The Roar of the Crowd

From dumbbells to cricket bats

Scotland’s sports stars past and present are an eclectic, not to mention driven bunch. From the fiercely handsome weightlifter/wrestler Launceston Elliot – Scotland’s first Olympic Gold medallist in 1896 – through Chay Blyth, the first man to sail non-stop westwards around the globe, to colourful cycling champion Graeme Obree and rising tennis star Andy Murray, Scottish sports competitors have kept the crowds enthralled for well over a century. Their sometimes weird but always wonderful stories are told at the Scottish Sports Hall of Fame website where over 19 sports are represented, including athletics, rugby, football, golf, sailing, horse racing, cycling, walking and even cricket! Moving from the virtual to the real, the permanent exhibition at Edinburgh’s Royal Museum on Chambers Street is well worth a visit. Not only is it very evocative – you can almost hear the fading echoes of the crowds down through the decades – but it’s also home to the tennis racket Andy Murray used to win the US Junior Championships and the curling ‘Stone of Destiny’ used by Rhona Martin, of which more later.

There are some great anecdotes amongst the biographies. Young Tom Morris, for instance, the son of one of golf’s founding fathers Old Tom Morris, was the first golf professional to make a living from his winnings. Fiercely competitive, like his father, Young Tom won the Open in 1868, 1869 and 1870. The golfing authorities were not amused and so cancelled the 1871 tournament and changed venues in an attempt to end his run. They needn’t have bothered. Morris went on to win the Open for the fourth time in 1872, adding the celebrated Claret Jug to his Championship belt.

Players of the Beautiful Game are also well represented. Gracing the Sports Hall of Fame are Scotland’s most capped footballer, ‘King Kenny’ Dalglish, who made a record 102 appearances for his country and Denis Law, one of the greatest strikers of all time with 30 international goals to his name. Equally feted south of the border, Law played alongside George Best and Bobby Charlton at Manchested United and proved such an inspiration that Dennis Bergkamp is named after him.

And who could overlook Billy Bremner? Passed over by both Arsenal and Chelsea football clubs because they thought his 5ft 5½ inch frame too short for football, Scotsman Billy Bremner went on to play 773 times for Leeds United and won 54 Scotland caps. The most successful skipper in the club’s history, Bremner’s uncompromising style of play – the motto “Keep Fighting!” hung above his peg in the dressing room – and his uncanny knack of scoring crucial goals on the big occasions won the fiery No. 4 a verse in the Leeds United club song, Glory Glory Leeds United:

Little Billy Bremner is the captain of the crew
For the sake of Leeds United he would break himself in two
His hair is red and fuzzy and his body’s black and blue
As Leeds go marching on.

From the pitch to the bench, the list includes outstanding managers too, like big Jock Stein who could teach today’s managers a thing or two about ‘fitba’. Not only was this ex-miner one of the most successful football managers ever to come out of Scotland, but he achieved it with local talent rather than a large cheque book. After turning lowly Dunfermline Athletic’s fortunes around and helping them to the first major trophy in the club’s history, Jock Stein shifted his attentions to Celtic. His 13-year reign spelt disaster for anyone who stood in Celtic’s way as he led them to the first domestic treble in the club’s history and a record nine consecutive Scottish Championships. His crowning glory though was winning the 1967 European Cup final in Lisbon with a team who were all born within 30 miles of Glasgow. Shortly afterwards, Bill Shankly told him “Jock, you’re an immortal now”. Stein was more philosophical: “We did it by playing football: pure, beautiful, inventive football,” he said.

Watch Celtic’s triumphant return to Glasgow with the European Cup.

Another of Scotland’s great triumvirate of football managers, Bill Shankly, coined one of the best-loved quotes of the game: “Some people believe football is a matter of life and death. I can assure you it is much, much more important than that”. Affectionately known as the Father of Liverpool, Shankly won five Scotland caps and an FA Cup winners' medal as a player before taking the managerial road. Leading Liverpool from the English second division to win three English League Championships, Shankly laid the foundations for Liverpool’s dominance in England and Europe during the 1970s.

Fellow Scot, Sir Matt Busby, who managed Manchester United from 1945 to 1971, completes the big three. Despite a tragic air crash on the runway at Munich airport in 1958 when seven of his league-winning team were killed, he went on to rebuild his club and by 1968 they were the best team in Europe, winning the cup against Benfica.

