jordanhill).

• Japan 1977 – Colin Mair (West of Scotland), Rob Moffat (Melrose).

• Zimbabwe 1988 – Ruari Maclean (Gloucester) David Butcher (Harlequins), Kevin Rafferty (Heriot's) Hugh Parker (Wigtownshire and Kilmarnock).

• Japan 1989 – Grant Wilson (Boroughmuir).

• USA 1991 – Mark Moncrieff (Gala)

• Canada 1991 – Ronnie Kilpatrick (Jedforest).

• Fiji 1993 – Nick Grecian (London Scottish), Ally Donaldson (Currie), Gary Isaac (Gala), Steve Ferguson (Peebles), Rory Scott (London Scottish).

• Tonga 1993 – Craig Redpath (Melrose).

There you have it, 20 players who all proudly wore the thistle in games which were every bit as much internationals as Saturday's game at BT Murrayfield. They played alongside Scottish legends, British Lions, multi-cap winners, but, they don't have caps to show for their efforts.

If, after 54 years, the Scottish Football Association could award caps to the likes of Sir Alex Ferguson, as they did before the recent game against Israel, why cannot the SRU retrospectively recognise the feats of the players listed above?

Over to you Ian Barr.

This Is Important - Where Are We Going?

I HAVE now been involved in Rugby Union since 1958. My schoolboy heroes were Ken Scotland, Arthur Smith, Hughie McLeod. I was at “Clive Rowlands' Match,” that Scotland v Wales game of the 111 lines-out and 38 scrums. (If we had 38 scrums in one game today, there would be very little time left for rugby, but, that's just an observation).

I've seen The O'Reilly, “Pine Tree”, John and Edward at half-back and both Keith Wood and his father play live. I've spoken to Richie McCaw and Paul O'Connell and watched Finn Russell when he was a promising boy.

I've put in the hours when it comes to the game, I am now in my seventh decade writing about the game, but, right now, I am concerned as to where it is going – particularly in Scotland.

We are waiting for the final report of Gavin McCall QC's Standing Committee on Governance to be delivered to the powers-that-be at BT Murrayfield. This will be debated at a Special General Meeting of the SRU, some time in early 2022, after which the final revised governance model will be settled upon.

After the division and upset this issue has caused over the past year or two, the game of Rugby Union football in Scotland might benefit from a period of calm reflection, but, hey, this is Scotland; we are never happier than when having a stair-heid rammy, or a washing-hoose row. In some ways, we are like our Celtic Cousins across the North Channel, we cannot see a fight without enquiring: “Is this a private war, or can anyone join in?”

I fear the next (un)civil war in the game is going to be about the format, and, this one will be important.

As things stand, the format for Scottish Rugby is:

• Tier One – the full international side

• Tier Two – the two full-time professional sides

• Tier Three – the Sevens squad and the international age group sides

• Tier Four – Super Six

These four tiers are administered by the SRU's High Performance Department.

• Tier Five – The Tennent's Premiership (10 clubs)

• Tier Six – The Tennent's National League One (12 clubs)

• Tier Seven – Tennent's National League Two (12 clubs)

• Tier Eight – Tennent's National League Three (12 clubs – this season 11)

• Tier Nine – The Regional Leagues – First Divisions

• Tier Ten – Regional Leagues – Second Divisions

• Ten Eleven – Regional Leagues Third and Lower Divisions

These seven tiers come under the remit of the SRU's Rugby Development Department.

The SRU's management model is that the bulk of the cash with which they run the game comes from the international side. They make the money, through the SRU's trading arm – Scottish Rugby Union Ltd, the SRU spends this money as the SRU (if that is clear).

The problem as I see it is – the clubs (tiers 5 to 11) are the constituency from which the money has to be raised – the fans who flock into BT Murrayfield to generate the cash generally come from a club background. But, the costliest part of the business is the performance department (tiers 1 to 4).

The SRU either fully or partly pays for the 100-plus full-time professionals, the Seven squad, the age group teams, the Academy players plus the 192 S6 players in tiers 1-4. This seems to many to be an unfair division of the cash.

The current SRU management model calls for the SRU to try to compete with the other Tier One nations, but, here I think we are facing a handicap which may well be insurmountable.

The other Tier One nations:

New Zealand – close to Scotland in population, but, there, Rugby Union is the main team sport.

