Andy Irvine (rugby player)
Encyclopedia
Andrew Robertson "Andy" Irvine MBE
(born 16 September 1951) is a former President of the Scottish Rugby Union
(SRU), and a former Scottish
international rugby player
. He earned fifty one Scottish caps, and scored over 250 points for .
, on 16 September 1951 and was educated at George Heriot's School
in the city. From there he went on to Edinburgh University. After graduation he followed a career in chartered surveying and now is on leave from the Edinburgh property firm Jones Lang LaSalle while he is president of the SRU.
As fullback for , he won 51 caps, between 1972-82. His first cap was against the All Blacks.
Richard Bath writes of his playing style that:
The French sports newspaper L'Equipe
, on February 17, 1980, described Scotland's play against France
as
"Le Triomphe de Baroque
" and dubbed Murrayfield
"Irvinefield".
He also earned British Lions
caps versus South Africa
(1974), New Zealand
(1977) and South Africa
(1980). He also played for the Barbarians
during their 1976 Easter Tour. In the 1974 tour, he adopted many South African tactics and styles of play, although JPR Williams was preferred as full back for the tests, limiting Irvine to two test appearances on the wing.
Irvine vies with Gavin Hastings
for the title of Scotland's greatest ever fullback, with incisive running at a blistering pace from the back his trade mark. In fact most polls over the last 20 years have voted Irvine Scotland's greatest player, and he is generally considered one of the best, if not the best, attacking full backs of the modern era. His presence in the line often distracted defenders even when he did not have possession.
He is an inductee of the Scottish Sports Hall of Fame
and the International Rugby Hall of Fame
.
Allan Massie
praised him saying,
Norman Mair
wrote "in any assessment of him, it is easy to overlook the threat he poses in the eye of the enemy", and said of Irvine's try against Wales
:
However, he was not without his critics:
He was also compared, unfavourably, to his Welsh contemporary JPR Williams.
in 2005. He announced his readiness to stand for a second term at the end of March 2006.
He has appeared as a guest on BBC Radio Scotland
's Sportsound
radio programme to comment on international rugby games.
He has also coached rugby at Heriot's Rugby Club.
Andy Irvine is a director of the Bill McLaren Foundation
along with John Rutherford.
MBE
MBE can stand for:* Mail Boxes Etc.* Management by exception* Master of Bioethics* Master of Bioscience Enterprise* Master of Business Engineering* Master of Business Economics* Mean Biased Error...
(born 16 September 1951) is a former President of the Scottish Rugby Union
Scottish Rugby Union
The Scottish Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in Scotland. It is the second oldest Rugby Union, having been founded in 1873, as the Scottish Football Union.-History:...
(SRU), and a former Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
international rugby player
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
. He earned fifty one Scottish caps, and scored over 250 points for .
Background
Irvine was born in EdinburghEdinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, on 16 September 1951 and was educated at George Heriot's School
George Heriot's School
George Heriot's School is an independent primary and secondary school on Lauriston Place in the Old Town of Edinburgh, Scotland, with around 1600 pupils, 155 teaching staff and 80 non-teaching staff. It was established in 1628 as George Heriot's Hospital, by bequest of the royal goldsmith George...
in the city. From there he went on to Edinburgh University. After graduation he followed a career in chartered surveying and now is on leave from the Edinburgh property firm Jones Lang LaSalle while he is president of the SRU.
Player
Andy Irvine originally played for Heriot's Rugby Club.As fullback for , he won 51 caps, between 1972-82. His first cap was against the All Blacks.
Richard Bath writes of his playing style that:
- "looking back at the history of the game, there is a temptation to view world-class attacking full-backs in the same way as the local bus; you wait for ages, and then two come along at once! Yet if Andy Irvine MBE, one of the first real superstars of the game North of the Border, spent much of his rugby career in competition with that great Welsh full-back J.P.R. Williams, that does little to diminish the impact he had upon Scottish rugby throughout the 1970s... Yet despite his many caps Irvine was notoriously frail under the high ball, and even his staunchest supporters could not pretend that he was the most defensively sound of Scotland's full-backs."