Pivotal moments

For Busby both Munich 1958 and the European Cup ten years later must have been pivotal moments. The first, where a resolve of steel must have followed in the wake of disaster and the second, where that final whistle must have sounded a note of reckoning beneath the signal of victory. There are many other pivotal moments of Scotland’s stars to relive and relish. Like the night of 26 September 1970. It was 125 degrees inside Puerto Rico’s Hiram Bithorn stadium as Edinburgh-born Ken Buchanan, considered by many to be the best boxer ever to come out of Scotland, was piped in to the tune of Scotland the Brave. His opponent, Ismael Laguna, was first into the ring and claimed the shaded corner. Sweat was pouring off the Scot but despite the heat he attacked his opponent from the bell, rocking the champion in the 12th round and going on to win by a 15-round decision to become World Lightweight Champion. Buchanan retired with a record of 61 wins and 8 losses in 69 professional bouts and was elected to the International Boxing Hall Of Fame in 2000.

Listen as Ken Buchanan describes his momentous fight with Laguna.

No less dramatic was the clash between the Scottish and French rugby teams in the Parc des Princes in Paris in 1995. The man of the match was a certain fullback, ‘Big Gav’ Hastings, described by one renowned critic as “the epitome of the rugby man: brave, resolute, adventurous and one who loves a party.” A prolific penalty kicker, Hastings had scored all the points in Scotland’s 18-17 victory over France on his international debut in 1986; scored an incredible eight out of eight kicks in Scotland’s record breaking 33-6 rout of England in 1986 and played a crucial role in the match-winning try that won Scotland the Grand Slam in 1990. Despite that, Frenchmen woke to the headline “Now we’ll have some fun” on the front page of L’Equipe on the morning of the match. It would be Scotland who had the last laugh. Despite a monstrous 55-metre penalty from Hastings in the 23rd minute, France’s victory looked assured as they entered the final two minutes of the game with a four point cushion. Then it happened. Hastings appeared . . . not on the wing, but straight through the centre of the French defence. In a moment he was gone, ducking through the posts to bring the scores level. Coolly, he converted and secured Scotland’s first victory in Paris for 26 years. Formidable!

Seven years earlier, audiences had witnessed a no less remarkable escape story, this time in the world of golf. Introduced to this most Scottish of sports at the tender age of just three, Sandy Lyle had become a dominant force on the international golf circuit of the 1980s, winning the British Open in 1985 and the European Tour in 1979, 1980 and 1985. Arguably his greatest achievement though was reserved for the US Masters in Augusta, Georgia in 1988. Playing in the final group of the day, Lyle reached the 18th tee knowing that only a par would be good enough to ensure a play off with his rival for the title, Mark Calcavecchia. So when Lyle’s drive found a deep fairway bunker 140 yards from the pin, he must have felt his hopes slipping away. “I personally thought it was over”, admits Lyle. And so must the tens of thousands of fellow Scots watching back home. Only a miracle would do and Lyle duly obliged, lofting a magnificent 7-iron to within about 30 feet of the hole. Sure as eggs are eggs, the ball continued to trickle down the slope to within 10 feet of victory. The birdie shot awaiting him wasn’t the kind of “putt you want to have every day of the week,” says Lyle, but “I had a clean hit and the pace was right and it all came together – bingo”. Bingo indeed – following his victory jig on the 18th green Sandy Lyle became the first British winner of the much coveted ‘green jacket’.

Sandy Lyle’s putt was inch perfect. Much like the 42lb lump of Scottish granite that Rhona Martin propelled – with the utmost delicacy – 126 feet down the Ogden Ice Sheet in the wee small hours of 21 February 2002. Her team’s mission: to become the first Scots to win a Winter Olympic Gold for 66 years and Great Britain's first gold medallists in any sport at the Winter Olympics since 1984. Watched by an estimated 6.5 million viewers, Rhona Martin and her team were piped into the arena, as they had been for all their matches, by the kilted Salt Lake City Pipers. An unbelievably tense final followed with the scores eventually levelling out at Great Britain 3 – Switzerland 3. An extra 10th end was required and as Martin steered her last ‘Stone of Destiny’ down the ice, the audience in the arena and the world at large held its breath. After 13 matches and 36 hours on the ice, it had finally come to this. The arrival of Martin’s shot cued an explosion of joy. The cheers are in the ether, still.

