lan Peebles caused Don Bradman some problems in 1930, but it was Robert Sievwright who captured the prize dismissal of Jack Hobbs in 1913, when the Scots faced Surrey. In this encounter, the Arbroath United bowler took 4-62 and I-51 and the full strength Surrey side were dismissed for 142 to trail the Scots by 108. The English county hit back to win the game, but Wisden praised Sievwright for "bowling with much skill". In the same season, he further enhanced his reputation with figures of 4- 71 and 6-55 against Oxford University.

Sievwright had first come to the attention of the cricketing public in 1911, when he turned out for the Scottish Counties side who were playing the visiting All-India team. This Indian side was nowhere near test match quality, but the counties select would not have come close to competing with them were it not for Sievwright, who took 6-43 and 4-41 to enable the Scottish eleven to attain a rare victory over a touring side.

In 1912, he really made his mark taking 6-60 against the visiting Australians. This haul of wickets included the illustrious Charlie Macartney; his partner Warren Bardsley described Sievwright as "one of the best spin bowlers he had ever faced". As Bardsley had experience of players such as Rhodes, Barnes, Blythe, Woolley and Vogler, the Scottish left-hander was in very distinguished company. Remember that Sievwright was a joiner who only played cricket on Saturday afternoons, and he was pitting his wits against some of the best players in the world.

Sievwright dismissed a further 7 Australians when he took them on 9 years later, and was still trying to confound them on their next two visits in 1926 and 1930. By then he was 48. There is a splendid photograph of him sitting next to the young Don Bradman: the old master and the young master together. Unfortunately this match was spoilt by rain - the contest between the two would have been fascinating.

In those days, Scotland only played in one or two international matches each season. Robert Sievwright's first "cap" did not come until he was 30, and between 1913 and 1919, there were no international fixtures. Neither were there any in 1924, 1925, 1927, 1928 and 1929. Only occasionally did players of his class have the chance to perform at the highest level. Sievwright, therefore, only had 18 caps for Scotland, but in many of these, he was facing the very top opposition: 6 matches against Australian teams, 2 against the South Africans, one against the very strong Australian Imperial Forces side of 1919, Surrey and Middlesex.

Nevertheless, in these few games, he captured 81 wickets at 23.70. The longevity of his career with Arbroath United is staggering; it started in 1904 and continued through to 1947. He is still the highest wicket taker in Scottish club cricket with 2,242 dismissals. He took 10 wickets in an innings on four occasions: against the Air Force during the 1914-18 War, 10-33 v St Andrews University in 1926, 10-24 v Watsonians in 1928, and 10-16 v Aberdeenshire in 1936 - when he was 54. (This was the 50th anniversary of the acquisition of Lochlands Park, and after being dismissed for 29, Arbroath responded by dismissing Aberdeenshire for 39).

Year after year, he wheeled away on Saturday afternoons, claiming his 100 wickets for Arbroath at less than 10 runs apiece; from 1913 to 1936 his average exceeded 10 only three times - in 1928 it was as low as a miserly 4.97!

With the structure of cricket in Scotland being on a completely regional basis, Sievwright's team, Arbroath United would not come into contact with Greenock, who boasted Scotland's premier batsman of the time -John Kerr. It would have been most instructive to see the outcome of such a contest. It is impossible to predict of course, a pools panel might predict a "scoring draw". Sievwright was a master of spin and flight, and, although he could be irascible when being hit by an opposing batsman, was modest in seldom talking about his performances. He was elected as president of the SCU in 1932 and played on until he was 65.

The sad end to his life came when he was batting with his son, Arthur, against Perthshire. Having just hit and run a 3, he stood ready to face the first ball of the next over, but collapsed at the wicket. He died the day before one of his redoubtable opponents, Warwick Armstrong, and it is difficult not to feel a strong liking for this giant of the Scottish game.

This article first appeared in the book Saltire & Flannels by Fraser Simm. This title, and Echoes of a Summer Game, also by Fraser Simm, are available for online purchase in the Cricket Scotland Shop.