Moffat Builders Tug O War Team

Before I started going round Scotland asking some of the great characters about their time pulling tug o war , there is one guy I wish I could have had a chat with is my great team mate Jock Moffat , it’s nearly 13 years years since big jock passed away , if you never meet jock you have missed out , he was the heart of the team and as a team we never really recovered

In 1979 I meet Alex Brodie in a pub, he asked me if I would come up to Gifford to have a go a tug o war and that was the start, after all these years he is still going strong at 92

I went up twice to see Ian Sturrock , first time just myself, second time I took his old team mate Ian Steele up to see Ian , it was just great listening to these guys talking about their time together with the great Forfar team

Sadly over the last few weeks we have lost another true tug o war guy Fergie Stephen

This is another guy that everybody would love to have in their team

Over the years I have met many great personalities and Danny from Square Inn was up there with the best of them. His wee red car could tell a million stories!

When asking lots of guys who they thought was one of the best , This name cropped up many times, Zander the left hander Ingram

For all the young guys that pull tug o war Hamish Wiseman is the man that judges tug o war in Grampian league, but once he was on off the best , started in 1974 pulling for a team called Red Craig , shortly after that they changed their name to Elgin, Hamish first pulled at the front and later in his career moved to anchor, he must be one of the most decorated pullers in tug o war history

It’s Been a few weeks since we decided to call time with Moffat builders tug o war team , but life goes on and some of the guys have already had offers to keep pulling, over the last few years I’ve had the pleasure of travelling round Scotland speaking to true stalwarts from past and present asking them questions about their time in tug o war , sadly some are no longer with us, some say I was going to write a book , but that was never the case I could never give it justice, so now and then on this page I would like share some of the photos I’ve collected and hopefully you get as much pleasure as myself looking at them, if anyone has any old photos of teams from the past please put them on , I’ve only scratched the surface

On Behalf of everyone from the team I Would like to thank everybody for their kind words, I’ve got a bag of medals and some great memories that I will never forget . Over the years team mates have come and gone. Special mention to George who like myself was there at the start of. It all . Don’t be surprised if you see some off us pulling for some B team this season just to help them out . Tug o war never leaves you #

Following on from our last post…

It is with great sadness that we announce that, after 40 years as a competitive tug o’ war team, we have decided to retire and finally hang up our boots as Moffat Builders.

Over the years, our numbers have slowly thinned. Some of our lads drifted off to enjoy a more normal life with their loved ones, and sadly some are no longer with us. As the sport itself has dwindled, finding new faces willing to take up the rope has become harder and harder.

The Saturday “team bonding session” (the kind that involves honest conversations and perhaps a drink or two) led to a serious discussion about the road ahead. With heavy hearts, we took the difficult decision to hang up the boots once and for all.

We would like to thank all the teams we’ve competed against over the years for their commitment to the sport, and a huge thank you to the games organisers. It has truly been an absolute pleasure. The characters we’ve met, the stories, the laughs, and yes, the drinking… those memories will live on in our hearts forever.

On the rope.
Take the strain.
PULL!!!