I was months old, my parents are Scottish, and I see myself as nothing other than 100 percent Scottish. I’m not that precious about it but I did actually manage to keep my place of birth shtum until Glasgow played Northampton in the Heineken Cup and some of the local journalists picked up on it and phoned me up.
As a kid, I was sports-mad. I was a keen rugby player, keen golfer, keen cricketer and I played a whole bunch of other sports as well, whatever I could play basically, but I never had any understanding that sport could be a job until Sean Lineen spotted me playing in a school sevens competition and rang me up and invited me down to Glasgow’s academy. I’d missed out on all the age-group stuff after tearing my hamstring at the end of my first season of senior club rugby with a team called Cartha Queen’s Park, so I was fortunate that he was prepared to take a punt on me.
In the 2005/06 pre-season, I managed to get a few minutes against Newcastle. It was great to be on the same pitch as people like Jonny Wilkinson. That gave me a taste of it straight from school and, later on that year, I managed to make my competitive debut as an 18-year-old against GRAN Parma.
Two years later, I signed my first senior contract and I was competing with Dan Parks for the No.10 jersey. Probably the game that sticks out in most people’s minds as my breakout game was a match against Bath, down there, in the 2008/09 Heineken Cup. I had one of those games where a lot of stuff came off. It was an extraordinary game, it ended 35-31 to Bath despite Thom Evans’ hat-trick of tries. I also scored an intercept try and could have got another right near the end to win the match but I didn’t quite have the legs to go the length.
Bu hikaye The Rugby Paper dergisinin March 31, 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye The Rugby Paper dergisinin March 31, 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
England can find a little bit of cheer
SO HERE we are on the final day of England’s autumn international series with all of us hoping and expecting Steve Borthwick’s team to win today after three weeks of bitter disappointment.
Stop messing with Marcus - Campese
DAVID Campese believes England are going backwards under Steve Borthwick, who is ‘messing around’ with talisman Marcus Smith.
Being a Lion was the highlight of my career
I PLAYED 19 games and scored 219 points for the Lions, on the tours to South Africa in 1968 and New Zealand in 1971, but I never played in a Test and that was fair enough.
Cook's crew not fazed as they eye tilt at top half
THERE appear to be few signs of second season syndrome at Westcombe Park as captain Nick Cook reveals the group aren’t even contemplating the threat of relegation and are instead targeting a top-half finish.
Forwards pack a punch for the Reds
OLD Redcliffians produced a proud defensive effort to take a bonus-point win.
Tom 'Ailes' the achievements of inspirational skipper Riley
SEDGLEY Park No. 8 Tom Ailes says his team relish the competitive nature of National One and is confident the Tigers can rectify their rocky start to the season in weeks to come.
Strachan confident Ampthill will be firing again soon
FRASER Strachan is determined to put Ampthill’s leaky defensive showings behind them and gain some much needed confidence in the run up to Christmas.
It's a whole new ball game for Rigg
WILL Rigg’s ambition was to become a professional cricketer but it is the oval ball rather than The Oval that is his driver now.
Scarratt leads the way for Lightning
LOUGHBOROUGH won a wet and windy East Midlands Derby after having the bonus point in the bag by half-time.
Becconsall: We need to release pressure
WILL Becconsall says Exeter are not spooked by the threat of relegation as they look to turn around their Premiership campaign after starting with six straight defeats.