Spence McTavish, the 1973 Bobby Gaul Award winner as UBC male athlete of the year, is arguably one of the finest rugby players to ever suit up in the Blue and Gold. He was a key member of the T-Bird' 1970-71 team (UBC's best rugby team ever) and he led that squad with 39 tries as they went 21-1 en route to victories in the Tisdall Cup, McKenchnie Cup and World Cup (series versus California, Berkeley). Both McTavish and the 1970-71 team have been inducted into the UBC Sports Hall of Fame.
In 1973 he helped found the UBC Old Boys, a club that thrives to this this day and it was while playing with this team that he was awarded the Howie McPhee Memorial Trophy in 1976 .
As head coach of the T-Birds, McTavish has maintained UBC's tradition as one of the top university programs in North America. The T-Birds yearly two-game series against Cal Berkley, which began in 1921 and is known as the World Cup contest, is arguably the finest example of University rugby in the world and one of the highlights every year on the T-Bird's schedule.
McTavish, a 2010 inductee into the BC Sports Hall of Fame, was one of the longest serving international players in Canadian history (1970-1987), earning 22 full caps for Canada and he immediately showed his quality with a try in his first ever international match. He appeared in over 50 games for Canada and represented BC in over 100 matches during his illustrious career.
A member of Canada's squad at the first ever Rugby World Cup in 1987, McTavish served as captain on numerous overseas tours he made with the national squad.
Known for his incredible speed down the wing, as well as his long flowing blond hair, McTavish was also a standout in Rugby 7's, captaining Canada numerous times in international fixtures.
A retired teacher and coach from Lord Byng Secondary in Vancouver, the former Canadian standout has also been a passionate teacher of the game at the international level. From 1994 to 1998 he coached a number of national teams, preparing Canadian sides for such competitions as the Commonwealth Games and Rugby World Cup 7's.
