Scottish Rugby conducted its latest referee capping ceremony as one of the highlights of the centenary celebrations of Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium last Friday (21 March).

The latest recipients were Ken McCartney (Hawick), Eddie Murray (Greenock Wanderers), Iain Ramage (Berwick), Chuck Muir (Langholm), Malcolm Changleng (Gala), Rob Dickson (Madras College FP), Brian Anderson (Royal High/Currie) and Jim Fleming (Boroughmuir).

Caps were presented by SRU President, Keith Wallace, and followed on from similar occasions where Allan Hosie, Hollie Davidson and Mike Adamson were honoured.

The President said: “The referee cap project was the perfect follow-up to the work that Scottish Rugby’s Custodian Board started in 2023, the 150^th anniversary of the Union being formed.

“In 2023, we began our retrospective caps in the male game and have continued in the female game too.

“Now we are presenting our referee caps to those who refereed an international in the men’s game involving a Tier One union.

“Further research will be undertaken, including in the women’s international game, so we may yet extend the score of referee caps.”

Let’s hear more about the eight referees whose contribution to Scottish Rugby’s rich history was marked last Friday.

Ken McCartney was a winger in his playing days and maintained Hawick’s proud tradition of producing international referees, following on from Barrie Laidlaw, Eric Grierson and Jake Short.

His first international match was France v Ireland in March 1990. He went on to referee a Bledisloe Cup game at Eden Park in Auckland, two other Championship matches between England and France and England and Wales and also officiated South Africa, Romania, Italy, Namibia, Argentina and the USA at international level.

Pictured: Ken McCartney with family after receiving his referee cap at Scottish Gas Murrayfield

Eddie Murray joined Greenock Wanderers from the James Watt College team, making his debut in 1976.

He first stepped up as a referee for a minor game in 1979 and rose up the ranks, making his Test debut in March 1996 at Twickenham where England won against Ireland.

An accountant by profession, Eddie has continued to serve rugby, acting as President of Greenock Wanderers during their momentous 150^th anniversary in 2023.

Iain Ramage, a life member of the Border Rugby Referee Society and a chartered quantity surveyor by profession, represented Gosforth, Berwick, Northumberland and the Scottish Exiles during his playing days.

His first international was between Wales and Australia in December 1996 and he went on to referee Romania, Italy, France, Ireland, Samoa and Georgia. He continues to give back to the game in his role as chair of the Newcastle Rugby Foundation.

Chuck Muir, a stand-off/full-back in his playing days initially with Hawick and then with Langholm, went into coaching before taking up refereeing in 1984.

He refereed his first international when Wales toured the USA in July 1997 and there was nothing rocky about his debut at the evocatively named Balboa Park in San Francisco as Wales emerged victorious 38-23 with Wayne Proctor grabbing a hat-trick of tries.

Malcolm Changleng, now deputy head teacher at Galashiels Academy, was a wing in his playing days with Gala and the Border Reivers before injury compelled him to follow in the path of his twin brother David, who had already become a referee at that juncture in 2000.

Malcolm became a professional referee with Scottish Rugby in 2003 and his steady promotion saw him take charge of a Test match at Ellis Park, Johannesburg in June 2007 where South Africa defeated Samoa.

Rob Dickson, Director of Industry and Events at Visit Scotland, was a former officer in The Royal Scots.

He took charge of his first Test in March 1999 when Wales posted a convincing victory over Italy in Treviso, which featured four tries from Gareth Thomas.

Rob also refereed internationals involving Japan, Tonga, Ireland, Romania, Australia, USA, Fiji, Tonga and France.

Pictured: Referees Rob Dickson and Malcolm Changleng during their capping ceremony at Scottish Gas Murrayfield on 21 March 2025

Brian Anderson, at 79, was the oldest referee to receive a cap at this latest ceremony

The former Royal High School FP scrum-half was proud of the “ultimate recognition”, noting that it had been some 44 years since his first international – Wales pipping England at Cardiff in January 1981 – to gain his cap.

Arguably, the finest hour for Brian – who also umpired international cricket – was the semi-final of the inaugural Rugby World Cup in 1987, an epic, free-flowing contest, where France edged out Australia.

Jim Fleming MBE controlled more Test matches than any other Scot, with 42 appearances.

A chartered surveyor by profession, Jim took up refereeing in 1973, after injury forced him to step down as a player. When he retired from refereeing in June 2001, he had achieved  so much more than the historic and unprecedented tally of Tests.

It was his feel for the game, the manner in which he engaged with players and his personality which marked him out as phenomenal.

He has continued to serve the game whether at Scottish Rugby or EPCR level and remains a welcoming presence at his club, Boroughmuir.

Pictured: Scottish Rugby President Keith Wallace with Jim Fleming MBE after Jim was presented with his referee cap on the day of Murrayfield stadium’s centenary

A further retrospective Scotland cap: Dennis Arthur Roberts

Earlier this month, the SRU President also presented a retrospective Scotland cap to Hilary Dingwall-Fordyce and her son Matthew Schonfrucht, during a ceremony in Paris.

Hilary is the daughter of Cadet Dennis Arthur Roberts, who played at centre in the Services International against England at Wembley Stadium on Saturday 11 April 1942, which Scotland won 8-5.

Hilary, who stays in France, saw our story on the Scottish Rugby website, noting that we were still seeking descendants of Roberts, in order to present his cap.

Roberts (Edinburgh Accies), Scotland cap number 1149, was born in Dunfermline in 1922. He married in 1947 and moved to Chittagong, now in Bangladesh, where he worked in accountancy for a firm of tea importers.

When Hilary and her sister were born, the family moved back briefly to Scotland, but the climate then saw Denis move anew to Libya, then, ultimately South Africa and what is now Zimbabwe.

He passed away in 1994.

Hilary said: “Thank you again to all for the honour accorded to my father and for the beautiful cap which I insisted my son wore all night. It made me so proud!”

Pictured: Dennis Arthur Roberts’ daughter Hilary Dingwall-Fordyce and her son Matthew Schonfrucht after receiving Robert’s cap in Paris earlier this month