South Africa – population 59 million, again, Rugby Union is the main team sport.

Australia – population 26 million, Rugby Union is the fourth team sport behind cricket, Rugby League and Australian Rules Football.

England – population 55 million, Rugby Union is the second team sport.

France – population 67 million, Rugby Union is one of the two main team sports, with football.

Italy – population 60 million, Rugby Union is the second team sport.

Wales – population 3 million, Rugby Union is the main team sport.

Ireland – population 6.8 million, Rugby Union is the main team sport

Scotland – population 5.5 million, Rugby Union is the second team sport.

So, we are competing with five far-larger countries, plus three countries of similar size to us, but where Rugby Union is the major team sport. We are immediately handicapped.

For instance, the South West Region of England has a population of 5.6 million, remarkably similar to Scotland, but, there is no major football team in that area, so Bath, Bristol, Exeter and Gloucester, the four main rugby clubs there are the four main team sports clubs.

In Scotland, our two centrally-owned clubs, Edinburgh and Glasgow, come at least behind Rangers, Celtic, Hearts, Hibs, the two Dundee clubs and Aberdeen in popularity and spectator draw appeal. Indeed, it could be argued that one or two other football teams are consistently a bigger draw than the two rugby teams.

In an ideal world, the two teams would perhaps be self-sufficient, however, in Scotland, they need the strength of the national union behind them to survive.

We therefore have to ask the following questions:

1. Is the long-term survival of the game of Rugby Union in Scotland being helped or hindered by the need for the national governing body to divert resources towards the survival of two full-time professional teams?

2. Is this a strategy which can be maintained over the longer term?

3. If it isn't, what is the best alternative?

4. What is more-important, the survival of the professional game in Scotland or continuing to make it possible for the maximum number of participants to be able to play the game?

Decisions, decisions.

Where Do The S6 Players Go From Here?

FRIEND OF this blog, 'Left Field' asked me a question on Wednesday. He wanted to know, how many of the 192 FOSROC Super6 players would get a professional contract. Not an easy question to answer. It is also a loaded one.

I seriously doubt if any of the players – except perhaps a front row player, who is aged older than 23 will get a pro contract. One or two who are under-23, but getting established in one of the professions, might have the talent, but not the desire to go for a professional contract.

The 30 Academy Stage III players should all, in theory, have a chance of that elusive contract, but, from past experience, we know some will not make the cut, while others may find themselves at the end of a log jam of Scottish players in their position.

Last week, I picked my Super6 Team of the Season. This week, on The Offside Line, David McAdam picked his.

We both picked an identical front row: George Thornton (Ayrshire Bulls), Fraser Renwick (Southern Knights), Euan McLaren (Southern Knights). In the second row, we both picked Michael Badenhorst (Watsonians), and while David left Bulls' Tom Everard on the bench, following his red card in the final – picking Angus Runciman of Southern Knights as his second lock. I had had Runciman on my bench.

I picked the Bulls' back row trio en bloc – David agreed with me in picking the Millbrae club's skipper, Blair Macpherson at number eight, but he gave the wing forward roles to Harry Borthwick of Southern Knights and Stirling County's Conor Gordon. Like me, he had Rhys Tait of Boroughmuir Bears as our back row replacement.

We both picked Kaleem Barreto (Boroughmuir Bears) at scrum-half. David paired him with Bulls' Tom Jordan at 10, whereas I had Jordan at 12. My wingers were Jordan Edmunds (Boroughmuir Bears) and Robbie Nairn (Ayrshire Bulls). David Also selected Edmunds, but had Jacob Henry (Southern Knights) on the other wing – I had Henry at full-back.

Archie Russell (Stirling County), we both picked at outside centre, with David pairing him with Nyles Godsmark (Southern Knights) at 12, while David had Bulls' Matt Davidson at full-back.

On the bench, as I said above, we both found a place for Bears' Rhys Tait, while we agreed again on our back-up hooker – Reyner Kennedy, the County captain. So, between us we picked around 25 players who impressed and might be worth a punt higher up.

Some of the players we picked – 30-year-old Macpherson, Runciman and Reyner Kennedy for instance, are never going to get a contract. Thornton had one and was cut, McLaren ditto, but, has come-on so-much and is young enough to warrant a second chance. Badenhorst is South African, and, although he has the work ethic of a Clydesdale, I don't see him getting a contract, since we have younger, bigger, professional locks.

