| Gavin Blackburn | |
| Birth Name: | Gavin Blackburn |
| Ru Position: | Tighthead Prop |
| Repteam1: | Scotland U21 |
| Repyears1: | - |
| Years3: | 1999-2000 |
| Clubs1: | Saracens |
| Clubs2: | London Scottish |
| Clubs3: | Glasgow Warriors |
| Apps3: | 0 |
| Points3: | 0 |
| Amatyears1: | 1999 |
| Amatyears2: | 1999-2001 |
| Amatyears3: | 2001 |
| Amatteam1: | Glasgow Hawks |
| Amatteam2: | Glasgow Southern |
| Amatteam3: | Stirling County |
| Coachyears1: | 2010-13 |
| Coachyears2: | 2012-present |
| Coachyears3: | 2014-16 |
| Coachteams1: | Dunfermline RFC |
| Coachteams2: | Scottish Rugby Union Development Officer |
| Coachteams3: | Biggar RFC |
| School: | St Ninian's High School, Giffnock |
Gavin Blackburn is a former Scotland U21 international rugby union player for Glasgow Warriors, who played at the Tighthead Prop position.
Blackburn played for Saracens.[1] He started there as an apprentice.[2]
Blackburn played for London Scottish till 1999, when he was signed by Glasgow Hawks.[3]
He was then called up to Glasgow Warriors.[4] He played in all but one of Glasgow's pre-season friendlies of the 1999 - 2000 season; including the home match against Ulster Rugby[5] and making the trip to Canada to play the Ontario Rugby Union[6] and Uruguay A.[7] The only exception was the final match of the Canadian tour, the Canadian Tri-Continental Tournament final against Edinburgh Rugby, where Blackburn was an unused substitute.[8]
He returned to Glasgow after the successful Canadian tour but his time at the Hawks was short. In November 1999 he was moved on to Glasgow Southern.[9] This move to a lower ranked club effectively ended Blackburn's Warriors career and he did not play a further game for the professional provincial side. Hawks spokesman Hugh Barrow said: "Gavin hasn't been able to establish a regular place since arriving from London Scottish. He can't be blamed for wanting to seek first team action."
In 2001, he moved to Stirling County.[10] An achilles injury curtailed his career.[2]
He later went on to coach Biggar RFC from 2014. "Biggar is a huge club and one I remember playing against," he said. "It was always a hard game and the support was tremendous. They struggled last season but my job will be to create a culture where everybody enjoys rugby and ultimately starts winning again," said the 35-year-old former Dunfermline coach and SRU development officer. "We will look to bring players in but they have to be the right type of player, on and off the pitch."[1] However Blackburn announced he would quit his coaching role in February 2016 due to family commitments and work pressures.[11]