The Princess Royal braved the cold temperatures on Saturday afternoon as she watched Scotland triumph over Italy in the Six Nations.
Princess Anne was dressed in a warm bobble hat and coat as she watched the action from Murrayfield which saw Scotland win 33-20.
Scotland were dominant to start with, ending the first hour 33-3 up. But they allowed Italy three late tries towards the end of the game.
Following their win, Scotland will play against Ireland next week which promises to be a much tougher task.
The Princess Royal has been Patron of the Scottish Rugby Union (SRU) for over 30 years.
The Scottish Football Union, as it was known then, was founded in 1873, ahead of the formation of the International Rugby Football Board in 1886. The very first rugby international match was played at Raeburn Place in Edinburgh, on a cricket field. This tradition persisted, and all international matches in Scotland were played on cricket fields, until 1897, when the Scottish Football Union bought land at Inverleith.
Inverleith was the home of Scottish Rugby until the Murrayfield Stadium was built in 1925. Shortly before the completion of the stadium, the SFU changed its name to the Scottish Rugby Union. Princess Anne has been a regular visitor to Murrayfield since the 1980’s and watches team Scotland play multiple times a year.
“The Princess Royal is a long-standing and committed supporter of Scottish rugby,” said a spokesperson for the SRU.
“We were greatly honoured when she performed the official opening of the East Stand at Murrayfield in 1983 and were absolutely delighted when she became our patron in the 1986-7 season. She has been a most welcome visitor to Murrayfield in her capacity as our patron in every season since.”