Archie Russell has the talent, but, I think his chance has gone and he is getting established in the financial world I gather (he could handle brother Finn's investments). Godsmark and Nairn come into the ex-professionals category, so are unlikely to get a second chance, while Edmunds has been operating at a high standard for a number of years and hasn't been given his chance.

So, to answer Left Field's question: Kaleem Barreto, Jacob Henry of the Knights, young Marc Morrison of Watsonians, who was David's back-up 10 SHOULD have a chance of getting a pro contract, as should the two young Boroughmuir centres, Robbie McCallum and Duncan Munn.

Others who, for my money have a chance, are, Bulls' full-back Matt Davidson and stand-off Christian Townsend, Watsonians' centre Matt Currie, another centre, Cammy Scott of the Knights and the two young County Stage III players, Euan Cunningham and Max Williamson; while I would like to think too, that Euan McLaren would be given another crack at the big time. Five of these guys name-checked in this paragraph are already on the SRU's radar it should be noted.

That comes to 6.25% of the 192 players. This might seem a bit low to sum, but, I feel anything over 5% is good for one season.

But, the problem as I see it is – where do they go? We already know, from past experience, the two squads are over-loaded in some positions.

Using the team websites for my information, I find, between them the Edinburgh and Glasgow employ 90 full-time professionals, and also have 20 Stage III Academy players, who are full-time with the clubs.

Leaving the Stage III boys out of it for now, the 90 players break down to 74 Scotland-qualified and 16 non-Scotland qualified (82% SQ, 18% NSQ). I have asked this before, several times, and have yet to receive a satisfactory answer, but, why should the SRU, a body whose principal aim is the successful nurturing and care of the game of Rugby Union Football in Scotland employ non-Scots as 18% of their players? The United Rugby Championship does not have relegation, I see no need to “load” a squad with arguably more-talented non-Scots players to avoid relegation.

Then we look at promotion potential for the Super6 players. With fifteen props (plus four Academy props) already in the queue, I don't fancy any of the S6 props' chances of a contract any time soon. Maybe if the SRU dumped the four NSQ props, that would free-up some space.

Eleven locks, with nine of them Scottish, plus two big lumps of Academy locks. Again, not much chance for advancement there. I think if the two non-Scots were to be dumped, the two Academy boys should step-up. And, while on the subject of locks, ok, Ben Toolis, Glen Young, Scott Cummings and Kiran McDonald-Siran are all injured at the moment, but, other than on the grounds of his great experience, and Richie Gray feeling he wasn't in the right condition for international rugby - are there grounds for playing Rob Hartley (a very good 6) at lock against Tonga?

So, perhaps a glimmer of hope there for an ambitious lock, but, only a glimmer.

The two squads have 16 back rowers, 13 of them Scottish-qualified, with another three in the Academy. Again therefore, not a lot of hope for any S6 players not already in the system.

 

At scrum-half, Kaleem Barreto of Boroughmuir (pictured box-kicking above) would be most people's pick as Player of the Tournament in Super6; for me, he's certainly on the short leet with County's Archie Russell and the Bulls' pairing of Tom Jordan and Blair Macpherson. But, Kaleem is only at the present moment, our ninth-ranked scrum-half, behind the seven full-timers, Roan Frostwick of the Academy and Edinburgh and perhaps County's Caleb Korteweg.

We hear that a couple of the older nines might be jettisoned at the end of this season, which could free-up a place for Kaleem, but, that's rumour and possibility, nothing more concrete.

My advice to the three Academy tens is, don't hold your breath for advancement. And with Edinburgh and Scotland seemingly seeing Blair Kinghorn, nominally a back three player, as moving to ten, that queue just got longer.

It's the same situation in the outside backs, a rather large log jam of talent standing in front of some very-talented youngsters. Clearly we are now, in terms of our professional teams, reaching critical mass.

My view is, unless we start a third, or even third and fourth professional teams – immediately or very-soon – we risk losing some very-talented kids, either to giving-up the game, or, perish the thought, moving to England, or perhaps to the new Major League Rugby in the USA.

As things stand, because the SRU cannot and will not play the “let's pay big money in wages” game of the proliferate English and French clubs, we are developing talent for these clubs.

