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This is where all those tantalizing pieces of gossip that
crop up at the club with gratifying regularity can find
a home.
Click here to go to the most recent
stories, or here
for the SLP archive.
Fireman Sham
(6/4/07)
You can imagine the consternation at Web HQ
today when we heard that Raeburn Place was on fire. The
shocking news was passed on to us by a pensioner with Stew
Mel affiliations, who had paused beside Inverleith Pond
to remove a stray peppery from his beard. It was then that
he noticed that a fire engine was parked in the road behind
Accies' lean-to, while Barney and six fireman dragged hoses
around the Raeburn Pitch turf.
Ever eager for a photo opportunity, we despatched
a snapper down to Stockbridge to capture the action - had
Raeburn Place been reduced to ashes on the eve of Accies'
Cup Quarter Final with Hawick?
As you'll see from the photo above, it transpires
that all is well at Rodney HQ, with the lean-to still (relatively)
intact. We can only surmise that Accies had been warned
of a firebug in EH4, and had asked the Fire Brigade to give
the shed a preemptive dousing.
Either that, or they were 'fine tuning' the
pitch for their game tomorrow ...
"Naughty"
Norman Price
Feeling sheepish,
Pork Eh? (26/8/07)
You've got to love those fine folk over at
Quality Meat Scotland.
First, they turn our old mate Chris Capaldi into the bloke
off the Scott's Porage Oats packets ... sorry, 'Glen',
the face of Scottish Beef.
Then they use 3s stalwart James 'Pork Eh'
Park in their new Scottish Lamb campaign - that's him at
far right above and top of the pile below.
Rumours that Al Napier has been approached
to be 'Rab', the face of Scottish Offal, cannot be confirmed
at this time.
Mossy: I Owe
It All To Stu (22/10/07)
You know the score, folks - we first ran this
story on the front page of the site at the start of October,
just before Scotland played Argentina in the RWC quarter
finals. I then moved the story to the SLP page as it was
too good to lose after I updated the front page. Here's
the original piece:
"On the eve of Scotland's World Cup quarter
final clash with Argentina, we can exclusively reveal the
moment at which Chris Paterson was singled out for international
stardom.
"As you'll see from the shot above, he
managed to evade the clutches of Stu Forsyth to score for
Gala as they defeated us 43-14 in the first round of the
Melrose Sevens in 1999. Never mind the fact that Gala went
on to win the tournament - it was surely Mossy winning the
head to head with Stu that made the selectors sit up and
take notice.
"The jury is still out on the identity
of the other Stew Mel player in the photo - some say Lindy,
some say JP Gallivan. Any thoughts?"
And here (in order) are the follow up emails I later received!
| From |
Comment |
| Richie Maxton |
I'm sure it's JP! |
| Lindy |
My first thought on seeing the photo was
that it was JP. It is possible that it is me, but I
am sure I would have been closer to Paterson than that! |
| Si Capaldi |
What about Willie The Baker? |
| Donzo |
I'm almost 100% sure that is JP, although what the
picture does not show is that Black Al has just made
a tactical masterstroke. He replaced the pace and
commitment of Mark Tweedie with a seasoned, sluggish
campaigner - yours truly.
I'm just about to enter shot (with half a mind on
the Ned Haig) to supply JP with a 'Get Out of Jail
Free' card by pulling off a text book tackle on Paterson,
thus avoiding a nasty 50 pointer.
Minutes later, we were warmly welcomed into the Ned
Haig as the first casualties of the day.
|
| Willie Laidlaw |
Although I appreciate that Si Capaldi thinks that
I was good enough for one of the premier Sevens tournaments
in Scotland (if not the world), I can say that it
is not me in the photo.
And I know this because:
1) I was in the crowd watching the game.
2) The legs in the photo are not white enough.
I think it's JP.
Regards,
WTB
PS What the f**k do you mean by calling Si's comment
controversial? I once scored a try at Edinburgh Northern
Sevens!
|
| Anon. |
Is that Stu's Siamese Twin to the left
of him? |
| Mark Tweedie |
Couldn't help but note the debate on the website
and and wanted to add my backing to shouts for the
Bridge of Allan born, ex-Wanderer JP.
I remember that day well (having, as per Donzo's
comments, been subbed early in order to save myself
for the late-night Inverleith touch tournament).
We were ushered into the bar at 12.50 (as the second
tie of the day was all of 5 minutes old), with the
unforgettable line from the barmaid: "Stewart's
Melville, I presume?"
I'll be seeing JP in London next month so will appraise
him of the archival uncertainty.
