The man under the enormous umbrella was adamant. “It's only spitting,” he yelled into his mobile phone, struggling to make himself heard as the raindrops pounded his brolly.

Glancing up at the black clouds drifting in mercilessly from the direction of Arthur's Seat, he added: “We should get started in about 10 minutes.”

In Edinburgh, the weather is no respecter of history, which was sad, as this was indeed history of a sort - the first ever full cricket international between Scotland and England, at the ground known as Citylets Grange.

Whether it would ever start at all, seemed at one stage doubtful. “Ten minutes my a***,” snapped another onlooker, as the deluge continued.

There seemed good reason to be pessimistic. The last time Scotland's capital city was due to host a major cricket international was when Ricky Ponting's star-studded Australian side paid a visit during the 2005 Ashes tour. The match was abandoned without a ball being bowled.

This time, though, there was a spectacle of sorts, as Scotland reached 156-9. But the rain put an end to the match, with England on 10-0 off 2.3 overs.

As the heavens opened and the covers came on yesterday, there was a horrible feeling of deja vu among the Scotland faithful. For the better part of two hours after the scheduled start time, the crowd had little to do but listen to a pipe band, watch a parachute display team and attempt to eat half their body weight in chips.

Among the disappointed onlookers was Scotland's First Minister, Alex Salmond, who had earlier criticised the BBC for opting to broadcast the Olympics ahead of this momentous day.

When play did eventually get under way at 12.30pm, it looked as though Mr Salmond may have had a point.

With Scotland reduced to 11-3 after two overs, surely the BBC could have squeezed a half-hour match into its busy Beijing schedule. As one Scotsman after another trudged back to the pavilion, the small Barmy Army contingent, dressed variously in togas, nappies and school uniforms, were certainly making themselves heard.

“Super Freddie Flintoff,” they cried, as their hero steamed in to deliver another of his trademark ripping deliveries. But the England fans weren't the only ones revelling in the presence of players such as Flintoff, Jimmy Anderson and captain Kevin Pietersen.

At one point, a group of 30 young autograph hunters followed Alistair Cook around the boundary as though he were the Pied Piper of Hamlin.

The England starlet was happy to oblige, but paused briefly to catch Colin Smith. The big-hitting Aberdonian had earlier brought the crowd to life with several boundaries but, somewhat predictably, it was English misfortune that drew the biggest cheers when Luke Wright grassed a dolly in the outfield.

If Cook thought he had his work cut out with the young fans, it was nothing compared to what greeted Flintoff when he was sent to field on the boundary. Staring into the lenses of dozens of mobile phone cameras, the most famous third man since Orson Wells did his best to sign as many programmes, tickets and bats as possible.

However, the hero worship did not extend to some of the adults, who cut the big Lancastrian down to size with chants of “you're not very good” following a rare misfield. While the atmosphere in cricket is never as acrimonious as football, the banter became more pointed as the pints flowed.

The Barmy Army's incessant chanting, some of which contained references to haggis, was countered with cries of “sit down, shut up”, from the Scotland supporters. Thankfully, they stopped short at yelling “freedom”.

A final flurry of wickets from Flintoff finally ended Scotland's dogged innings at 155. Torn between loyalty to the celtic cause and admiration for one of the world's finest all-rounders, Flintoff's performance was greeted with what can only be described as a crouching ovation.

As England began their reply, the patient and long-suffering crowd groaned as the rain began to fall and Arthur's Seat once again disappeared into the mist.

As both teams went back into the pavilion, there was a final defiant cry as the umbrellas went up: “You've got them on the ropes, Scotland”.

But at that point it looked like the weather would be the only winner. The occasion deserved better.

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