It annoys me no end that massive (in terms of “brand name” support and history) football clubs such as Rangers and Celtic can no longer hold onto their big names, but sell them on to English clubs with far fewer honours on their escutcheons and a far-weaker “brand identification.”

The same thing is now happening in rugby. Edinburgh is surely a bigger rugby citadel than Worcester, but, in the summer, they lost two Lions to that struggling English provincial club.

It may be that, some time soon, the big English clubs will realise, the Viv Nicholson model for budgeting is unsustainable and we will see common-sense economics at the professional level. This might mean, fewer top Scots heading down the M6 in search of riches.

But, if we keep producing fresh talent in S6, that still leaves the two-club log jam further up. Given the current professional rugby set-up is likely to continue for some years to come, with the three major competing competitions: URC, Top 14 and English Premiership, we are going to have a problem.

Therefore, to solve the problem, the SRU will really have to either spend more money, on another two URC teams – assuming the other nations will allow it; find private investors to take on the new teams (or the existing ones), but, again, only if the URC will allow two further Scottish teams; or, opt out of Tier One of World Rugby all together.

They could then drop down to the European Rugby Championship and take-on the likes of the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, Germany and so on – with semi-professional teams, always assuming these countries have not, in the interim, embraced full professionalism. Actually, that might happen in ten years' time in any case. In which case, we could revert to club rugby with a District level above it and all the recent unpleasantness would have been for nothing.

 

By All Means Remember Walter, But, A Bit Of Perspective, Please

I WOULD never argue that Walter Smith, who died earlier this week after a period of illness was not a Scottish Footballing Great. He is deservedly in the Scottish Football Hall of Fame, he is one of only 23 men who have managed the national side, and he certainly won a barrow-load of trophies during his tenure as Rangers' manager.

Of course, it was sad to record his passing, 73 is, given today's expectations of longevity, no age at all at which to be checking-out. I am older, and I hope to be around for a wee while yet. However, I just feel, it was symptomatic of the mind-set in the Glasgow-dominated Scottish media, that his passing should have generated so much newsprint. The Scottish written press, even the so-called “heavy” broadsheet papers, nowadays seemed wedded to the principle of wooing the Old Firm fans, and this showed in the hagiography of some of the tributes.

Walter's record of 21 domestic trophies won as manager has to be recognised as very-good. However, Bill Struth led Rangers to 30, so to overlook that fact and dub Walter: “Rangers Greatest Manager,” for me that is over-gilding the lily.

Given the quality of player David Murray's “financial doping” of the club put at Walter's use, he ought to have won those trophies. But, by the same measure, he should perhaps have done far-better in Europe than one UEFA Cup Final appearance, as a consolation prize after being eliminated from the Champions League.

It may not be one which the modern club wishes to shout about too-loudly, but, Struth, and his successor, Scot Symon, left more of a legacy at the club than did Smith. Also, I saw one media outlet lauded Smith's guidance of Scotland to success in the Kirin Cup in 2006 as him having led us to: “Scotland's only international trophy win.” Don't our 41 wins in the Home International Championship, and in particular, in the context of trophies won, the 16 times we won the Jubilee Trophy, from its inception in 1936, in that competition, count?

As a young coach and assistant manager, Walter learned from Jim McLean, his early successes were with Scotland age group teams – winning a competition in the Canary Islands for instance. But, once he got the big job at Ibrox, he seemed reluctant to promote young players, preferring to spend Murray's millions on tried and tested mature players – I feel, looking at the bigger picture, this did Rangers no favours.

To be honest, I had few face-to-face meetings with him, I tended to cover second tier senior football and was never a member of what we lesser scribes dubbed: “The A Team,” that small corps of the leading football writers, who trod the Celtic Park-Ibrox-Hampden beat. Walter was at ease with these writers, guys like Chic Young, he had little time for the rest of us, with whom he could be off-hand and came across as arrogant.

One of my pals, given a rare excursion into A Team territory as holiday cover, received a withering put-down from Smith, when he dared to ask a perfectly-civil question which Smith didn't like. Civility costs nothing.

I tend to think, he would have been happier to continue as the Number Two to Graeme Souness, but, Souness opted to commit career suicide by leaving Rangers for Liverpool. It would be churlish to suggest that Smith didn't fully take the chance this offered him. Had Souness stayed, I am sure greater success would have followed and Smith's star would be little less dimmed.

