Scott Murray (born 15 January 1976) is a former rugby union player who played lock for Scotland. He was at one time the record caps holder for Scotland having represented them on 87 occasions, five of which as captain and playing at three Rugby World Cups. He also toured with the British & Irish Lions and won Scotland player of the season three times. He is the former head coach of the San Diego Legion of Major League Rugby (MLR).

Club career

Murray is a former Scottish school basketball international who attended Morgan Academy and Preston Lodge High School.

He represented Scotland at every youth level and has played for Preston Lodge RFC and Edinburgh Academicals before moving to England to help Bedford win the Allied Dunbar Premiership Division Two (now the RFU Championship) in 1998 and gain entrance to the English Premiership.

Murray went on to play for Saracens and Edinburgh before joining French team US Montauban following the 2007 Rugby World Cup. In July 2010 he joined Castres after Montauban were liquidated due to financial problems.

Murray left Castres in June 2012 to join newly promoted Mont-de-Marsan based side Stade Montois. In December, with two years still left on his playing contract, he was appointed as forwards coach following a reshuffle at the club that saw previous coach Marc Dantin moved to other duties. Mont-de-Marsan were relegated from the Top 14 at the end of the season finishing bottom of the table having only managed to win two games.

National honours

Murray's debut for Scotland came against Australia on 22 November 1997 and he won the 1998–99 Scotland player of the season in the year when Scotland won the final Five Nations Championship.

Since then he has won this honour a further two times in 2001–02 and 2002–03

In the 2003 Rugby World Cup Countdown Test against Italy he captained the side from the start for the first time when he won his 50th cap.

References

  • Murray gets three-week suspension, BBC, 15 February 2006
  • Scotland appeal; red card eases Wales path to win, The Guardian, 13 February 2006
  • Walsh the whistle ensures red is the colour of the day, The Guardian, 13 February 2006
  • player profile at www.lequipe.fr