Bill McLaren

William Pollock "Bill" McLaren CBE (16 October 1923 – 19 January 2010) was a Scottish rugby union commentator, teacher, journalist and one time rugby player. Until his retirement in 2002, he was known as 'the voice of rugby'.

Early life

McLaren was born in Hawick, in the Scottish Borders, in 1923 to a knitwear salesman from Loch Lomond-side who had moved down to the area.

As a young boy, he was steeped in local rugby stories:

"I was brought up on stories of the great Scottish players of the twenties, many of whom I never saw play but knew all about... I used to go with my father to see matches at a very early age, the great Hawick heroes including Willie Welsh, Jock Beattie and Jerry Foster, so I had an all-consuming desire to wear the green jersey of Hawick."

In his teenage years, McLaren grew up to be a useful flank forward., BBC Sport, 24 January 2002. He would later play for Hawick RFC.

He served with the Royal Artillery in Italy during the Second World War, including the Battle of Monte Cassino. He was used as a forward spotter, and on one occasion was confronted by a mound of 1,500 corpses in an...
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