For an hour this 1972 Five Nations clash was just another international match. Scotland led 12-10 at the interval and then fell behind at 12-16 when the turning point of the game occurred, resulting in an all-time classic score.
Gareth Edwards, Wales’s scrum half, collected the ball inside his own territory after 60 minutes of the match. He had earlier crossed the Scotland line but was about to score one of the greatest individual tries ever seen at the Arms Park.
Edwards received the ball just inside his own half and came around the blind-side of a muddy pitch in front of the South Stand. He fended off Scotland flanker Rodger Arneil and set off. The alarm bells began to ring in the visiting defence as Edwards kicked right-footed over fullback Arthur Brown and though he was under pressure from several defenders, he left-footed the ball on towards the corner flag.
It was the muddiest part of a very dirty pitch. The commentator roared, ‘It would be a miracle if he scored.’ The miracle happened as Edwards dived into a sea of mud at the Westgate Street end and came up looking like a creature from a horror film. Only the face of Lions prop Fran Cotton in New Zealand ever resembled it.
The crowd went wild and comedian Spike Milligan later said, ‘They should build a church on the spot!’ The roaring went on and on as Edwards trudged back to his own half, a lot slower than he had run in the opposite direction. The game now ceased to matter. It was game, set and match to Wales.
Further tries came from Roy Bergiers and John Taylor, the latter with a solo run, and Barry John goaled both and placed a penalty.
Scotland scored no further points. They were shattered and lost wing Alastair Biggar with a hamstring injury, while JPR Williams was carried off with a fractured jaw that saw Phil Bennett take up a fullback role. It was Wales’s highest score against Scotland and the biggest victory by Wales over anyone for forty-one years.
