Ian McLauchlan
Encyclopedia
John "Ian" McLauchlan is a former Scottish
ugby union] playerer. Nicknamed Mighty Mouse, he represented Scotland
at loosehead prop from 1969 to 1979.
His scrummaging and loose play were both from the top drawer. Gordon Brown rated him the best prop he had played alongside. He was capped 43 times for Scotland, and was captain of the national side nineteen times (ten times of which Scotland won).
He had to wait until second half of his twenties for a cap, and played for another ten years, before being dropped in 1979.
His nickname "Mighty Mouse" was from the fact that he was relatively small for a prop, but powerful for his size, like the cartoon character of the same name
:
Richard Bath writes:
On the Lions tour to New Zealand
in 1971 he replaced another Scottish loosehead prop Sandy Carmichael
who was unlucky to be punched and suffer damage to the cheekbone in Canterbury.
He played in eight tests for the British Lions
on the 1971 tour to New Zealand
and the 1974 tour to South Africa
, only once finishing on the losing side.
He became a Scotland captain, and even led them in the Calcutta Cup
match of 1973, despite breaking a bone in his leg two weeks before against , according to Massie "it says much for the persuasive power of his character that he convinced the selectors he was able to play."
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
ugby union] playerer. Nicknamed Mighty Mouse, he represented Scotland
Scotland national rugby union team
The Scotland national rugby union team represent Scotland in international rugby union. Rugby union in Scotland is administered by the Scottish Rugby Union. The Scotland rugby union team is currently ranked eighth in the IRB World Rankings as of 19 September 2011...
at loosehead prop from 1969 to 1979.
His scrummaging and loose play were both from the top drawer. Gordon Brown rated him the best prop he had played alongside. He was capped 43 times for Scotland, and was captain of the national side nineteen times (ten times of which Scotland won).
He had to wait until second half of his twenties for a cap, and played for another ten years, before being dropped in 1979.
His nickname "Mighty Mouse" was from the fact that he was relatively small for a prop, but powerful for his size, like the cartoon character of the same name
Mighty Mouse
Mighty Mouse is an animated superhero mouse character created by the Terrytoons studio for 20th Century Fox.-History:The character was created by story man Izzy Klein as a super-powered housefly named Superfly. Studio head Paul Terry changed the character into a cartoon mouse instead...
:
- "Like McLeodHugh McLeodHugh McLeod was a Scottish-born lawyer and political figure in Nova Scotia, Canada. He represented Cape Breton in the Canadian House of Commons from 1878 to 1879 as a Liberal-Conservative member....
, Ian McLauchlan was short and about as broad as a church door... There was always something a bit odd about his figure even before he acquired a certain rotundity that made him more like a French than a British prop. But nobody found him easy to prop against: he burrowed under the opposition."
Richard Bath writes:
- "Certainly, McLauchlan was not the conventional size and shape for a loose-head prop in the 1970s, but in many ways it was precisely the combination of an amazing power to weight ratio plus his ability to get under the opposing tight-head that made him such an effective performer in the tight... As a larger than life character, he played best in the most intimidating circumstances... making him one of Scotland's most successful captains. After his retirement the Scottish Rugby UnionScottish Rugby UnionThe Scottish Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in Scotland. It is the second oldest Rugby Union, having been founded in 1873, as the Scottish Football Union.-History:...
showed their gratitude by banning him for publishing his autobiography".
On the Lions tour to New Zealand
1971 British Lions tour to New Zealand
In 1971 the British Lions toured New Zealand, also playing two matches in Australia. Despite losing the first match to Queensland the tour was a great success, the Lions winning the test series against the All Blacks. They are still the only Lions side to have won a test series in New Zealand...
in 1971 he replaced another Scottish loosehead prop Sandy Carmichael
Sandy Carmichael
Alexander Bennett Carmichael was a tighthead prop forward who played for West of Scotland R.F.C. and earned 50 caps in the Scotland national rugby union team from 1967 to 1978, which was a record for a Scottish forward at the time...
who was unlucky to be punched and suffer damage to the cheekbone in Canterbury.
He played in eight tests for the British Lions
British and Irish Lions
The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team made up of players from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales...
on the 1971 tour to New Zealand
1971 British Lions tour to New Zealand
In 1971 the British Lions toured New Zealand, also playing two matches in Australia. Despite losing the first match to Queensland the tour was a great success, the Lions winning the test series against the All Blacks. They are still the only Lions side to have won a test series in New Zealand...
and the 1974 tour to South Africa
1974 British Lions tour to South Africa
In 1974 the British Lions toured South Africa, with matches in South West Africa and Rhodesia . The tour was a great success, the Lions winning 21 of their 22 matches and drawing the other. After winning the first three test matches, the Lions drew the final test to preserve their unbeaten record...
, only once finishing on the losing side.
He became a Scotland captain, and even led them in the Calcutta Cup
Calcutta Cup
The Calcutta Cup is a rugby union trophy awarded to the winner of the annual Six Nations Championship match between England and Scotland. It is currently England's since the 2009 Six Nations Championship....
match of 1973, despite breaking a bone in his leg two weeks before against , according to Massie "it says much for the persuasive power of his character that he convinced the selectors he was able to play."