His tenure as Scotland manager has also been highly-praised. He succeeded Berti Vogts, whose tenure is generally seen as uninspiring to downright catastrophic, so yes, he lifted the nation. But, he failed to get us to a major finals and his wins ration, at 43.75% is just a tad over the median for a Scotland boss of 42.2% wins. So, yes, he made a fair go of what is often seen as an impossible job, but, steady the Buffs with the hymns of praise please.

He was a Rangers Man to his core, that club and its followers have every right to remember him with fondness. The rest of us, we can admire his successes, we feel some of the pain of his family, we can send our condolences, but, while I have no wish to denegrate Walter Smith and his memory, some of the stuff from the Scottish media was well over the top; and I think that needs to be said.

STILL ON a Rangers thread; these is apparently something of an ongoing stushie around the Ibrox side's equalising goal against Aberdeen last night.

I didn't see the game live. I haven't even seen any of the many clips of the incident which are apparently circulating, but, I will say, it's by no means the first soft penalty to have been awarded to Rangers, either at Ibrox or elsewhere in Scotland.

The Ibrox club may well have benefitted more from “honest mistakes,' by Scottish referees over the years, but, another Glasgow-based club also gets the benefit of such decisions on a regular basis.

That is why, in my humble opinion, we will not see VAR applied in Scottish Football, until FIFA and UEFA insist on the SFA and the SPFL bringing this technology in. I am sure VAR, if applied properly, would soon wipe “honest mistakes' from the face of the game up here – provided, of course, we could recruit and train the independent-minded officials to operate the system fairly.

Now, there's the rub.

CONTINUING on this thread of big clubs getting a hard time in the media, on a media Facebook site this week, I commented on the current discussion as to whether or not Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's days as manager of Manchester United are numbered.

I observed, the English hacks really don't know how to fan the flames of controversy – had OGS been manager at Ibrox or Celtic Park, The Hun and the Daily Ranger would have deployed the ever-ready cracked crest graphics on Monday morning.

I also liked a couple of Facebook posts which I saw. The first said simply: “Steve Bruce is available – he's still a better centre-half than Harry Maguire': while another was a supposed screenshot of Jurgen Klopp's half-time talek to his Liverpool team.

This had Klopp saying: “OK, Mo Salah, you get your hat-trick, the rest of you, take it easy, no more goals, we want Ole to stay in place.”

Cruel, really cruel.

We Have Lost A Lion And A Legend

Sandy Carmichael - 2 February, 1944 - 27 October, 2021

 

THE SCOTTISH media has been going ape shit over the past couple of days, desperately trying to outdo each other in their praise of Walter Smith, following his death after a long illness.

In the midst of it all, in the quiet, understated way which characterised so much of his life, for my money an even-greater Scottish sporting hero, Alexander Bennett “Sandy” Carmichael MBE slipped away quietly on Wednesday afternoon. ABC had been ill for some time, so his passing, sad thought it was, was in part a blessing to his family.

There was a sense of great anticipation when Sandy emerged from Loretto School in the mid-1960s. He was a prop, but, more-importantly, he was bigger than any previous Scottish prop. He had been a number eight at school and even in his international pomp, he was an occasional and very-successful alternative front of the line-out jumper.

I can still remember the first time I ever clapped eyes on Sandy. He was working for a big much-shifting company, Scottish Land Devel,opment Corporation. SLDC was a customer of the tyre company I worked for then, so, when I walked into the old transport cafe at Harthill, and saw this massive figure sitting with some of the SLDC guys I knew, I realised, this was the fabled prop. Even in a donkey jacket, jeans and wellies – he was an impressive figure.

Sandy had joined West of Scotland, back then just about the only open club in Glasgow. He was soon promoted to the Glasgow District side and, on 25 February, 1967, the 23-year-old earned a last-minute call-up to replace veteran legend Dave Rollo at tight-head for the Irish's visit to Murrayfield. Sadly, the Irish won 5-3.

Rollo was back for the Calcutta Cup game, three weeks later, but, when the All Blacks came calling in December of that year, Sandy moved across to loose-head, with Rollo at tight-head. The pairing of the young West man and the veteran from Howe of Fife continued for the French, Welsh and Irish games of the 1968 Five Nations.