One of Scotland’s greatest sporting achievements was, of course, made into a film by David Puttnam. ‘Chariots of Fire’ tells the story of Eric Liddell who in 1924 won the 400 metres Olympic Gold in Paris. The victory was all the more amazing as he hadn’t been planning to enter the race at all. He only did so as he had had to withdraw from the 100 metres race because it was being held on a Sunday and it conflicted with his religious beliefs. The secret to his success? “I run the first 200 metres as hard as I can. Then, for the second 200 metres, with God's help, I run faster”.

Today, television brings a huge variety of sports into the nation’s sitting rooms and millions can witness the exaltation of sporting triumphs. One of the most exciting of these in recent years was Ellen Macarthur’s round-the-world single-handed sailing record in 2005. Ellen is of Scottish descent and has been granted the Freedom of Skye and Lochalsh, where her family has a long connection. Her great grandfather grew up in Skye before leaving in the 1800s to settle in landlocked Derbyshire. Ellen said: “I was touched and felt incredibly privileged to have been honoured by the people of Skye and Lochalsh. Skye is a place very close to my heart, and is in fact the only real link with my family and the sea, as my ancestors were fishermen from Luib. I love Skye for its beauty and unique sense of freedom. But it's the people that make it such a special place.”

Sources of inspiration

There are many sports personalities who are either of Scottish descent or no longer live in Scotland but for whom Scotland is a spiritual home. One such is golfer Colin Montgomerie who has said, “I am extremely proud of my Scottish roots and frequently travel back to Troon in Ayrshire to visit family. Although I have spent a large part of my life living in England, I am Scottish through and through and love spending time there. The Scottish nation is extremely patriotic and I always look forward to returning to Scotland for golf tournaments, as I know the crowds will get behind me which is really encouraging”. Rising tennis star Andy Murray shares Colin’s appreciation of home support. “It is great to know there is so much support from Scotland,” says Andy. “On the Saturday before Wimbledon started this year, the Scottish Sun drove from Scotland to London and presented me with a giant card about 5ft by 4ft signed by hundreds of Scots including school pals, family, Miss Scotland, politicians and footballers. It was brilliant.”

Caitlin McClatchey is another Scot who lives ‘down south’. Born in Portsmouth, she speaks with an impeccably English accent and hones her freestyle swimming skills at Loughborough University. So why the Saltire on her cap? Her answer is immediate. Both her parents are Scottish and her Uncle Alan won an Olympic Bronze in 1976. She’s carrying on a family tradition. And she feels Scottish in her bones. Bones that have helped her to become the first Scottish woman to win an individual medal in world championship history. ‘Caits’ as she is to her friends and whose toughest opponent is herself won two gold medals at the 2006 Commonwealth Games for the 200m and the 400m freestyle. The person she’d most like to meet is Johnny Depp, but she is the person who will probably most inspire the youngsters who will be gathering to compete in the inaugural UK School Games in Glasgow this September. Her youth and naturalness and one minute 57 second record will be a beacon.

This September, 1200 youngsters from all over the UK will take part in this new multi-sport event for the most talented teenagers in the country. Scotstoun International Stadium, Tollcross swimming pool and Kelvin Hall will be the main venues. Patricia Ferguson, Scottish minister for tourism, culture and sport said: “The UK School Games in Glasgow will be a celebration of youth sport where Scotland's next generation of athletes will compete, inspired by Scotland's outstanding performance at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne*. We may see some of these young athletes competing again in Glasgow in 2014.”

It’s a great accolade for Glasgow to be hosting the event and hopefully will be a forerunner for hosting the Commonwealth Games in the city in 2014. The bid is well under way and has had tremendous support from the Scottish public, revealing, once again a nation of fervent supporters as well as talented players. Here’s what one of many Scottish sports stars, Liz McColgan, has to say about the Glasgow bid: “It was my win in the 10,000 metres at the Commonwealth Games way back in 1986 that kick-started my international running career. I am proud and excited that Glasgow is bidding to host the games again in Scotland.”

Let’s hope Glasgow kick-starts the career of many a budding sportsman and woman both this September and in 2014. The Glasgow crowd will certainly be very audible in cheering them on.

* Team Scotland won 29 medals at the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games: 11 Golds, 7 Silvers and 11 Bronzes.