Ned Haig (7 December 1858 in

Jedburgh Jedburgh ( ; ; or ) is a town and former royal burgh in the Scottish Borders and the traditional county town of the Shires of Scotland, historic county of Roxburghshire. History Jedburgh began as ''Jedworð'', the "worth" or enclosed settlem ...

, Scotland – 29 March 1939 in

Melrose, Scotland Melrose (, "bald moor") is a town and civil parishes in Scotland, civil parish in the Scottish Borders, historically in Roxburghshire. It lies within the Eildon Area committee, committee area of Scottish Borders Council. History The original ...

, buried in Wairds Cemetery,

) was a butcher and

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

player notable for founding the sport of

rugby sevens Rugby sevens (commonly known simply as sevens, and originally seven-a-side rugby) is a variant of rugby union in which teams are made up of seven players playing seven-minute halves, instead of the usual 15 players playing 40-minute halves. R ...

. He moved to Melrose when he was young. There he took up rugby (now rugby union) and joined Melrose Rugby Football Club (RFC) in 1880. In 1883 Haig suggested hosting a sports tournament to help raise money for the Melrose RFC and came up with the idea of playing with seven rather than 15 a side and reducing the match length to 15 minutes (from 80 minutes).

Early life

Haig was born in

, moving to Melrose when young. He was employed at a butcher's shop. After participating in the traditional annual Fastern's E'en Ba game, he became interested in the similar game of

, joining the local

Melrose RFC Melrose Rugby Football Club is a rugby union club located in the town of Melrose, Scotland, Melrose in the Scottish Borders. The professional men's side competes in the as the "Southern Knights". The club plays at the Greenyards. History The cl ...

side in 1880, initially playing for the seconds before making the first team and also playing for South of Scotland.

Origin of rugby sevens

In 1883, with the club short of funds, Haig suggested hosting a tournament as part of a sports day to raise money. As it would not be possible to play several rugby games in one afternoon with a full squad of 15, teams for the tournament were reduced to seven men, with the match time reduced to 15 minutes. The inaugural Melrose Sports took place on 28 April 1883, and included foot races, drop-kicks, dribbling races and place kicking as well as the main attraction of the rugby tournament, which attracted eight teams. Haig played on the Melrose team, which defeated local rivals

Gala Gala may refer to: Music * ''Gala'' (album), a 1990 album by the English alternative rock band Lush * Gala (singer), Italian singer and songwriter *'' Gala – The Collection'', a 2016 album by Sarah Brightman * GALA Choruses, an association of ...

in the final, receiving a cup donated by the ladies of Melrose (now known as The Ladies Cup). The immediate success of the tournament meant that other clubs in the Borders region also set up their own

competitions. After Haig retired from competition, he continued to take an active part in the running of the club, serving for several seasons on the General and Match committee. He died in Melrose on 29 March 1939. In 2008, Haig and

were honoured for their role in the creation of rugby sevens with induction to the

IRB Hall of Fame The World Rugby Hall of Fame (formerly the IRB Hall of Fame) recognises special achievement and contribution to the sport of rugby union. The World Rugby Hall of Fame covers players, coaches, administrators, match officials, institutions and othe ...

Gravestone

The following inscription can be found on Haig's gravestone in Melrose:

Edward 'Ned' Haig Born Jedburgh 7th December, 1858 Died Melrose 29th March 1939 Erected by the Border Rugby Clubs in memory of the originator of seven-a-side Rugby.Jones, p123

Notes and references

* Jones, J.R. ''Encyclopedia of Rugby Union Football'' (Robert Hale, London, 1976 )

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Haig, Ned 1858 births 1939 deaths History of rugby union in Scotland History of rugby union Rugby sevens people Rugby union players from Jedburgh Scottish rugby union players South of Scotland District (rugby union) players World Rugby Hall of Fame inductees Sports inventors and innovators

Early life

Origin of rugby sevens

Gravestone

See also

Notes and references

External links