Frank Hadden: Murrayfield Memories

29/04/05 MURRAYFIELD - EDINBURGH Edinburgh's Frank Hadden takes up his position as interim head coach of Scottish Rugby following Matt Williams' departure on Monday.

He first visited in 1969 as Scotland defeated South Africa 6-3. He was in attendance for the world record crowd in 1974 as Wales came to Murrayfield, with some 104,000 watching on (“The kick-off whistle started a surge from behind which lifted us into the ground; fortunately the carry-out we left behind on the steps wasn’t as big as the one waiting for us at the top of the bank!”).

He was there in 1984 and again in 1990, before coaching his sons’ teams to Scottish Schools Cup wins in 2000 and 2002 on the main pitch at Murrayfield.

It all started when Hadden, then a PE teacher at Guiseley on the outskirts of Leeds, headed up their rugby programme which proved valuable by the time he applied for a role at Merchiston Castle in Edinburgh.

A famous rugby institution, Merchiston “already had a wonderful rugby culture but there was no discernible developmental process and the 1st XV had not won many matches over the previous few years,” recalls Frank.

Introducing an expansive style that would become synonymous with his own coaching style on the international stage, Hadden’s Merchiston went from losing more than 20 games in his first two years to the same total over the course of the following 15.

Pictured: Frank in Scotland training in 2005 with (l-r): Jason White, Ally Hogg, Chris Cusiter, Bruce Douglas, Simon Taylor and Craig Hamilton.

The likes of Peter Walton, Duncan Hodge, Craig Joiner and Jamie Mayer all represented Scotland at Murrayfield; indeed no fewer than 20 Merchistonians played for Scotland at some level in 1995 alone.

Hadden’s print was all over the Scottish age grade system, with stints heading up the national U16, U18 and U19 programmes. He then worked with Caledonia Reds and went as an ‘analyst’ on the Scotland tour to Australia and Fiji in1998, before eventually being ‘persuaded’ as one does, by Jim Telfer to take on the head coach role at Edinburgh Rugby.

Impressing in getting them to the last eight of the Heineken Cup (with home games at Meadowbank as opposed to Murrayfield), Hadden was perfectly placed to step in when Matt Williams’ Scotland tenure came to an end in 2005.

“It would be fair to say that I had no ambition to get to the top of the ladder but I loved coaching and rarely turned any offer down; I was happy to go anywhere I thought I could make things better,” says Frank.

“The start of the professional era in Scotland was a huge rollercoaster ride. It took guts to to go pro in Scotland when we did it with such small playing numbers but I’m delighted we did.

“Back then I remember Jim Telfer saying that the Pro era should help the likes of England to properly harness their vast numbers and we’d be lucky if we could beat them once every 10 years. I think we’ve beaten them seven times in the last 20 years, so the progress we’ve made at club and international level this century is I think, something to be proud of.”

Hadden’s own mantra is one ‘to try to make things better’ and in terms of getting the Scotland head coach job, “in 2005 that wasn’t as difficult as it sounds as the previous incumbent had won only three out of 17 games.”

That Hadden took a poor Scotland team to three wins in his first Six Nations championship, in 2006, showed what an excellent coach he was. Wins over France (for the first time since 1999) and England (a first in six attempts) gave a huge boost to Scottish rugby, not least because the side had rarely thrown a punch in anger since the turn of the century.

Pictured: Frank holding aloft the trophy that matters most to Scots, after the 2006 Calcutta Cup win at Murrayfield.

On those two majestic Murrayfield performances, Frank recalls: “Opening our account against France with a driving maul from outside the 22 which Sean Lamont dotted down. How did he get there?

And then: “Passing the ball along the backline at the first set-piece of the game in pouring rain, before quickly moving it back and catching the English defence offside, allowing Chris Paterson to kick the first of five penalties. The crowd never let up throughout the game but the last 10 minutes, with the Calcutta Cup in sight, were deafening.”

Frank’s tenure came to a close a year after guiding Scotland to the 2007 Rugby World Cup quarter-finals in France. Still a passionate advocate of the game to be played in a certain manner, with which all of his own sides were inextricably linked, he reckons the current side are as entertaining as anyone could wish for.

“With Gregor Townsend in charge and Finn Russell at the helm it’s been a massive privilege watching Scotland at Murrayfield. The standards in the world game are so high that it’s still hugely difficult for a country with such a tiny playing base to actually win something meaningful, but it’s recognised by rugby friends around the globe that we are currently one of the hottest tickets in town.”