Doddie Weir, who has died aged 52 after suffering from motor neurone disease (MND), was an old-school rugby union player whose career straddled the amateur and professional eras. For the former Scotland and Lions lock forward the game was a means of self-expression and fun as much as a job of work. Rugby for Weir was a serious business, but not that serious.
He won 61 Scottish caps in the 1990s, when he was a permanent fixture in the national side and, with his 1.98 metres (6ft 6in) frame and athleticism, he was marked out by the selectors from his early playing days at the Melrose club in the Scottish Borders.
