On the passing of a legend

Rarely has a non player achieved such significance in any sport. Bill Mclaren, the commentator, was a true icon of the game of rugby. Although a useful player (he had a trial for Scotland in 47 before TB cut short his career), it was as a match caller that he truly hit the heights.

To listen to his soft Scottish burr, trotting out his quirky phrases and sharing with us a depth of knowledge and insight into the match unfolding was truly a thing of beauty. Humour, warmth and sympathy were his tools of trade.

In an era where commentators today are opinionated, ignorant and rarely add to the viewing experience, Mclaren is a legend of the days of yore.

Cynics might say he was lucky enough to work rugby’s golden period, when giants of the game such as Ripley, Duckham, Irvine, Blanco, Edwards, Oh, that fellow Edwards, et al delighted us with their grace, their trickery and their strength. Mclaren was perhaps merely the knife that spread their butter.

But for those who knew him, his effortless analysis, his never ending knowledge and top-of-the-head trivia were actually the product of unremitting hard work. His copy of the match programme would be covered from front to back in scrawled notes, the product of hours of research (in, it must be said, the pre interweb era) which enabled his flow of facts.

Unlike many modern commentators, he called the game he saw, avoiding bias, and praising both sides when appropriate. What he told us added to our experience, to the point that on any number of occasions, watching a match on TV became preferable to seeing it live.

As a pioneer of televised sports commentary, he was part of a golden era; Harry Carpenter, Dan Maskell, Peter Aliss, David Coleman, Murray Walker John Arlott and Peter O’Sullevan. But Bill was the king.

If ever a man deserved a knighthood, he did, and the 6000 members of the Facebook group “Knighthood for Bill Mclaren” will be doubly devastated that their efforts have gone unrewarded now that their hero has ascended to that great Hawick clubhouse in the sky.

During his final commentary, Wales v Scotland in 2002, the crowd sang "For He's a Jolly Good Fellow". And he was.