Scotland will welcome England to Murrayfield on Saturday in the oldest international rugby fixture with the famous Calcutta Cup at stake.

The trophy has been at the centre of some famous moments in rugby, including the epic 38-38 draw in 2019. 

Related: Seven shocking Calcutta Cup moments from England-Scotland clashes in the Six Nations

However, the 1988 fixture between the two sides is remembered more infamously for its treatment of the historic trophy. 

Following a pretty dour game in Edinburgh, which England won 9-6, the players engaged in the customary post-match celebrations of the amateur years. 

Some players, though, took the celebrations a bit further than others and managed to smuggle the trophy out of the hotel. 

Scotland’s John Jeffrey and England’s Dean Richards then proceeded to take the 110-year-old trophy out on the town. 

The ornate trophy was then passed around like a rugby ball by the pair and ended up considerably worse for wear. 

As the night continued up in Scotland, the Calcutta Cup was dropped and eventually ended up in the hands of a doorman outside a nightclub. 

The doorman of Buster Browns was actually trying to fix the trophy, in such need of repair it was. 

In fact, when the cup was returned to the hotel, the damage was so bad that the repairs ended up costing an estimated £1,000. 

Jeffrey was given a five-month ban by the Scottish Rugby Union, while Richards got away with a one-week ban. 

Some suggestions were made that the trophy was kicked as well, but Jeffrey denied that and explained the dents were caused by the trophy being dropped.

The original trophy is no longer used for the fixture and instead the two teams compete for a replica, while the original resides in the museum of rugby. 

Despite all the on-pitch physicality of the Calcutta Cup, being thrown about and dropped on the streets of Scotland, the trophy took its own beating that night. 

In recent years, it is Scotland who have had the better time at the fixture, winning three in a row and will be looking to bounce back from their last-gasp defeat against France.

England head to Murrayfield having not won there since 2020 but are on a run of good form with two wins from their opening two fixtures.

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