WHEN WILL WE SEE YOUR LIKE AGAIN?
Grand Slam drought hell for Hastings
BY ALAN MARSHALL SCOTT HASTINGS still chokes up at memories of Scotland’s Grand Slam 30 years ago but he admits it’s hard to swallow that it hasn’t been repeated.
Yesterday marked 30 years to the day since Ian McGeechan’s side claimed the Scots’ third clean sweep with a 13-7 victory over England at Murrayfield on an afternoon to remember.
Sadly, that was the last time they achieved the Grand Slam and Hastings, right, who played centre on that famous day, says the players who came after that should’ve achieved more.
He said: “Somebody posted a video of the highlights on Twitter and I will admit, I came over all sentimental.
“There’s a bit of me that’s a bit sad it’s 30 years since the Grand Slam and Scotland haven’t been able to match that since.
“The guys of 1999 did win the last Five Nations title but even when I was playing we had a couple of chances to do the clean sweep and we fell short. “Scotland haven’t been able to build momentum up for such a long time.
“I hate to say it but the last time Scotland won three games on the trot in the championship was when I was still playing back in 1996.
“While there’s a bit of sadness it hasn’t been repeated, I’m also full of pride because we worked bloody hard as a group to get the wins we did.”
Skipper David Sole’s slow march on to the pitch before kick-off set the tone for a day to remember.
Hastings said: “It was an extraordinary day.
“It was full of emotion, passion, nerves and even fear. There was angst, motivation and excitement.
“It’s a bit surreal looking back on it now 30 years ago. We were a pressure-cooker in that changing room and did well to keep a lid on things. I think the famous Sole walk helped with that. He led that team on the pitch and it was all about keeping calm heads.
“I remember England hammering our line for the last few minutes and us scrapping for every inch of turf but we kept our cool throughout. It was a masterstroke from Soley.”