A great man, a fine coach – rugby world mourns Hogg

● His death has hit us all hard, Scotland centre Scott says in tribute to ‘Greco’

Scotland centre Matt Scott has expressed his sadness at the death of Graham Hogg, saying he was “a great man who helped me to progress in the game”.

Hogg, the former Scotland back and renowned Currie, Edinburgh and Scotland ‘A’ coach known within the game as ‘Greco’, passed away aged 69 on Tuesday.

And Scott, now 26 with 39 Scotland caps under his belt and currently in pre-season training with Gloucester, said he was in shock at the news and owed Hogg a lot of thanks.

“My dad phoned me and told me the news about Greco and I could not believe it,” Scott stated.

“When I was growing up in and around the club at Currie he was always there and everybody knew him at Malleny Park. Indeed my brother [Fergus, the Currie Chieftains co-captain] was speaking to him just a few days ago so the news has hit us, the club and the wider Scottish rugby community hard.

“When I was moving up from the under-18s at Currie into the senior set-up it was a big move, but Graham was always there for me to chat to about things and was always offering advice. He was a very good coach and you could always learn from him. He will be a big loss.”

0 Matt Scott: ‘He’ll be big loss’

Scottish Rugby president and Hogg’s friend Rob Flockhart said: “I met him at university, played with him at Boroughmuir and, for a time, managed the Edinburgh and Scotland ‘A’ teams he coached.

“Graham was a highly intelligent man, an outstanding motivator in his own inimitable style and a great coach who gained the respect of, and improved the game of, all those he coached. On and off the pitch he was a special servant to our game.”

Currie Chieftains head coach Ben Cairns took to social media to say: “A mentor, a friend, a huge loss.”

The club’s president Phil Thomas added: “He was a tower of a man and will be deeply missed by all those who knew him. His contribution to Currie was immense and his legacy will be long-lasting.

“We offer our deepest condolences to Jeanette and to Greco’s extended family and we will share their grief.”

Having grown up in Hawick, Hogg won two full caps for Scotland as a replacement wing against France and Wales in February 1978.

He then coached at Currie while his finest hour at a representative level was when he helped Scotland ‘A’ to their 1998 Grand Slam.