Grant McKelvey and Graeme Beveridge look back on fond Heineken Cup memories with ‘top class’ teammates.
This season marks 30 years since Edinburgh’s 1996 Heineken Cup campaign, the first time the club ever competed in a European rugby competition.
The capital outfit will play in this season’s EPCR Challenge Cup which kicks off with the visit of French heavyweights Toulon to the Hive on Friday. The squad will wear a special kit for their matches in that competition, paying tribute to the one that was adorned three decades ago.
Players past and present united at the stadium to unveil both professional and casualwear kit ahead of the fixtures getting underway. The Scotsman caught up with Edinburgh Rugby legends Grant McKelvey and Graeme Beveridge on the day to look back on the 1996 competition.
‘Definitely a transition’ - first European campaign came as Edinburgh adjusted to professional model
A challenging Pool Stage saw them lose all four fixtures, starting with a 55-26 defeat to Bath at The Recreations Ground. They were hammered 69-12 in France by Dax and lost their two home games at Myresdie 10-32 to Pontypridd and 23-43 to Benetton.
“It's a long time ago but, looking back, I think there was a massive sense of excitement going into that campaign,” said Beveridge. “We had played inter-district rugby at that point amongst the regions in Scotland but that was the first opportunity to really go and play some of the real big clubs and famous names in Europe.
“My overriding memory of the season as a whole is that excitement coming on the back of professional rugby just being brought into Scotland.”
“It was really interesting because that season definitely was a transition,” added McKelvey. “Half the squad was professional at the time and signed professional terms and were training here in Murrayfield from Monday to Friday and the other half of the squad was still on amateur terms and hadn't signed professional yet.
“So it was that real balance of training Tuesday and Thursday night, a wee bit old school, so everybody could train together and try as best we could to have a professional with, a small P, outlook on what we were going into.”
The chance to get together with fellow former teammates Duncan Hodge and Derrick Lee was also tinged with sadness following the sudden passing of their brother in arms Ally Donaldson at the age of 60. Both shared their memories of Donaldson as well as other ex-captains Scott Hastings, who also passed away earlier this year, and Graham Dall who died in 2025.
“They were just really quality men to begin with,” said McKelvey. “Good people, and top class rugby players and we miss the three of them and we will. Ally more recently, Dallsy a couple years ago and Scott who was the first captain.
“He was a figurehead of Edinburgh rugby at that time, a cultural attaché if you would like, leading the rugby side. Dallsy was an absolute quality individual, quality player, quality captain and Ally was exactly in the same mould. Three leaders, three quality players and three really good guys that we all trusted, we respected and we loved.”
Finally, the pair gave their thoughts on how they expected the current squad to get on in the Challenge Cup this season with Beveridge adding: “The European competition is always really tough isn't it? I think the key thing for any team, and it'll be the same for Edinburgh this year, is if you can win your home games that really sets you up to get a crack at getting out of the group and once you get out of the group then you know everything's achievable.
“I think the exciting thing for the Edinburgh squad as a whole is the quality of the young players coming through at the moment.”