IN THE AUTUMN of 1919, a group of former pupils from Boroughmuir High School in west Edinburgh decided to follow the example set by various other schools and set up a rugby club for former pupils.
Playing in a strip of narrow navy and emerald stripes, and led by the club's first captain, John H W Hunter, Boroughmuir Former Pupils RFC were 6-0 victors over Stewart's College FP B XV in their first fixture.
It was a great start for the cl
ub, which will celebrate their 90th anniversary when they host Stewart's-Melville (the modern incarnation of those first opponents) tomorrow afternoon (3pm), but life hasn't always been that easy for the men from Meggetland. Boroughmuir might be one of the country's most successful clubs – having won the unofficial club championship twice, the official championship three times, and the Scottish Cup three times – but the long battle for recognition is just as much a part of their story as the numerous achievements.
The club did not become full members of the Scottish Rugby Union until 1939, and were not admitted to the old newspaper-run "unofficial championship" until 1953. But when they did eventually make it, they were quick to make an impact by winning the competition the following season.
"The foundations of that success had been laid over many years by some great club men," reveals Bob Proudfoot, a veteran from that 1954-55 season and still a regular spectator at Meggetland. "We were extremely fortunate to have this wonderful secretary called Ronnie Tait, who had really brought the club forward. Pug Webster was another huge influence, as were John McKendrick and George Johnson, who were teachers at the school and helped out with our training."
This success was an important turning point for the club. At last they were being taken seriously by the other leading clubs in the country and the next year they had many more championship matches, with clubs such as Hawick, Jed, Melrose, Glasgow Accies and Watsonians taking fixtures. Membership grew and six teams were being fielded regularly.
In January 1961, Ken Ross became the first Boroughmuir player to be capped by Scotland, when he played in a 5-12 loss to South Africa at Murrayfield. Ross went on to win ten caps in total, with his two tries in a 16-8 win over Ireland at Landsdowne Road in 1961 undoubtedly the highlight, while the infamous Wales game of 1963, remembered only for its 111 line-outs, is not so fondly recalled.
"I don't suppose the paying spectators enjoyed it too much and I didn't either. I was dropped after that game so it wasn't a highlight of my career," recalls Ross. "I came into the Boroughmuir team the year after they won the championship and funnily enough my first game was against Stewart's FP. I was flanker and Gregor Sharp was their stand-off and I remember being very excited about getting to have a go at this up-and-coming star. I was very fortunate because I was just a schoolboy and I was coming into this very strong pack – with a tremendous front-row of Jimmy Saunders, Harry Rowlands and Ian Murchison – so I was very well looked after.
At the start of the 1970s, new clubrooms were built and Boroughmuir were the first old boys club in Edinburgh to open their doors to non former pupils. In 1973, they won the unofficial championship for the second time, with a young Bruce Hay in the side.
They were placed in the top division when official leagues were set-up the following year, and have only been out of the top tier once since then. They were league champions in 1991, 2003 and 2008, won the Scottish Cup in 2000, 2001 and 2005, enjoyed numerous sevens' successes, and producing 18 internationals over the years, including Bill Watson, Norrie Rowan, Sean Lineen, Peter Wright and Hay.
There is to be a celebratory lunch before tomorrow's match (3pm), which will be attended by a host of past and present club stalwarts.
