Career
He played as flanker. Holmes was born in Workington, England. In 1990 he captained the Cambridge University rugby team
In 1998 he was playing club rugby for London Scottish.
In 1999 he moved to play for Northampton Saints. Holmes appeared three times for Scotland, all during the 1998 Five Nations Championship.
He made his international debut against Italy at Treviso in January 1998. His last cap was against France at Murrayfield in February 1998.