Three cheers for Robert Kitson (Murrayfield echoes growing noise and spite in the game, 11 February). A lot has changed since I first watched Scotland play England in 1954 at Murrayfield. My recollection is that the heaviest player in the home team was a second row forward of 13 stones 7 pounds. But a game where physical contact is of the essence cannot be allowed to deteriorate into provocative pre-match verbal exchanges and spectator boorishness without damaging its unique ethos.
I know that Victorian amateurism has been replaced by competitive professionalism and I welcome the speed, pace and discipline it has brought with rules that discourage cynicism and foul play. But, as Kitson sagely observes, if we lose the tradition of mutual respect, the game will be the worse for it.
Menzies Campbell
Liberal Democrats, House of Lords
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