Still doing it for Doddie

Mention his name and any rugby person, and wider afield, will likely smile at the mention of the great man. He left an indelible mark in his inimitable way, both as a top-class player and a relentless fundraiser in the fight against his own Motor Neuron Disease [MND] diagnosis almost eight years ago.

Although we lost Doddie Weir to that most crippling of illnesses, his legacy, both in the form of his own foundation and in the tireless tales and japes he conjured up to make others smile, will forever live on.

Amid the affinity, a current Scotland forward can lay claim to having an extra special bond with the 61-times capped former second row. Jamie Ritchie, himself not far off Doddie’s national caps tally, was captain of his country when Doddie came to Murrayfield for what would be his final public appearance, ahead of the game against New Zealand in 2022.

Jamie’s adoration goes back a bit further, as he explained: “The first time I met Doddie was actually at my first ever rugby club dinner at Madras, that would’ve been maybe 2012. Me and my best mate, John Price, were invited to the dinner because we’d played for Scotland under-16s that year, and Doddie was speaking at it.

“He did his after-dinner speech and invited us both up, and I actually still have a signed ball that he gave me – I found it in the house a couple of months ago, which was pretty cool.

“His speech had a lot of good gags in there and I’m pretty sure I featured in one of them; I got a bit of a ribbing. He was always a massive character and the centre of any laughs in the room.

“I’d heard of him because when I got into rugby he’d already retired, so probably more that you’d see him when the Melrose 7s was on in his tartan suits and doing commentary. You’d always hear stories about him or see videos, like the Lions’ ‘mistaken identity’ and that kind of thing.”

Back to 2017, with the All Blacks the opposition in Edinburgh. Doddie had that summer announced his diagnosis of MND, which shook the rugby community to its foundations. Asked to deliver the match ball for that November Test, alongside sons Hamish, Angus and Ben, the occasion was one brimming with emotion as a capacity crowd stood to applaud one of their favourite sons in his hour of turmoil.

Pictured: Presenting the match ball to referee Matthew Carley, next to captains John Barclay and Kieran Read, ahead of the 2017 game against New Zealand

“I was actually in the stand that day, and I just remember the atmosphere being unbelievable, not a dry eye in the house,” recalled Jamie. “It was emotional as he’d just announced his diagnosis and came out with his boys, looking like the Doddie that we all knew, beloved by the crowd. A few years later when we played the All Blacks again, speaking to Sam Whitelock, he said that in 2017 it was a special atmosphere.”

It was decided that Scotland would thereafter compete for the Doddie Weir Cup, in matches against Wales, with the first iteration coming, aptly, the same day as Jamie played internationally in Cardiff for the first time, in 2018.

“It was my first game for Scotland in the UK, so it was a special day for me,” he again recalled. “I was super disappointed that we didn’t win the first Doddie Weir Cup match and remember vowing to make sure we won it at some point. It meant a lot and obviously Doddie and his family were there on the day. The fact he’s recognised in that game now makes for a special occasion each time.

“With all the Doddie Aid stuff as well, I think you see a massive buy-in from Welsh people, they can resonate because he was such a big character and they love rugby down there. Because he was a Lion as well, it resonates with the whole rugby community.”

To the aforementioned 2022 match against New Zealand, then. Jamie was Scotland captain and Doddie, and his family, came pitchside as the teams came out to another thunderous Murrayfield roar. It would be the last time that 67,144 people would have the opportunity to show their appreciation for such a national hero, as Doddie lost his fight against MND less than two weeks later.

“It’s hard to explain,” said Jamie about preamble that day. “It’s a bigger thing than rugby. It will be one of the most proud and privileged moments in my life.

“To be able to share that with the boys, Kathy and Doddie, the fact that as a nation we could show him how much we cared for him. It was a really special moment and I remember in the lead-up to it, we weren’t sure he was going to make it, but when he came out his eyes were lit up – all the things that went on with the players wasn’t planned, that wasn’t really supposed to happen.

“But because of who he is and how he impacted us, we all got around him and his standing ovation was fully deserved. To be able to share that moment with him – I wrote to the family afterwards to tell them how privileged I was and how grateful I was to be able to do that with them.

“That’ll stay with me for the rest of my life, for sure and I hope they feel I did it justice at the time. For me, they [Doddie’s family] are super inspirational, almost as inspirational as Doddie.

“The way that they’ve all got around what’s happened since Doddie got his diagnosis. It was such a horrendous thing to go through as a family and the way they all reacted, how they made it about solving the problem for other people, even though at that point it was too late for Doddie.

“As a family, they could easily have been selfish and said they were going to spend as much time together as possible and savour all of that, but they did the complete opposite, went out and tried to make sure it wouldn’t happen to anyone else.

“And I think that’s something that’s super inspirational, the way they’ve gone about it and pioneered the fight against MND, you see the unbelievable impact it’s had in terms of treatment options and progression in the search for a cure, that’s all been down to them.”

As Scotland and Wales contest the Doddie Weir Cup once more this afternoon (and the big man would be thrilled that Scotland have won the two since he passed), you can rest assured that the whole country will take a moment, just as Jamie Ritchie will, to remember one of the finest people to have pulled on a rugby shirt.