Melmoth,
I'm not of the 'old guard', though some of the yoof knocking around might disagree. While I'm fortunate enough to have some half decent exam results, 3 of my colleagues at Linton had the 'minimum requirements' set by the recruitment bods at the time. Didn't do them any harm (decent FJ pilots, though a couple did become QFI's).
Also, flying does have a tendency to 'run in the genes' in much the same way that sporting families tend to have sporting kids . Some of it is nurture and some of it is nature, but a lot of it is self belief.
Seriously, there's a chip on that shoulder. Let it go. They're both good lads in their own right (lucky enough to have worked with both of them) who would have no issues if their surname was Smith.