Legend has it, that Irish game being Rollo's 40^th cap, drawing him level with his old mate Hughie McLeod as the joint caps record holder, he was dropped. Sandy moved over to his natural tight-head side, where he would be first choice for the next ten years.

For that period, the Scottish props virtually picked themselves, with Ian McLauchlan wearing number one and Sandy the number three shirt. It is somehow fitting that there should be a direct link between the great McLeod/Rollo pairing and that of McLauchlan and Carmichael.

By the time the 1971 Lion party to tour Australia and New Zealand was picked, Sandy was a shoo-in to be selected. The natural assumption was that Irish legend Ray McLaughlin and Sandy would be the Test props, but, the week before the First Test, in what has gone down as The Battle of Lancaster Park, McLaughlin and Carmichael were ruthlessly punched out of the tour by the thugs of Canterbury. Sandy sustained a broken cheek bone and could barely see out of both eyes.

He had to be invalided home, out of the tour. McLauchlan, who was watching, was raging that his pal had refused to punch back against the thuggery, but, as the wee man from Tarbolton acknowledged, punching wasn't Sandy's style. The Lions won the match and McLauchlan and Sean Lynch came in to prop the Test XV.

Sandy returned to West, to the Glasgow District team and to the Scotland side, where he continued to embellish his reputation as arguably the best tight-head in the world.

When the All Blacks came to Europe in late 1972, Sandy faced them for Scotland, before, in the final match of the Tour, when the tourists faced the Barbarians, in Cardiff, Sandy was the solitary Scottish player in the star-studded Baa-Baas side.

He didn't handle the ball in “the greatest try ever scored,” but, as he modestly said: “I ran a support line right up the pitch, but, I was on-hand but wasn't needed.”

In 1974, he was picked for a second Lions Tour, this time to South Africa. However, with England's Fran Cotton in the form of his life and claiming the tight-head berth in the Tests, Sandy had to be content with life in the midweek side: 'the Dirt Trackers.”

However, while he never played in a Lions Test, Lion #497, with 16 appearances over two Tours was a key man in arguably the two greatest Lions squads – the only one to win a series in New Zealand and The Invincibles of 1974.

In time, he would captain West of Scotland and, when he retired from international rugby in 1978, he was Scotland's most-capped internationalist, the first Scot to surpass 50 caps. He was made MBE in the Queen's Silver Jubilee Honours List in 1977.

He was a member of the Scotland front five of the early 1970s, which was known as: “The Mean Machine,” McLauchlan, hooker Duncan Madsen, ABC, his West club-mate Gordon “Broon from Troon” Brown and Big Al McHarg.

At that time, forwards from Ayrshire such as McLauchlan, McHarg, Peter and Gordon – the Brown brothers, hooker Quintin Dunlop, flanker Gordon Strachan, Bill Cuthbertson and Kilmarnock brothers Ian and David Gray were in contention for the Scotland team. Not willing to be left out, Sandy used to joke he was actually from Fenwick – the nearest Ayrshire village to Glasgow.

Another Ayrshireman, Old Spierian Ackie Wilson was for many years Sandy's co-prop with West of Scotland and, in their early days, while future SRU President McLauchlan served a one-season suspension from playing for Jordanhill Gollege, he played for the West of Scotland second XV, where the regular front row was McLauchlan, Dunlop and Carmichael, the same front row which, in a week in 1971 would be part of a Scotland team which beat England twice, in the Calcutta Cup match at Twickenham, then, seven days later, in the Centenary International, at Murrayfield.

In retirement, Sandy coached, with his former players praising him highly in their tributes following his passing. But, his lasting legacy is the affection in which he is still held throughout Scottish rugby, and in particular in the west, beyond Burnbrae and West of Scotland, the club he served with such distinction throughout his career.

Even kids who never saw him play immediately recognised, when they met Sandy they were in the presence of modest greatness - he had that aura around him.

We are unlikely to see his likes again. He was years ahead of his time, as a fast, mobile, ball-carrying prop who could play a bit. In today's rugby, Sandy Carmichael would be priceless.

I would like to join everyone else in Scottish rugby in sending my sincere condolences to his family – son Trevor is today coaching at GHA – and to his remaining team mates and many friends.

Scottish Rugby is the poorer for the passing of this legendary prop and equally legendary human being.