Raeburn Place

Raeburn Place, May 2013

Raeburn Place is the main street of the suburb of Stockbridge, Edinburgh, Scotland, and the name of the playing fields there. It is also the location of the first International Rugby match between Scotland and England

Rugby

Illustration of a Calcutta Cup match played at Raeburn Place, 1890

The first ever international rugby football^[1] game was played on the playing fields at Raeburn Place on 27 March 1871 between England and Scotland.^[2][3] It was won by Scotland. Scotland continued to play their home internationals in Raeburn Place, then at Inverleith Sports Ground until the Scottish Rugby Union acquired Murray's Field (as it was known then), the Edinburgh Polo ground, in the 1920s.

New grandstand at Raeburn Place under construction, 2019

The playing fields are still used by the Edinburgh Academy sports branches, Edinburgh Academical Football Club and Edinburgh Academical Cricket Club.

In 1994, the Women's Rugby World Cup final between England and the USA, which England won, was played at Raeburn Place. It was also the site of the first ever women's rugby union international for both Scotland and Ireland, occurring when the two nations met in 1993. ^[4][5][6]

Cricket

Within Raeburn Place, opposite the rugby ground, lies Grange Cricket Club. England was the host of the 1999 Cricket World Cup, but two of Scotland's games were held there. On 24 May 1999 at The Grange, Bangladesh played Scotland,^[7] and on 31 May 1999, Scotland played New Zealand.^[8]

See also

• Rugby union in Scotland
• History of rugby union in Scotland
• Cricket in Scotland

References

1. Note - This was a rugby football game; the split into rugby union and rugby league did not occur until 1895. Rugby league did not achieve much popularity in Scotland until the 20th century.
2. Bathgate, Stuart (18 March 2009). "Calcutta Cup a traditional finale in pre-war era". The Scotsman. Edinburgh.
3. A window on sporting history: the first rugby match, Scotland v England in 1871, Andy Mitchell, Scottish Sport History, 10 August 2019
4. "Ireland and Scotland celebrate 25 years". www.scrumqueens.com. 14 February 2018. Retrieved 3 March 2018.
5. "Pioneers celebrate 25th anniversary of first Scotland women's international". theoffsideline.com. 14 February 2018. Retrieved 3 March 2018.
6. "Women's Teams Reunite To Mark 25th Anniversary". www.irishrugby.ie. 14 February 2018. Retrieved 3 March 2018.
7. "17th Match: Scotland v Bangladesh at Edinburgh, 24 May 1999 - Scorecard". uk.cricinfo.com. 24 May 1999. Retrieved 12 March 2007.
8. "30th Match: Scotland v New Zealand at Edinburgh, 31 May 1999 - Scorecard". uk.cricinfo.com. 31 May 1999. Retrieved 12 March 2007.

External links

• Library of the Scottish Rugby Union
• Edinburgh Academicals Football Club
• Edinburgh Academicals Cricket Club

55°57′38.89″N 3°12′47.23″W