OUR HISTORY
Our club was born in 1919, with an enthusiastic and passionate team playing our first season against opponents including Trinity, Lismore, and Haddington.
​
In 1924 we set down roots in our Meggetland home, with our club colours and badge originating from our founding members’ Boroughmuir High School. In 1939 we joined the SRU, and from these great beginnings the club we know and love today was born.
​
With growing momentum we won our first unofficial National Club Championship in 1955, raising our profile and upgrading our fixture list! More firsts followed: our first Scotland rugby cap Kenny Ross in ’61, our first Melrose Sevens title in ’63, our first coaching appointment – Jimmy Banks – in 1968 and moving from FPs to an open club in 1969.
The 1970s saw us thrive with a new clubhouse and as winners of the Championship in ’73 and Melrose Sevens in ‘76. Bill Watson, Bruce Hay, George Watson, Colin Galbraith, and Graeme Hogg all received Scotland caps. With two subsequent Lions tours, Hay became known as the ‘Lion of Meggetland’. Arthur Ross helped coaching excel, starting the first SRU schools coaching camp in 1978, while the club led the way with the launch of mini and midi divisions in 1979.
​
By the 1980s, growing success brought international reputation. Capped prop Norrie Rowan attracted the ‘Kilted Kiwi’, Sean Lineen, to join our ranks. At home we levelled the infamous sloping pitch & built our first stand in ‘83, while our international endeavours continued with two Boroughmuir teams heading Stateside to tour Texas.
​
The 1990s saw international recognition as Boroughmuir players; Sean Lineen, Peter Wright, Stuart Reid, Derek Stark and Grant Wilson were all capped.
​
We continued success on the pitch, winning the Scottish league in 1991, and our second XV won the top Scottish Reserve league becoming champions in 1992, ‘93 and ‘94.
Winning is in our blood and with the start of the 2000s we won the Melrose Sevens (2002), the National Cup (2000, 2001 and 2005), were triple league champions in 2003, and National League Champions in 2003 and 2008. Meggetland was redeveloped to a premier multi-sports venue in 2005, and we celebrated as Chris Cusiter and Mike Blair received Scotland caps and joined British Lions sides.
​
Boroughmuir is a club for and about community. In 2012, we became a charity while on the pitch we won a fourth National Scottish Cup in 2015 and launched our Youth Academy in 2017. In 2018 we were awarded a Super6 franchise with the Boroughmuir Bears.
​
Arthur Ross received an SRU Lifetime Achievement Award and the ‘Boroughmuir Way’ player-centric coaching was born in 2020.We’re proud to be the Under 18 National Youth Cup Winners 2021, 2022 and 2023 and to celebrate Johnny Matthews’ cap in 2023.
​
Boroughmuir ambition still knows no bounds today. We continue to go from strength to strength, with continued innovation, passion and commitment as One Club, One Culture, One Community. Girls and Women’s rugby continues to grow and our Academy nurtures talent in all age groups. In 2024 we celebrate 100 years at Meggetland, a milestone to be proud of.
