Calcutta

A dreich cold and very wet day did not bode well for the rugby. Fortunately the wind and rain eased in time for the match - and the pre match drinks with friends.

It was slightly odd being in such a crowd after a couple of years but we quickly forgot that as the event got underway. Each set of supporters were in tremendous voice and the stadium ringing to Flower of Scotland was tingling. On occasion the volume of Swing low, sweet chariot was also impressive.

After a nerve racking last few minutes the final whistle went and the roar from the crowd was huge.

We had acquired the tickets from friends who unfortunately could not come up from England ( a Scottish and a Welsh supporter). Their seat were close to the pitch and, as we discovered as the victorious team went round the pitch, very close to where the players’ families were seated. So the Calcutta Cup stayed in the area for quite a while as it was passed round to be photographed. We were several rows back but with the zoom on my compact camera were able to see a good deal of the detail.

The main blip shows two lads making a memory and coveys I hope the fun they were having. The first extra was when the cup was being held by Finn Russell and let’s you see some of the detail. And the second extra is just an example of some of the extravagant dress to be seen around the ground.

A day to remember, particularly if you support Scotland.