The French sports newspaper L'Equipe
L'Équipe
L'Équipe is a French nationwide daily newspaper devoted to sports, owned by Éditions Philippe Amaury. The paper is noted for coverage of football , rugby, motorsports and cycling...
, on February 17, 1980, described Scotland's play against France
France national rugby union team
The France national rugby union team represents France in rugby union. They compete annually against England, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales in the Six Nations Championship. They have won the championship outright sixteen times, shared it a further eight times, and have completed nine grand slams...
as
"Le Triomphe de Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
" and dubbed Murrayfield
Murrayfield Stadium
Murrayfield Stadium is a sports stadium located in the west end of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Its all-seater capacity was recently reduced from 67,800 to 67,130 to incorporate the largest permanent "big screen" in the country though it still remains the largest stadium in Scotland and one...
"Irvinefield".
He also earned British Lions
British and Irish Lions
The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team made up of players from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales...
caps versus South Africa
1974 British Lions tour to South Africa
In 1974 the British Lions toured South Africa, with matches in South West Africa and Rhodesia . The tour was a great success, the Lions winning 21 of their 22 matches and drawing the other. After winning the first three test matches, the Lions drew the final test to preserve their unbeaten record...
(1974), New Zealand
1977 British Lions tour to New Zealand
In 1977 the British Lions rugby union team toured New Zealand. The Lions played 26 matches, including four internationals against the All Blacks. They lost the series against the All Blacks by three matches to one. The team played as the British Isles in their internationals against the All Blacks...
(1977) and South Africa
1980 British Lions tour to South Africa
In 1980 the British Lions rugby union team toured South Africa . The tour was not a success in terms of international results, the Lions losing the first three tests before salvaging some pride with a win in the fourth...
(1980). He also played for the Barbarians
Barbarian F.C.
The Barbarian Football Club, usually referred to as the Barbarians and nicknamed the "Baa-Baas", is an invitational rugby union team based in Britain...
during their 1976 Easter Tour. In the 1974 tour, he adopted many South African tactics and styles of play, although JPR Williams was preferred as full back for the tests, limiting Irvine to two test appearances on the wing.
Irvine vies with Gavin Hastings
Gavin Hastings
Andrew Gavin Hastings, OBE is a former Scotland rugby union player. He is frequently considered one of the best, if not the best, rugby player to come out of Scotland. His nickname is "Big Gav".Hastings was born in Edinburgh...
for the title of Scotland's greatest ever fullback, with incisive running at a blistering pace from the back his trade mark. In fact most polls over the last 20 years have voted Irvine Scotland's greatest player, and he is generally considered one of the best, if not the best, attacking full backs of the modern era. His presence in the line often distracted defenders even when he did not have possession.
He is an inductee of the Scottish Sports Hall of Fame
Scottish Sports Hall of Fame
The Scottish Sports Hall of Fame is the national sports hall of fame in Scotland, initiated on St Andrew's Day 2001. It is a joint project organised by sportscotland, the national governmental body for Scottish sport, and the National Museums of Scotland. It is also funded by BBC Scotland and...
and the International Rugby Hall of Fame
International Rugby Hall of Fame
The International Rugby Hall of Fame is a hall of fame for rugby union. It was created in 1997 in New Zealand and is run as a charitable trust with an address at Chiswick in London. Most of the trustees are also inductees. IRHOF accepts new inductees every two years...
.
Allan Massie
Allan Massie
Allan Massie is a well-known Scottish journalist, sports writer and novelist.-Early life:Born in 1938 in Singapore, where his father was a rubber planter for Sime Darby, Massie spent his childhood in Aberdeenshire...
praised him saying,
- "Just as Muhammad AliMuhammad AliMuhammad Ali is an American former professional boxer, philanthropist and social activist...
transformed heavyweight boxing, so that one could never again be satisfied by or impressed with, firm-footed bruisers, so Irvine affected full-back play."
