Hawick rugby legend Jim Renwick playing down poll plaudit: ‘Maybe mine was the only name people could remember’

Jim Renwick pictured at Mansfield Park in Hawick in November 2019 (Photo by Mark Runnacles/Getty Images for Canterbury)

Hawick rugby legend Jim Renwick has never let half a century of being lauded as one of Scotland’s best centres ever go to his head, so it was unlikely that being named as his home-town club’s favourite player of all time would turn said bonce either – and, sure enough, it hasn’t.

Rather than lapping up that latest plaudit, yielded by a ballot taken at Hawick’s Wilton Lodge Park museum as part of an exhibition to mark the Greens’ 150th anniversary, as reported in the Southern last month, the 72-year-old attributes his victory in that vote to demographics working in his favour and lots of relatives showing their support.

“It probably just goes to show the age of people who go to museums as it’s 40-odd years since I was playing,” said Renwick, currently recovering from a second hip operation a month ago.

“People at museums tend to be a bit more mature. If it’d been younger people voting, it would probably have been Darcy Graham or Stuart Hogg or someone like that who came out on top.

Jim Renwick with his 1980 British and Irish Lions test cap at Mansfield Park in Hawick in November 2019 (Photo by Mark Runnacles/Getty Images for Canterbury)

“It was likely more people of my generation voting.

“Who knows why people vote the way they do? That’s just the way it turned out.

“There was maybe only ten people voting, who knows. I’ve not heard any numbers being mentioned.”

100-times-capped former Scotland captain Hogg, 32, and Edinburgh right-winger Graham, 27, both made the top ten, coming third and fifth respectively, with Lisa Thomson second and Tony Stanger fourth.

Making up the rest of the top ten were Hugh McLeod, Nikki Walker, Lee Armstrong, Doug Jackson and Alan Tomes, in that order.

Renwick, capped 52 times between 1972 and 1984 and with 342 appearances for the Greens to his name between 1970 and 1985, as well as turning out for Hawick Harlequins, is fully aware of the standard of competition he was up against, saying: “Hawick have produced some fantastic players over my lifetime and before.

“The museum poll was asking who people thought was the best or anything like that either – it was asking for their favourite. It was just people’s opinions really.

“Maybe mine was the only name people could remember.”

Renwick, a dad of seven and grandfather of eight, also reckons having lots of relatives still living locally might well have skewed the poll his way, saying: “I think that might have been the case.

“I know my granddaughters were up there but they voted for their dad as he played for Hawick as well.”

Renwick is one of 13 British and Irish Lions produced by his old Mansfield Park club over the years – along with Hogg, Stanger, McLeod, Tomes, Bob and Willie Burnet, Doug Davies, Colin Deans, Derrick Grant, Alex Laing, Rory Sutherland and Willie Welsh – and he believes Graham is in with a shout of adding to that complement during the multinational outfit’s tour of Australia from June to August.

“I think he’s in with a good chance of making the Lions this year,” said the 1980 South African tour veteran, fielded for one test, a 26-22 loss to the hosts in Cape Town, and ten warm-up games.

“He’s a key player for Scotland and if he can stay clear of injuries, I think he’d go well.”

Hawick rugby legend Jim Renwick playing down poll plaudit: ‘Maybe mine was the only name people could remember’

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