Jim Telfer
Birth name | James Telfer | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Date of birth | 17 March 1940 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Place of birth | Melrose, Scotland | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 94 kg (14 st 11 lb; 207 lb)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
University | Moray House School of Education | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Occupation(s) | Retired | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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James Telfer (born 17 March 1940) is a Scottish rugby union coach and a former rugby union footballer. As a player, he gained 21 international caps in the amateur era, also having a career as a headmaster at Hawick High School and Galashiels Academy as a chemistry teacher. He won fame as a Scottish forwards coach who gave punishing training sessions to his players. With Sir Ian McGeechan he has had success with both the Scotland national rugby union team and the British and Irish Lions.
Playing career[]
Telfer worked as a chemistry teacher.[2] His first cap came against France at Murrayfield on 4 March 1964.[3] His last match for Scotland was on 28 February 1970 at Lansdowne Road against Ireland.[4]
Telfer gained twenty one caps for Scotland, and, but for injury, might have gained more. Allan Massie writes of him:
- "Telfer is a man of innate authority. (There's a wealth of quiet reserve and self-knowledge, touched by that form of self-mockery which appears as under-statement, in the way he will describe himself as being a 'dominant personality')"[5]
Telfer played back row for Scotland and for the Lions in 1966 and 1968. He was impressed and heavily influenced by New Zealand rugby.[5] Unfortunately, after a cartilage operation he slowed up.[5] He played 23 games for the British and Irish Lions on their 1966 tour to Australia and New Zealand[6] and 11 games on their 1968 tour to South Africa.[7]
Between 1963 and 1967, he played 8 times for the Barbarians FC, scoring six points.[8]
George Crerar said of Telfer "The great thing about Jim Telfer is that he makes sure that if he isn't going to win the ball the other side won't get it either."[9]
Coaching[]
Telfer was head coach to the British and Irish Lions on their tour of New Zealand in 1983. He was assistant coach, with particular responsibility for the forwards, on the 1997 British Lions tour to South Africa, where he made his well-known motivational 'Everest' speech to the forwards before the 1st Test.[10][11][12]
Telfer coached Scotland to the Grand Slam in 1984 and, as assistant to Sir Ian McGeechan, to his second Grand Slam in 1990. In his third term as head coach from 1998 to 1999, Scotland won the final Five Nations Championship.
In 2014 he was coaching the Melrose RFC Under-18 team – Melrose Wasps.[13]
Philosophy and approach[]
Telfer focuses on the 'honesty' of players in their playing, and is open about copying some New Zealand approaches to the game.[13]
Coaching statistics[]
Scotland (1981–1984)[]
International matches as head coach[]
showMatches (1981–1984) |
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Record by country[]
Opponent | Played | Won | Drew | Lost | Win ratio (%) | For | Against |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() |
4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 50 | 57 | 92 |
![]() |
4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 50 | 66 | 50 |
![]() |
4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 50 | 61 | 54 |
![]() |
4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 50 | 67 | 54 |
![]() |
3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 44 | 76 |
![]() |
2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 50 | 34 | 34 |
![]() |
4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 75 | 79 | 52 |
TOTAL | 25 | 12 | 2 | 11 | 48 | 408 | 412 |
Scotland (1993–1995, 1998–1999)[]
The period 1995–98 saw Telfer promoted as director of rugby for the Scottish Rugby Union. Richie Dixon was the head coach of the Scotland National team during this time. Telfer stepped in as head coach of Scotland when Dixon quit in 1998.
International matches as head coach[]
showMatches (1993–1995, 1998–99) |
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Record by country[]
Opponent | Played | Won | Drew | Lost | Win ratio (%) | For | Against |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() |
3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 54 | 64 |
![]() |
2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 14 | 78 |
![]() |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 22 | 6 |
![]() |
4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 67 | 97 |
![]() |
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 26 | 51 |
![]() |
5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 40 | 106 | 136 |
![]() |
4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 75 | 89 | 48 |
![]() |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 30 | 12 |
![]() |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 89 | 0 |
![]() |
3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 63 | 129 |
![]() |
2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 109 | 35 |
![]() |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 35 | 20 |
![]() |
3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 49 | 115 |
![]() |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 48 | 0 |
![]() |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 41 | 5 |
![]() |
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 43 | 12 |
![]() |
4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 50 | 78 | 81 |
TOTAL | 38 | 16 | 1 | 21 | 42 | 963 | 889 |
Honours[]
As a player[]
- Scotland
As a coach[]
- Scotland
- Rugby World Cup
- Quarter-finals: 1995, 1999
- Five Nations Championship
- Triple Crown
- Winner: 1984
- Calcutta Cup
- Centenary Quaich
- Rugby World Cup
- Scotland
- Rugby World Cup (as Assistant coach)
- Fourth place : 1991
- Quarter-finals : 2003
- Five/Six Nations Championship
- Triple Crown
- Winner: 1990
- Calcutta Cup
- Centenary Quaich
- Rugby World Cup (as Assistant coach)
References[]
- ^ http://www.lionsrugby.com/history/legends/noel_muprhy.php[bare URL]
- ^ "Rugby Positions: No 8s: Jim Telfer". Rugby World. 17 August 2016. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
- ^ Downie, John (6 January 1964). "Scots open season with victory". The Herald. Glasgow. p. 15. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
- ^ McMurtrie, Bill (2 March 1970). "Scottish revival not enough to atone for earlier blunders". The Herald. Glasgow. p. 5. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c Massie, p189
- ^ "Player archive: Jim Teller". British and Irish Lions. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
- ^ "Player archive: Jim Teller". British and Irish Lions. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
- ^ "Player Archive - J. W. Telfer". Barbarians FC. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
- ^ Massie, p190
- ^ https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/av/rugby-union/40272226[bare URL]
- ^ https://www.lionsrugby.com/2016/06/21/on-this-day-telfers-speech-and-dawsons-dummy-down-the-springboks/[bare URL]
- ^ https://www.the42.ie/living-with-lions-duncan-humphreys-3450295-Jun2017/[bare URL]
- ^ Jump up to: a b https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/29946236[bare URL]
Sources[]
- Bath, Richard (ed.) The Complete Book of Rugby (Seven Oaks Ltd, 1997 ISBN 1-86200-013-1)
- Massie, Allan A Portrait of Scottish Rugby (Polygon, Edinburgh; ISBN 0-904919-84-6)
- Telfer, Jim Jim Telfer: Looking Back... For Once (Mainstream Publishing, 2005, ISBN 1-84596-062-9)
External links[]
- Jim Telfer (The Scotsman)
- Video Interview with Jim Telfer 3:48 -to- 4:48 on YouTube
- British and Irish Lions rugby union players from Scotland
- 1940 births
- Scottish rugby union players
- Scottish rugby union coaches
- Living people
- Scotland international rugby union players
- British and Irish Lions coaches
- Scotland national rugby union team coaches
- Melrose RFC players
- People from Melrose, Scottish Borders
- Sportspeople from the Scottish Borders
- Alumni of the University of Edinburgh
- Scottish schoolteachers
- South of Scotland District (rugby union) players
- Provinces District (rugby union) players