Walter Irvine

Walter Irvine (21 October 1865 – 26 January 1919) was a Scotland international rugby union player. He became a surgeon and was a Lieutenant Colonel in the Indian Medical Service.

Rugby Union career

Amateur career

Irvine played rugby union for Edinburgh Academicals.

Provincial career

He was capped by Edinburgh District to play in the inter-city match of 1883 and 1884 and captained the side in 1890. However, the Glasgow Herald report of the match fuzzily quotes him as 'T.W. Walter' of Edinburgh Academicals.

He played for the East of Scotland District in January 1885, February 1886, and 1889.

International career

He played 11 matches for Scotland from 1885 to 1889.

It was said that only two other players could rank with him as a tackling forward: Mark Coxon Morrison and Bob Ainslie.

The 1886 Scotland match with England offered Irvine a try-scoring opportunity to win the game, when he attempted to catch a low off-load from a Charles Reid break; however, Irvine failed to collect the ball. The match then ended in a draw.

Irvine joined the Indian Medical Service in 1891. He became a Major in 1903 and a Lieutenant Colonel in 1911. He became Chief Medical Officer for the North-West Frontier Province, then in India but now in Pakistan.

In 1902, he became a civil servant. He joined the Foreign Department of Indian Government and worked on the Seistan Arbitration Commission, which formalised the boundaries between Persia and Afghanistan.