A joy to read Montford's stroll down a long memory lane

It has been a pleasure to renew acquaintances with Arthur Montford in your pages, a figure sorely missed on our television screens these days.

In a celebrity-obsessed age when we seem to have lost sight of the difference between a sports presenter and a cooking show host, Arthur Montford is a breath of fresh air.

Here is a man who not once, in my memory, tried to become the story or thrust his own personality ahead of that of his subject, unlike so many of the overexposed egos around today.

His stroll down 'memory lane' was a joy to read, and brought my own personal memories flooding back, for instance the late Ian Archer being afforded time on Scotsport to deliver a considered analysis of events rather than the present-day demand for snap reactions and endless replays of trivial incidents.

As the great man said himself, so much has changed in television, and not necessarily for the better. I note that he said nothing in his memoirs of the last incarnation of his beloved Scotsport, wisely in my opinion. The less said the better.

D GRAHAM

Inverness

Jeering at kickers puts off true supporters and players alike

What a great pity rugby at professional club level in Scotland has sunk to the levels of bad sportsmanship seen at international level.

When either side elected to take a kick at goal in the Edinburgh v Glasgow derby, the jeering and, in the case of Glasgow "supporters", loud trumpet-blowing that accompanied the kickers' efforts was just

plain bad manners and surely not welcome in the sport of rugby union.

I do not believe that such antics occur in amateur club matches, as has been the tradition since day one of the game of rugby union.

Perhaps this is one of the, no doubt, myriad reasons that so many traditional rugby club members throughout Scotland choose to ignore the pro game.

Sadly, more and more, they are also ignoring the amateur game; but, of course, that isn't really amateur either, is it?

I wonder how long it will be before the pro game has to start segregating paying supporters, all 3,000 or 4,000 of them in a 60,000-plus capacity stadium?

DOUGLAS S BRUCE

Portree

Isle of Skye

Murray's ranking fall had no impact on his Australian draw

I am unconvinced by Stuart Bathgate's argument that Andy Murray's chances at the Australian Open have been reduced by slipping from 4th to 5th in the rankings ("Murray drops to world No 5, making slam bid tougher", Scotsman Sport, 12 January].

He argues that, as the fifth ranked player, Murray could be in the same half of the draw as No4 Juan Martin del Potro and No 2 Rafael Nadal, and so have to beat both to reach the final.

But, if the rankings had placed Murray 4th and Del Potro 5th, then Murray would still have had to beat the same two players to reach the final.

I cannot see how this change of ranking reduces the chances of winning.

ANDY CARVER

Meldrum Road

Kirkcaldy