Twenty years ago the current SRU President Ed Crozier helped produce a unique tribute to the Scottish regiments who suffered so grievously on the Somme and the affect it had on their families back home
This large scale production The Big Picnic played out in the Harland and Wolff Shed in Govan and coincided with the 80th anniversary of the worst day in our military history and was shown later on BBC TV

Scotland lost 30 caps during the Great War so as we approach the centenary of The Somme how appropriate if it could be screened again as it was a most moving appreciation of a generation who left to play "The Sterner Game"

I only learnt recently from an old rugby friend Alan Ferguson that one such man was a member of Ed's own club Cartha Queens Park James Turnbull and he won the Victoria Cross on that horrendous day the 1st July 1916 serving and dying with the HLI the same day as 29 former pupils of our three associate Schools The High School of Glasgow ,Glasgow Academy and Kelvinside Academy made the ultimate sacrifice
Hawks have over the years fielded many players from Ireland whose Divisions fought alongside the Scots of the 51st Division on that morning .They including the 36th Ulsters ,Battalions from Munster and Leinster who also suffered heavily on the first day of the Somme with huge losses and Rawlinson's 4th Army in total sustained some 57,470 casualties

"On the 1 July 1916, James Turnbull serving with the HLI was awarded the VC for his actions at Leipzig Salient, Authuille, France, where Turnbull's party captured a post of apparent importance, and defended it "almost single-handed". Later in the day he was killed while engaged in a bombing counter-attack. He was 32 years old."

The Sterner Game
Manhood of Britain, our country is calling
Put by your toys, for no longer ‘tis play
Ours will be no shirking while comrades are falling
Rally we now, and let ours be “the day”.

Prove we the lessons our clean sports have taught us,
The pluck that endures and the scorning to yield,
No matter the strength of the foemen who fought us –
That was the spirit that won us the field.

That was the object of sport as a training,
Each for his side, none for personal fame.
Prove now its value, give all uncomplaining,
Give for your country, though sterner the game.