A 20-a-side showdown in Stockbridge

● Scotland emerged victorious from 1871 match with England at Raeburn Place which sowed the seeds of modern game

Rugby union’s first international match took place in Edinburgh149yearsagotoday.

Scotland tackled England at Raeburn Place, winning what was a momentous occasion for the sport.

The origins

A sporting publication entitled Bell’s Weekly carried a challenge in its edition of December 8, 1870 that was an invitation from five Scottish clubs to any team “selected from the whole of England” to participate in a game played under rugby rules. It would be 20playersperteam,andblackheath Rugby Club in London that had been formed in 1858

– accepted it with the aim of compiling a representative England team. Less than four months later, the first international rugby match took place.

The venue

Raeburn Place, named after the Scottish painter Sir Henry Raeburn and situated in Stockbridge, hosted the game. It was a ground that had been acquired by members of Edinburgh Academical in 1853, and four years later a match was staged between the Academicals and University of Edinburgh. It went on to become the Scotland national rugby team’s home venue for 25 years, and more recently hosted the Women’s Rugby World Cup final (1994). It is still home to the Accies and in the process of being rebuilt into a new home for the Premiership club.

Thescottishsideof1871came from seven teams – Edinburgh Accies, Glasgow Academical, St Andrews University, Merchistonians, Edinburgh University, West of Scotland and Royal High FP – and was captained by Edinburgh Academicals player Francis Moncrieff. England were led by Blackheath’s Frederick Stokes, with the visitors represented by a variety of clubs, including Clapham Rovers, Marlborough Nomads, Ravenscourt Park and Richmond. One of two umpires selected to officiate was Hely Hutchinson Almond, a Scottish physician, politician and headmaster.

The match

The game was watched by more than 4,000 spectators, who witnessed two 50-minute halves of rugby. Angus Buchanan and William Cross scored tries for Scotland, with Clapham Rovers’ Reg Birkett claiming England’s touchdown. Crucially, though, only kicks dictated the scoring, and what was effectively a 1-0 victory was secured by Cross converting Buchanan’s try. England had headed north in confident mood, but they could have no complaints about the result. It launched the series of games between Scotland and England that currently stands at 138 played, with England leading the series 76-43 and 19 matches drawn.

The legacy

Almost 150 years after the first international match, governing body World Rugby has morethan100memberunions overseeing a sport played in every part of the globe. The men’s and women’s World Cups, Six Nations, Rugby Championship and world sevens circuit are all established competitions, while British and Irish Lions tours to Australia, New Zealand and South Africa attract thousands of travelling fans. International rugby union is a box-office sport watched by millions, but one that can be traced all the way back to a small corner of Scotland’s capital city.