Cheers and continue the season surge,
Tweeds
|
| Black Al |
Just to keep the JP story going, it definitely
was JP in the photograph ... but who was the
other future Scottish internationalist playing for Gala
that day? |
| Ace Morley |
I remember Pollock and Napier telling us deliberately
to lose that game so we could guarantee the best spot
in the Ned Haig.
Am pretty sure Nathan Hines was playing as well for
Gala (correct - Brodie and Donzo concurred - Bill).
I’m also pretty sure Black Al paid for the first
two rounds (unusual) ... on account of winning some
money by betting against us winning.
|
| Black Al |
Outrageous comments from Ace. Although
old and grey, my memories of Sevens in the late 90s
are still very good ... |
| Brodie |
I’ve got another question: what other
former Stew Mel player turned out for 'Sonians that
day? (Burnsie
- Bill) |
| Donzo |
This is a cracker ... check the crowd
in the background: someone there has appeared in an
Oscar winning movie! That will test them. |
| Danger |
I think that it was Eric Liddell's wife
(as depicted) in 'Chariots of Fire', who is the
very well dressed elderly lady in the stand (correct,
according to Donzo - Bill). |
| Laing |
There's another Scotland connection in
that photo. One of the Gala players is Gareth 'Hovis'
Brown, son of Arthur 'Hovis' Brown of Gala RFC and Scotland.
Hovis Jnr recently did a stint at the Rodneys for a
couple of seasons before heading back to his native
Gala last season. |
So I think we can safely say that it was
JP in the photo. Unless, of course, you know different!
Secret Santa (14/1/08)
Following Bill Lothian's recent, trademark
'Neverlation' about Biggers playing for the 2nd XV, we have
a seasonal contest for you.
The truth is, a second Santa has been
spotted at Inverleith. Santa II has never been capped for
his country (by quite a long way), nor could he ever play
at Number 8 for the 2s. But who is he?
The mystery sponsors of this competition are
offering a cheeky wee bottle of Buckie for the first correct
entry to the email address below. Good luck!
Update: we finally have a winner! The
bottle of Buckie (care of our pals at Bell Johnstone) goes
to Lindy for correctly identifying Nosebag as the man behind
the beard. Nul points to Malky MacColl for suggesting
it might be Lindsay Muir, John Campbell or ... me!
A Small Celebration (13/1/09)
Club legend Owen Small has recently got in
touch to point out that he and fiancée Lisa will
shortly be leaving Scotland to return home to Australia.
Not only that, but they're going to get hitched on 24th
February, too!
Just to add to the confusion, the wedding
is going to take place in Arrowtown, a historic wee place
near Queenstown on New Zealand's South Island - Lisa's brother
lives there!
To mark the occasion, Owen will be propping
up the bar at Inverleith one last time on the evening of
Saturday 17th January, and invites anyone who's played
with him during his time at Stewart's Melville to come along
and share the occasion. The 1st, 2nd and 3rd XVs are all
at home, so please stick around after your games to give
Owen a suitable send off.
Just to make things even more interesting
on Saturday, Owen has promised to bring some of his referee
mates along, so have your pithy 'What happens if ...' questions
prepared!
Pleased To Meet Roo (16/9/09)
Ruairi, some gym equipment, the Princess Royal
and Richie Gray - let's be having your captions, please!
Free pint of minky Inverleith lager to the
best one.
Entries so far:
| From |
Caption |
| Nosebag |
Ruairi: "Yes, your Royal Highness
- there are too many nosey gingers in Gala!"
|
| Nosebag |
Ruairi: "I'm sorry - I forgot to
bring you any sugar cubes" |
| Nosebag |
Ruairi: "Yes, your Royal Highness - it is
CBEEBIES on TV"
|
| Nosebag |
HRH: "I'm sure my father told me that the Slanty
Eyed F***ers play in the same strip"
|
| Doc |
Ruairi: "Ma’am – are you any good
with gadgets, as I cannae get this flat screen telly
to work?”
|
| Gonzo |
Ruairi: "Ginger hair is unacceptable,
ma'am!" |
| Gonzo |
Ruairi: "Is that a banana in your pocket, Richie,
or are you just pleased to see me?!"
|
Bill
Talk
Of The Town (24/2/10)
You just never know where the club are going
to get a namecheck these days - this clipping is taken from
the 'Talk Of The Town' diary column in today's 'Evening
News':
The 'News' journalist had obviously spotted
the Stats for the 'Sonians game on the website - see here
for a reminder!
Thanks to Neil Park for drawing this to our attention -
and to Coach Barrymore for first coming up with the concept
of 'Abu Hamza handling' here!
Bill
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