The upper Tweed valley has many charms and attractions, but you would never count Walkerburn amongst them.
A grim, grey cluster of buildings, the village’s most prominent landmarks are its derelict mill and a modest hotel that has been closed for the past few years.
Walkerburn’s only saving grace is that it doesn’t take long to pass through the place. Blink and you’ll miss it – and probably be grateful that you did.
Yet turn off the A72 that cuts through the village on its way from Galashiels to Peebles and you’ll find, quite literally, another side to Walkerburn. This is where the tight valley widens to a broad flood plain, where the whaleback, tree-clad hills of Elibank and Traquair Forest form a majestic backdrop, and where Walkerburn Rugby Club has made its home on Caberston Haugh for the past 140 years.
The ground’s setting is one of the finest and most picturesque in Scotland. But for how much longer? The haugh and the hills will be there for as long as time can imagine, but the club is in its death throes.
Recently, at the end of a brutal campaign in the SRU’s East Region Reserve League Division 2 that brought a series of postponements (when they often couldn’t raise a team) and hefty defeats (when they could) Walkerburn president Gregor Scougal issued a statement to say that the club was shutting up shop for good.
It was also announced that this year’s sevens tournament, the 100th playing of the event, had been cancelled. Yet just a week later, after an outcry among locals and pledges of support from rugby lovers around Scotland and beyond, that decision was reversed.
READ MORE: Walkerburn Sevens back on after huge community response
Which is how it came to be that Caberston was once again bustling with players and spectators on Saturday afternoon, basking in late spring sunshine as the centenary sports took place after all.
On the face of it, this was a community sport in the rudest of health. It was a typical Borders sevens, a joyful, uplifting afternoon, with children frolicking on the touchlines, thick-necked and ruddy-faced men downing pints at the bar, barbecue smoke drifting in the air and players going through their paces on the pitch.
And yet, it was also a kind of suspension of reality, a day when troubles could be forgotten but not eradicated.
Keith McCudden, Walkerburn’s sevens convener, acknowledged that situation.
As heartened as he clearly was by seeing a crowd of around 800 souls pack into the ground, he admitted that their presence and enthusiasm would have little impact on playing numbers.
The closure announcement, he explained, had encouraged a few former players to volunteer their services again, but McCudden pointed out that it is new blood, not old, that the club needs most.
McCudden said: “Last season we had about 10 to 12 active, regular players. It was always a struggle to get the last three or four to make a team.
"You can’t put a gun to someone’s head and tell them to come and play. We played a few games with 13-a-side, but that’s not really satisfactory.
“This isn’t a new problem at Walkerburn. We are in the middle of two massive catchments, with Gala and Peebles nearby. I don’t have the answers – no one has. There’s just not the numbers.
“It’s a problem for clubs across Scotland. We’re all struggling for players. I understand the SRU want people playing rugby, so there’s maybe a couple of hurdles they could smooth over to make it easier.
"Relaxing the rules on dual registration would help, so that clubs that are struggling to get a team out could maybe pool players just to get a game on.”
All of which sounds dreadfully gloomy, but looking at the crowds gathered around the Caberston pitch was clearly uplifting for McCudden. “Secretly we might have expected a big turnout,” he beamed, “but this is beyond our expectations.”
What next, though? The affection shown towards Walkerburn in recent weeks recalls the local reaction to the axing of the Border Reivers 17 years ago.
People who had cared little for the Reivers as a going concern acquired an unexpected fondness for the side as it lay on its deathbed. Not that it made much difference in the end.
McCudden is convinced that the club will continue in some shape or form.
He said: “It is in dire straits, there’s no doubt about that, but the club doors will stay open. Financially we’re alright, it’s the playing side that’s the problem.”
The likeliest scenario seems to be that Walkerburn will not be involved in league rugby, but may well continue as an occasional social side. And Saturday has fuelled determination to keep the sevens going.
"We’ve made it to 100 and I’d love to get to 101,” he said.
“Over the close season there are a lot of discussions to go ahead. We’ll get to an AGM and then take it from there.”
For what it’s worth, Heriot’s hammered Caledonian Thebans to take the trophy on Saturday evening. But if the day breathed new life into Walkerburn then it is they who will be the real winners.
Read the rules here