Unpacking the remarkable Murrayfield attendance stats behind Scotland v Portugal then and now
The last time Scotland hosted Portugal at Murrayfield 5,691 people turned up to see the home team run in 13 tries during a comfortable 85-11 victory in a qualifying match for the 1999 Rugby World Cup.
There will be more than 10 times as many in the old ground on Saturday as Gregor Townsend’s side renew acquaintances with Os Lobos (the Wolves) in the third game of the Scots’ autumn Test programme.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdThis always looked like the least attractive of the four November fixtures so it’s a testament to the quality of rugby Scotland are playing and the upgrade in the match-day experience that such numbers now follow the national side.


The paltry attendance for the game in November 1998 drew a stinging response from Jim Telfer with the then Scotland coach insisting his squad were worthy of a better turnout. “I was very disappointed that nobody came to watch the players because they put so much effort into the game and the preparation,” Telfer said. “This bunch of players is as good a bunch as I have worked with in my career - quite a number are as good as any who have ever played for Scotland.”
Telfer’s comments proved to be prescient and his team - which included the likes of Townsend, Kenny Logan, John and Martin Leslie, Alan Tait, Tom Smith, Gordon Bulloch and Scott Murray - would go on to win the Five Nations championship a few months later.


The hope within Murrayfield’s corridors of power is that this weekend’s attendance will top the 60,000 mark which would be a welcome tonic given the alarming financial results released this week. Scottish Rugby reported a loss of £11.3 million for 2023-24 which follows on from the £10m loss posted 12 months previously.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdThe governing body needs all the revenue it can generate which makes the appetite to host four autumn Tests entirely understandable, especially as there was none last year due to the World Cup.
The series will conclude next weekend with a match against Australia and that one is already sold out. Townsend has radically reshaped his team for the Portuguese game, making 14 changes to the side that lost 32-15 to South Africa last Sunday, and this is an opportunity for those on the fringes to stake a claim for selection to face the Wallabies.
It won’t be easy given the high level of performance against the Springboks but that game also came at a cost, with Jack Dempsey and Max Williamson now invalided out for the remainder of the series, so some spaces will open up.
“Obviously there are a lot of changes to the team from the last couple of weeks,” said Stafford McDowall, who will captain Scotland against Portugal. “It’s boys who have probably been waiting for an opportunity now since the summer tour. Everyone’s really excited, everyone’s ready to go.”
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad

This will be McDowall’s eighth cap and his first stab at skippering Scotland solo but the inside centre had experience of co-captaining during the summer when he and Luke Crosbie led the team to a 73-12 win over Canada in Ottawa.
Arron Reed made his debut that day, scoring a couple of tries, and the Sale Sharks winger will be looking for more of the same in what will be his first international appearance at Murrayfield. Darcy Graham makes a welcome return to the team on the other wing having recovered from the head injury he sustained against Fiji. The Hawick man bagged four tries in the 57-17 win and now has 28 in 40 Tests, one behind Duhan van der Merwe who is Scotland’s all-time leading try-scorer. With van der Merwe not in the squad to face Portugal, it’s a record Graham will be looking to take from his Edinburgh team-mate.


Portugal were a joy at last year’s World Cup and after impressing against Wales and drawing with Georgia they managed to beat Fiji in their final pool match. Things have been a little turbulent since. They’ve changed coaches twice, seen some notable players retire and went down to the USA in Coimbra last weekend. Nevertheless, McDowall expects them to rise to the occasion at an almost packed Murrayfield.
“Like Gregor alluded to earlier in the week, we’re probably going to see the World Cup Portugal team,” said the centre. “I know they may have been a bit disappointed with the result last week, but we’re fully expecting a team that beat Fiji and pushed all the other teams in their group so close to rock up here.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad“Obviously, it’s a big occasion for a lot of us, but it’s a big occasion for them as well, getting to play here. So, we’re expecting a really tough test. They’re a team that throws the ball around a lot with a lot of confidence and is good defensively as well.”
McDowall is right to be wary and diplomatic but anything other than a big Scotland win would be a major shock.
Comments
Want to join the conversation? Please or to comment on this article.