Norman Mair
Norman Mair
Norman G.R. Mair is a sports journalist and a former Scottish international rugby union and cricket player. He later became a journalist for The Scotsman on rugby and golf., and also wrote for Rugby World His daughter is Suzi Mair, who presents STV News at Six.Mair has always been outspoken in his...
wrote "in any assessment of him, it is easy to overlook the threat he poses in the eye of the enemy", and said of Irvine's try against Wales
Wales national rugby union team
The Wales national rugby union team represent Wales in international rugby union tournaments. They compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland, Italy and Scotland. Wales have won the Six Nations and its predecessors 24 times outright, second only to England with...
:
- "RobertsonKeith Robertson (rugby union)Keith William Robertson is a former Scottish rugby union player. He played for Scotland forty four times between 1978 and 1989...
's break for that opening try was preceded by a shrewd conversational exchange between our centres in which Jim RenwickJim RenwickJim Renwick was one of Scotland's greatest rugby players, usually at centre. He played for Hawick Harlequins RFC and the full Hawick RFC team, and the British Lions, 1972–84. He earned 52 caps for his country. Allan Massie thinks his 1981-82 international season was his best, and describes...
observed that Steve FenwickSteve FenwickSteven Paul Fenwick is a former rugby union and professional rugby league footballer of the 1970s and 80s, who at representative level has played rugby union for Wales, and at club level has played for Bridgend RFC, playing at Centre, i.e...
was tending to lie wide on the lookout for Andy Irvine, and that therefore there could be something on for Robertson were he to take his pass, Renwick's, 'on the pop'."
However, he was not without his critics:
- "He had his detractors. He wasn't, they said, as safe in the tackle as a full-back should be; he was uncertain under high ball, inclined to take his eye off it, not always cradling it properly. Sometimes he seemed to panic in defence, and throw out inaccurate or foolhardy passes. And so on..."
He was also compared, unfavourably, to his Welsh contemporary JPR Williams.
Other activities
Irvine became president of the Scottish Rugby UnionScottish Rugby Union
The Scottish Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in Scotland. It is the second oldest Rugby Union, having been founded in 1873, as the Scottish Football Union.-History:...
in 2005. He announced his readiness to stand for a second term at the end of March 2006.
He has appeared as a guest on BBC Radio Scotland
BBC Radio Scotland
BBC Radio Scotland is BBC Scotland's national English-language radio network. It broadcasts a wide variety of programming, including news, sport, light entertainment, music, the arts, comedy, drama, history and lifestyle...
's Sportsound
Sportsound
Sportsound is BBC Radio Scotland's main radio sports show. It provides coverage to listeners on medium wave, FM, DAB Digital Radio and via the internet. It is best known for its exclusive live commentary of Scottish Premier League football games. It is broadcast 7 days a week, and on on-match days...
radio programme to comment on international rugby games.
He has also coached rugby at Heriot's Rugby Club.
Andy Irvine is a director of the Bill McLaren Foundation
Bill McLaren Foundation
The Bill McLaren Foundation has been set up in Bill McLaren’s name, with the support of his family, to serve three purposes :* To develop and promote the sport of rugby union and its values* To encourage and provide sporting opportunities for young people...
along with John Rutherford.
External links
- Irvine to stand for second term at SRU, The Scotsman, April 1, 2006
- Irvine ready to answer his country's call - The Scotsman, 7 May 2005
- Andy Irvine - tribute in the Scotsman newspaper.
- Andy Irvine - part 1 on Sporting Heroes
- Andy Irvine - part 2 on Sporting Heroes
- Irvine on video - vintage Scottish rugby
- The Bill McLaren Foundation - The Bill McLaren Foundation