Allan attended Glenwood High School, where rugby first became a part of his life.
When Allan moved back to Scotland he played for Edinburgh Academicals.
[7] He played for a Presidents XV side in 1991 in a curtailed Scottish Inter-District Championship due to the Rugby World Cup.
His first stint was with London Scottish, from 1997 to 1998 where they were promoted to the Premier Division, and Allan moved on to coach the Natal Sharks forwards in 1999.
From 2000 to 2003 Allan was the Director of Coaching for the Glenwood Falcons, while also commentating on Supersport.
He is the uncle of Tommaso Allan,[11] who played for Scotland at U-17, U-18 and U-20 and then, for the Italy national rugby union team