Scotland rugby star Darcy Graham harbouring hopes of playing for Hawick again

The 27-year-old, with the Greens as a teenager prior to signing for United Rugby Championship side Edinburgh in 2017, reveals that ambition in an interview with ex-Scotland scrum-half Rory Lawson for Scottish Rugby’s website, saying: “One day I’d love to play for Hawick again.

“I’ve not played for Hawick a huge amount of times and I’ve always said that once I finish up, I’d definitely do a season down here.

“Growing up, I always wanted to play on the big Mansfield Park pitch and pull on that green jersey.

“It’s such a special club and so many internationals have come from Hawick.

“The town is so passionate about rugby, it always has been.

“I always have Hawick in my memories. I owe so much to them. I wouldn’t be where I am today without them, so I’m always grateful to them.

“Growing up in Hawick, all you wanted to do was play for Hawick and then play for Scotland. They were your goals, and luckily I’ve done both.”

Having spent the last eight years in Edinburgh, following in the footsteps of his ex-international lock uncle Scott MacLeod, now back at the Greens as an assistant to head coach Graham Hogg, Graham reckons a day out of Hawick isn’t a day wasted after all, in defiance of late town rugby commentator Bill McLaren’s belief, but admits it was a wrench at the time to leave the Borders for the capital.

“It’s a big thing,” he recalls. “Moving an hour up the road doesn’t seem that big, but for me it was a big thing to move out of Hawick.

“Out of about 60 of my mates, only two of us had moved out at that point.

“No one leaves Hawick if they live here.”

Having made it to one Scottish cup final with Hawick, losing 55-17 to Boroughmuir at Edinburgh’s Murrayfield Stadium in 2015, Graham tells of his pride at seeing his peers win that trophy in 2023 and 2024 and the premiership too in 2023.

“I’m just so proud to be from Hawick and all my pals still play for Hawick and it was so cool to see them go on to achieve something I’ve never done, doing that double,” he says.

“It was sick just to see them go on to achieve something so big. It was big for the town and potentially it’s something I’ll never get to do, winning that double.

“It’s huge. To see my pals achieve that was class.”

Despite going on to play against the likes of Glasgow Warriors, Ireland’s Leinster and Munster and South Africa’s Durban Sharks and Pretoria Bulls for his club and opposition including England, South Africa and New Zealand for his country, Graham still finds it hard to comprehend that he’s a hero to thousands of rugby fans.

“I just see myself as wee Darcy from Hawick. I’m nothing special,” he says.

“When I come to Hawick, kids come up asking for autographs and they’ve all got yellow boots on because I wear yellow boots and scrum-caps – it’s mental.

“You do have such a big influence and I think rugby players forget that sometimes.”

Graham has made 44 international appearances since 2018, all but five of them starts, scoring 29 tries, second only to his Edinburgh teammate Duhan van der Merwe’s 32, with his 45th cap set to follow this Saturday at home to Wales in the Six Nations, with kick-off at 4.45pm.

His interview with Lawson, no stranger to Hawick himself, being a grandson of McLaren’s, can be seen at https://scottishrugby.org/fanzone/home-in-hawick-scotland-connected-on-the-nations-network/

See also …

https://www.thesouthernreporter.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/hawicks-darcy-graham-and-rory-sutherland-back-for-scotlands-second-last-game-of-rugbys-2025-six-nations-5021203