Aberdeen rugby fan with tickets for Melrose Sevens mistakenly books camping site 10,000 miles away

By Chris Cromar

March 22 2023, 11:11 am

Dave Walker and the camper van he hoped to take to Melrose. Image: Dave Walker.

An Aberdeen rugby fan’s dream trip to the Melrose Sevens has turned into a nightmare – after he accidentally booked a campsite more than 10,000 miles away.

Dave Walker wanted to treat his wife to a weekend in the Scottish Borders in their new Volkswagen camper van – and take in a major rugby sevens tournament at the same time.

But instead of booking a campsite in the Borders town, the 54-year-old reserved a hook-up in Melrose, Australia.

Accountant Mr Walker did not realise his mistake until he got the invoice for his reservation in Australian dollars.

The Greenyards hosts the annual event. Image: Ross Parker/SNS Group.

He says he has form for mishaps when booking trips away, after booking a “hotel from hell” in Edinburgh when visiting the capital in the past for a Scotland international.

The Melrose Sevens, which is held at The Greenyards, has been on the rugby calendar since its inception in 1883 and is the world’s oldest rugby sevens competition.

Taking place every April, teams from home and abroad compete in it, with the British Army winning last year’s event.

Mr Walker, from Maryculter, managed to get two tickets for the 2023 tournament on April 8, which 10,000 people are expected to turn out for.

Wanted to ‘make a weekend of it’

He has been watching the Melrose Sevens on TV for a number of years and planned to “make a weekend of it”.

“The plan before was to go down on the Friday, maybe have a beer on the Friday and then watch the game, stay the Saturday night and come up on the Sunday,” Mr Walker said.

The Melrose Sevens takes place each April. Image: Fotosport/David Gibson.

Despite looking for a pitch or even a driveway to park his camper van within walking distance of the ground, he has been unsuccessful in his quest due to the event’s popularity.

Instead of staying in the town, Mr Walker now plans to drive the 340 miles round trip between Aberdeen and Melrose, coming back once the rugby is over.

He said his wife was not surprised by his mistake, adding: “It was all in the best intentions, it was meant to be a nice weekend. Hopefully it will still be a good weekend.

“I think I’ll be taking off booking accommodation duties for any trips in the future.”