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Saturday 22nd August will see the Senior squad play their last preseason fixture against Dundee RFC, playing for the Dallas Allardice trophy.
Note the match is being played at Woodside (Aberdeenshire RFC) with a 1pm kick off.
Dally Allardice
Schoolboys like heroes. For a rugby-obsessed 12-year-old brought up on ‘Commando’ books with parents and grandparents who had lived through the Second World War, going up to secondary school at Dundee High in 1978 brought me into contact with the already legendary figure of Dallas Allardice, then Head of P.E. at the school, a position he took up in 1959 after transferring from his teaching post at Aberdeen Grammar School.
Like many, many before me at the school he was most definitely ‘Mr Allardice’ to his face, but universally ‘Dally’ otherwise. He was quite simply the most respected figure at the school. A ready-made hero and the tales would be told by older boys, breathlessly passed down through a generation “a Commando - had been in submarines! – fought in Norway - behind enemy lines in North Africa, the famed ‘Raid on Tobruk’, one of only a handful of British survivors, a POW but of course he escaped – months in a cave in the Italian mountains – a whole village honours him to this day…” So it went on and then of course his career as a Scotland Rugby International simply cemented his status. It would only be years later with the publication of a book in his name that we would discover that it was all true, and only half the story.
Dally was born in Glasgow in 1919 but grew up in Huntly, and was outstanding at all sports – he was a great swimmer, skier and a fisherman, but he first made his mark at the age of 14 playing for Huntly in the Highland League, the youngest player to do so. At secondary school, he boarded at Aberdeen Grammar School where he was introduced to rugby, cricket and tennis at which he excelled – going on to represent the school and the FP clubs at both rugby and cricket. Like many of his age, the war brought an end to his representative sporting career for many years. Immediately after the war he played rugby for the British Army of the Rhine before returning to play a football season for Huntly – the season they won the Highland League Cup - before again focussing on rugby from 1947 for Aberdeen Grammar FPs. Again he excelled and went on to earn 8 caps for Scotland at scrum half where he was frequently goal-kicker. He continued representing the FPs at sports into the 1950s and for 12 years taught PE at Aberdeen Grammar School until his move to Dundee.
For all the incredible schoolboy tales of his life during the war, I found Dally to be a quiet absolutely focussed teacher who taught us the great values of comradeship, discipline, honesty and respect. He insisted on discipline but was ever willing to invest his (often free) time in pupils who wanted to learn and improve. Throughout my school days as a keen rugby player his advice was golden, and occasionally came with a reminder of what he was capable of. In May 1984 the school had a first-ever rugby and hockey ‘tour’ to Toronto in Canada. Dally was Assistant Rector of the school and travelled as Tour Manager. At the end of our last training session in searing heat the day before the final game our Vice Captain Paul Rouse, Head of PE Sandy Hutchison and I were on the touchline speaking to Dally about his thoughts on the session he had witnessed. The other players were taking drop-kicks (mostly unsuccessfully) at the posts and inevitably a wayward ball came rolling towards us. Without giving much apparent thought to it, Dally picked the ball up, walked slightly forward to the 5m line and standing roughly on the 22m line junction with the 5m he drop-kicked it perfectly between the uprights before returning to the conversation. So ended the drop-goal session. He was 64 and about to retire but that was Dally – quiet, capable, considered, and able to demonstrate exactly how to do the task in hand.
For many years after he retired in 1984 he would be a regular feature on the touchline at Mayfield; back to the sun, focussed on the game. As an FP player at Dundee I would often get a word with him before kick off, still seeking his advice on the game to come. He always gave it willingly. Once I asked rather cheekily what he was doing himself to keep fit. ‘Dry-stane dyking’ came the immediate reply. As I said, that was Dally and it was a genuine honour and a pleasure to have learned from him. Both the Schools and the FP Clubs in Aberdeen and Dundee share a strong bond in commemorating a remarkable and truly unique man.
K. Burnett - DOR, Aberdeen Grammar Rugby