Doddie Weir inducted into Hall of Fame in special farmyard presentation

Doddie Weir has been inducted into Scottish Rugby’s Hall of Fame.

Doddie Weir is presented with a sculpted memento by Chris Paterson to mark his induction into the Scottish Rugby Hall of Fame. Picture: Bill Murray/SNS

The award was announced on the eve of Scotland’s Six Nations match with Wales in Llanelli where the sides will play for the Doddie Weir Cup.

The former lock forward, who was diagnosed with motor neurone disease four years ago, received a sculpted Hall of Fame cap from his fellow inductee Chris Paterson at the former’s farm near Stow this week.

Weir, who played for Melrose and Newcastle and was capped 61 times by Scotland, said: “This means so much to me,” Doddie said. “And it’s great that there are four Melrose men in the Hall of Fame and only two from Gala!”

Normally such awards are handed out at glittering gala dinners but amid Covid restrictions this one was presented in a well-ventilated barn and the only audience were cattle that Weir’s wife Kath was getting ready to go to market.

It’s now taken pride of place alongside his World Rugby Award for Character and his Helen Rollason award from last year’s BBC Sports Personality of the Year.

Paterson said: “The Hall of Fame celebrates those who have been Scottish Rugby’s ultimate ambassadors.

“The first point to remember is that Doddie was a great rugby player, winning 61 Scotland caps and a Lion on the successful 1997 South Africa tour, despite it being blighted for him personally through injury. He also won league championships with Melrose and Newcastle.

“Since Doddie was diagnosed with MND four years ago, the manner in which he has fought this awful condition has been both poignant and inspirational for both the rugby and wider community.

“The fund-raising he has engineered through the My Name’5 Doddie Foundation has raised millions, given impetus to attempts to find a cure for MND and hope, that elusive hope, to MND sufferers.

“Inspiringly, he is always the first to say thank you to those who have helped, whether in a neighbourhood car boot sale or a big posh do.”

On Saturday, the Doddie Weir Cup, specially commissioned by Scottish Rugby and the Welsh Rugby Union, and first contested between the two countries in 2018, will be up for grabs at the Parc y Scarlets in Llanelli when the sides meet in a rearranged Six Nations match.

Scotland have yet to win the trophy and Weir added: “Good luck to all for this weekend. It would be great to have the Doddie Cup on my table.”

Weir is the 27th member of Scottish Rugby’s Hall of Fame, which was established in 2010 and was set up to celebrate the stellar contribution made by Scots to the global game over the years.

Members of the Hall of Fame are: David Bedell Sivright; Phil Macpherson; Ned Haig; Ken Scotland; Sandy Carmichael MBE; Andy Irvine MBE; Finlay Calder OBE; Bill McLaren CBE; Sir Ian McGeechan; Jim Telfer; Gordon Brown; Mark Morrison; Ian Smith; Hugh McLeod OBE; Ian McLauchlan OBE; Jim Renwick; David Leslie; Gary Armstrong OBE; Chris Paterson MBE; Norman Mair; John Rutherford; Douglas Elliot; Donna Kennedy; Mark Robertson; James Robson MBE; Doddie Weir OBE.

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this article. We're more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by coronavirus impacts our advertisers.

If you haven't already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription.