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And a very happy birthday ahead of Friday to Scotlands greatest rugby player. Such titles are inherently subjective and arbitrary, but it was the one conferred last year on Gary Armstrong, who turns 50 on September 30, by the Herald, a paper with a long record of sane and serious coverage of the Scottish game.Armstrong, who won 51 caps at scrum-half between 1988 and 1999, squeezed ahead of Gordon Brown and Andy Irvine at the top of the Glasgow-based papers list of Scotlands all-time greatest 50. ESPNs own John Griffiths in 2003 rated him number 6 in his top 50, with Irvine at No.1, ahead of Gavin Hastings and post-war flanker Doug Elliott.Certainly few players have been more warmly regarded by a greater range of compatriots, not all of them natural rugby fans. Gregor Townsend has recalled his experience as a student of walking into an Edinburgh biker bar whose walls were decorated with news cuttings about Armstrong.It also helps to have been associated with some of the happiest moments in Scotlands rugby history. Armstrong and prop Paul Burnell were the common factors in both the Grand Slam of 1990 and the Five Nations title in 1999. His deft pass was perhaps the key moment in the creation of Tony Stangers decisive try in the 1990 Grand Slam decider against England.Those 51 caps spread across a dozen years might not look so impressive to modern eyes. But there was less international rugby in the era either side of the shift to professional in 1995, and Armstrong was unlucky enough with serious injuries to devote an entire chapter of his autobiography to his medical mishaps. Scotland played 89 matches in all between his debut against Australia in October 1988 and his final appearance against the All Blacks 11 years later.He was also an unlucky Lion. He made the party to Australia in 1989, but was kept out of the tests by Robert Jones -- a rivalry which, to the credit of both, generated friendship and mutual respect -- on Armstrongs own reckoning at that time probably the best scrum-half in the world. Forced to settle on that tour for membership of a memorably happy and effective midweek squad, Donals Doughnuts, led by Irish lock Donal Lenihan, he was slated for a bigger role on the 1993 trip to New Zealand. Coach Ian McGeechan reckoned him likely to be the first name on the team-sheet, but he was ruled out of the tour by a serious groin injury.His home town of Jedburgh ranks a little behind Hawick or Galashiels as a Border hotbed, the Jed-Forest club a periodic rather than a consistent contender for honours. But it provided Scotland with world-class scrum-halves for two decades. Armstrong emerged in succession to Roy Laidlaw, Scotlands scrum-half of the 1980s -- the two facing each other in one final Scottish trial before Laidlaw retired at the end of the 1988 Five Nations.Some commentators were incredulous that the same small club could provide Scotland with consecutive number nines -- in the process squeezing out heir apparent Greig Oliver -- but as Armstrong pointed out he did not just appear out of the blue, having played at youth, under-18, under-21 and B levels before winning his first senior cap.He was, he recalled in his memoirs always a scrum-half. I must have looked like a scrum-half from day one and that was where I was put. Usually identified as the extra loose forward type of scrum-half, he always offered rather more than that.He was fearsomely committed, a quality which made him a favourite of notoriously demanding Scotland coach Jim Telfer. David Sole, the abrasive leader of the 1990 Grand Slam team, said that if you were picking one guy to go over the top you would pick Gary Armstrong. He would put his body on the line for the cause -- a phenomenal player with incredible courage. Jonny Wilkinson, a team mate at Newcastle in the later 1990s, thought of him as the junk-yard dog.But he was much more than a rugged auxiliary to the fine back rows Scotland could field in the 1990s. His aim was to keep opponents guessing, never sure whether he would pass, break or kick. The golden rule was never, ever to give his half-back partner bad ball, a priority he kept to the extent that legendary Scottish commentator Bill McLaren, writing at a time when Armstrong had already amassed 30 caps, could not recall an occasion on which he passed on rubbish ball to his partner.And he had a wider range of skills than is often remembered. Like every other team-mate, Townsend admired his toughness and commitment, but for me, his kicking game and ability to break tackles were just as impressive. Taking a therapeutic career break from the pressures of playing scrum-half in 1993, he had sufficient all-round ball-playing skills to appear at outside-half, full-back and centre for Jed-Forest before the needs of both club and country compelled a return to the number nine shirt.And he got smarter as he got older, using the opportunity to dedicate himself full-time after the switch to professionalism post-1995 to develop his game -- Townsend noting that playing and training as a professional for Newcastle had made him a more rounded player. He no longer played like a ninth forward and his first option was to quickly get the ball in my hands.His Scotland career might have ended much sooner than it did. There were the injuries, that sabbatical in the 1993-4 season and numerous offers to move to rugby league. His autobiography details how close he came to signing for the Carlisle club before a background check revealed the league teams financial instability.A lorry driver in the pre-professional eras, he was a significant beneficiary of the transformation post 1995. He was not only paid his considerable worth by the original big-money club, with whom he won an English championship in 1998, but extended his career by several seasons.His 1995 autobiography made it clear that the prospect of after-dinner speaking was enough to put him off becoming captain -- although he was a keen participant in the less formal aspects of post-match banquets -- but he wound up leading his country, captaining Scotland to the final Five Nations championship before ending with the 1999 World Cup match against the All Blacks.Scotland has hardly been ill-served since at scrum-half. Bryan Redpath and Andy Nicol were the immediate competitors to succeed him, while Mike Blair, Chris Cusiter and Greig Laidlaw have ensured that, whatever their limitations elsewhere, Scotland have fielded consistent quality in the number nine shirt.But where Armstrong left Scotland as champions they have not won, or come near to winning, a title in the 17 seasons since. Coincidence? One rather suspects not. Cheap NFL Gear . Brazilian national coach Luiz Felipe Scolari has confirmed that the veteran goalkeeper is set to join Toronto on loan, saying it will help him be ready for the World Cup. Cheap Jerseys Online .Y. -- Leading 3-0 with only 11:25 left, the Colorado Avalanche committed a seemingly meaningless penalty to give the New York Islanders a power play. http://www.nfljerseyscheapchina.com/ . "I was fortunate to play many years at this level with a great organization and unbelievable teammates," said Hejduk in a statement. Cheap Jerseys 2020 .com) - The Montreal Canadiens embark on their first road trip of the season as they head out west to battle the Calgary Flames on Wednesday night. Stitched NFL Jerseys . A forerunning sled crashed into the worker Thursday at the Sanki Sliding Center. The unidentified worker broke both legs and was airlifted to a nearby hospital. Sauber boss Monisha Kaltenborn says the teams vital result at the Brazilian Grand Prix proved it is moving in the right direction.Felipe Nasr finished ninth in Brazil for a valuable two points, moving Sauber above Manor for tenth position in the multi-million dollar battle for 10th in the championship. Manor had occupied that position since Pascal Wehrlein snatched a point at the Austrian Grand Prix in July.Sauber has undergone some radical changes since being acquired by Longbow Finance before the summer break, with the recent signing of technical chief Jorg Zander one of a number of personnel additions in recent months. Kaltenborn thinks the Brazil result proves those changes are having the right impact on the team.We know theres one more race, a lot can happen so theres no need to take it that easy [in Abu Dhabi], Kaltenborn told Sky Sports. Yes this is a very important race for us, it proves the direction we are going is right and sometimes you just needed that little bit of luck as well.We did everrything right, the driver did a fantastic job, the team was right in their decisions and then we had that little bit of luck as well and managed to get these points.ddddddddddddIt proved to be a nervy race for Sauber, with Felipe Nasr sat as high as sixth early in the race, with both Manor drivers also lower down in the points at the time of the final race stoppage. Eventually Nasr did what he needed to claim a result he later claimed was like a victory for the team.Kaltenborn admits it made for a nervy afternoon on the pit wall. [It was] very tense because you never knew what was going to happen and we didnt want to get involved in anything. For us it was just hanging on in there, being there, and making sure that if anything comes or happens, we are in that race. Manor was taking exactly that kind of approach and they were not far behind. There was pressure from all sides. ' ' '