| Bill McLaren was the voice of rugby union for fifty | | | | when his son in law actually played at scrum half for |
| years. In those fifty years, he commentated on | | | | Scotland. As a former player, playing for his home |
| some of the best players the world of rugby has | | | | town club, Hawick, he knew the game very well |
| ever seen: Gareth Edwards, Barry John, Phil Bennett, | | | | indeed and in fact he once had a trial for Scotland, |
| David Duckham, Andy Irvine, Serge Blanco, Ian | | | | but unfortunately he never made the team. |
| Kirkpatrick, just to name a few. He started out in | | | | He was involved in the second world war and came |
| 1952 on the radio then when television picked up the | | | | through it unscathed, only for a few years later to |
| game he was a natural to make the move over. His | | | | be struck down with TB. A disease in those days |
| dulcet tones made the game very recognisable all | | | | that many people never recovered from. But luckily |
| over the world and he will be remembered for it for | | | | for Bill a new drug was found and he was one of the |
| ever. | | | | first people to be prescribed it and it saved his life. |
| He had the knack to make the game look so easy, | | | | He has had his ups and downs in his family life, but |
| he had an unparalleled knowledge of the game and | | | | had came through it. |
| made the viewers feel comfortable in his | | | | Now happily retired, he undoubtedly the greatest |
| commentaries. He never got over excited when his | | | | rugby commentator of all time. |
| beloved Scotland won a game and even more so | | | | |