John Jeffrey was born in Kelso on 25 March 1959 and educated at St Mary's Melrose, Merchiston Castle School and Newcastle University. He played at number 8 and flanker for Kelso where he was club captain in 1988/89 and 1990/91. He also captained the South to the Divisional Championship. He represented the South against several touring teams including Australia, twice, in 1984 and 1988 and Japan in 1986. His 40 tests as a flanker and 11 tries for Scotland between 1984 and 1991 set new national records for a forward. In 1986 he played for the British Lions against the Rest of the World as part of the IRB Centenary celebrations. In 1989 he became a fully-fledged Lion when he toured Australia with the British Isles and scored four tries in five provincial fixtures. He is a farmer and as befits a Borders' rugby man he was also a sevens' specialist and represented the Barbarians in the 1989 Hong Kong tournament when the Club reached the semi-finals. In 1991 he played for Scotland against the Barbarians. He played eight times for the Club between 1983 and 1991, captained the side to victory over Leicester in 1991, and coached the team for the prestigious 150th Anniversary match against Edinburgh Academicals in 2008. He is now a member of the Club committee and a Scotland representative on the IRB.