Craig Joiner struggles to believe it when told that the 1998 win he played in is still Scotland’s most recent success at the Lansdowne Road/Aviva Stadium site. Andy Robinson’s then charges did, of course, record a victory back in 2010, but it came at Croke Park rather than the spiritual home of Irish rugby.
“I’m absolutely staggered to hear that; I had no idea,” Joiner, the 25-cap former wing, says. “The big thing I remember from that game was that there was never any issue about whether we would win. It was almost a bit of a given that we would win that one and move on to the next.”
Joiner faced Ireland three times — in 1995, 1996 and 1998 — and was on the winning side each time. The now 47-year-old’s 100 per cent strike rate was typical of a period where, for a decade from 1989, Scotland won every head-to-head bar one tame draw on the road.
Since the turn of the century, however, it has been a somewhat different story, with Ireland winning all but six of 28 clashes in Edinburgh, Dublin and Yokohama.
“I can’t believe we have won as few games as we have in the last 20 years or so, but what is even more remarkable is the fact we won so many games in a row at one stage,” Joiner says. “Ireland are so physical throughout their team, and have been for a long time. Guys like [Gordon] D’Arcy and [Brian] O’Driscoll, these were like back-row forwards playing in the centre. You never got an inch and confidence breeds confidence. That same physicality is a hallmark of the team today.
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“As Leinster, Munster and Ulster got stronger and stronger so did Ireland. It has been a virtuous circle. I’ve never seen Ireland as a team of great flair. They are like the Scots at our best: they do the basics really well and don’t take a backwards step.
“But when I think of Gregor [Townsend] and the team now, when I see the quality of the players they have, it’s very different to 15 years ago or when I was playing, when we generally got what we deserved. I genuinely think this is a team that should aspire to more.
“We’ve had various away-day monkeys on our back for a while now. We got rid of Twickenham and Paris last year, Cardiff is still going, but I genuinely believe this team can win in Dublin. Let’s throw everything at it and prove it’s not as far-fetched as some people think.”
Twenty-four years ago, the Scots rocked up at Lansdowne in something approaching disarray. Their two previous outings had seen them suffer what is still the country’s record home defeat — 68-10 to South Africa — and lose a Five Nations warm-up match to Italy in Treviso, after which Richie Dixon and David Johnston, the coaches, found out they were no longer employed.
But a try from Alan Tait and six points apiece from the boots of Craig Chalmers and Rowen Shepherd secured a 17-16 success. It would prove their only win of the championship, and Joiner’s final Five Nations outing. Although the former Melrose, Leicester, Edinburgh and Stewart’s Melville man won a further five caps, these were all in summer or autumn Tests or in the build-up to the 1999 World Cup.
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“I hurt my ankle that day in Dublin, but you always remember away wins because they were so hard to come by,” he says. “Being asked to talk about beating Ireland three times, I’m not doing it from a position of being a bloke who got 60 or 70 caps. I’m not a Kenny Logan, a Doddie [Weir] or a Gregor. But it goes to show that you can be around at a bit of a golden period and make great memories.
“When the game turned professional, we didn’t get off to a great start. I straddled the amateur era of 1994/95/96 where we played really well, then all of a sudden the game turned professional and we found it really difficult to get a toehold in matches. But nobody can take those good days away from you.”
The 1995 game was Joiner’s first in the Five Nations, and saw him score the first of his three Scotland tries in a 26-13 success. The others came at home to Romania and against New Zealand in Dunedin.
“I had a pretty tough, torrid time the week before. We played Canada in a warm-up game, it was freezing cold and I don’t think the ball ever came my way other than kicks. In terms of playing at Murrayfield, I was still pretty fresh and raw. It was a game of two halves for me.
“I remember Jonny Bell scoring a try. He was mainly a centre but played on the wing that day. I went for him too early and he kind of shrugged me off and scored a try. The pressure was on but then I managed to score a try in the second half. There was a kick through and it was basically a foot race. When you get that score, you feel a bit more relaxed, because at the end of the day that’s what you’re meant to do out there on the wing.
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“That game gave me incredibly fond memories. I think I was 20 at the time: young and very impressionable, playing with guys like Gavin [Hastings], real schoolboy hero stuff. Growing up, I’d watched him from the north or south terrace, so to then be playing with him . . . wow.”
Both the 1995 and 1996 wins (the latter a 16-10 scrap) came on the opening day of the championship, and two further victories on each occasion saw Scotland enter the final round with a chance of completing a Grand Slam against England. The 1995 campaign also saw them win in Paris for the first time since 1969. Ultimately, however, the Scots came up short on each occasion, with England taking successive Calcutta Cups and championships.
“We were always in the matches for three games both seasons, but we were never really in either England game,” Joiner admits. “They were at a point in time where they had such physical dominance up front that we just didn’t get a foothold. It was really disappointing that we couldn’t nail one of them, but in the end with both matches it was a fair result.”
After rugby, Joiner — whose cyclist sister Charline won team sprint silver at the 2010 Commonwealth Games and is now married to another former Scotland wing, Lee Jones — pursued a career in investment management. He lives in Fife with his wife and two daughters and works for Abrdn (formerly Standard Life Aberdeen). He has no direct involvement in the sport but remains a keen fan and was in Rome last weekend.
“There are basically two back-threes there now, between [Kyle] Steyn, [Sean] Maitland, and[Blair] Kinghorn — who starts at 10 today — and [Stuart] Hogg, [Darcy] Graham and [Duhan] van der Merwe. It’s phenomenal, and that’s without mentioning Rufus McLean and guys like that as well. It’s a similar situation in the centres, where there are loads of options.
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“We’ve got tons of talent and I dearly want them to do themselves justice by taking that next step. They are such an incredibly talented bunch of players. If they came away from Dublin having won by 20 points, we would be slightly surprised, but they have definitely got a win in them over there.
“As hard as it has been in this championship, as hard as it has been with the legacy and burden of not winning there in as long as we have, a win is not beyond them by any stretch.”
