Fitba's No A Gemme Fur Lassies - Hen

I HAVE, of late, been involved in a wee on-line spat on a football "anoraks'" website. Other regular posters, including some guys who I know put a great deal of unpaid time and work into keeping their favourite "diddy team" functioning.

 

The contentious point was my belief that the SFA is guilty of discrimination against Scotland's women footballers. It seems to me, if a male player plays 50 times for the full Scotland men's team, he gets onto the SFA Roll of Honour and into the SFA Hall of Fame - this by the way should not be confused with the Scottish Football Hall of Fame. A Scottish woman internationalist, who plays 50-times for the national team, does not get the same recognition.

 

To be fair to the SFA, they have started to recognise the several Scottish women internationalists, who have played over 100 internationals. It should be pointed-out, however, that this is in response to a UEFA initiative to have these girls' achievements recognised.

 

It seems, however, the SFA has quietly put the "Roll of Honour" and the "SFA Hall of Fame" on the back burner. They no longer mention 50th caps etc. Therefore, my stance on the matter of equality seems now somewhat spurious.

 

Taking the wider view, however, I wonder why it has never got through to the "blazers" on Hampden's sixth floor, that, just maybe the way the Scottish Women's FA organises their fiefdom, in particular the way they have made the national team the main focus of their work, is a superior work model to the "clubs come first" mantra which has held sway in the men's game for at least the past 100-years, and, in particular, the way two Glasgow-based clubs seem to be far more important than the national side.

 

Has it never struck them - Scotland's wome's team is more-higly-rated than the men's team, while we have more women playing at a higher level in England and abroad, than we have men.

 

But, no mind: "Fitba's no a gemme fur lassies, hen".

 

 

 

I WATCHED the opening episode of the documentary series featuring Salford City, the non-league, semi-professional club bought by Nicky Butt, Ryan Giggs, Gary and Phil Neville and Paul Scholes, five of the legendary: "Boys of '92".

 

If the remaining episodes are as fascinating and interesting as the opener, then BBC has a hit on their hands. 

 

Gary Neville, as ever, wears his heart on his sleeve, but, you could see in last night's episode - he is well out of his comfort zone. Meanwhile, younger brother Phil is clearly itching to get in there and sort out a dressing room in disarray.

 

This one will run and run. I await the arrival of Sir Alex Ferguson as a special consultant to sort things out.

 

 

 

 THIS has been a sad week in Ayrshire fitba, with the passing of an Ayr United legend, and a player of similar standing at Kilmarnock.

 

First to pass on was Peter Price, the Ayr United centre forward of the 1950s and early 1960s who literally did score goals for fun. Price is the only United player to score over 200 goals for the club, and not all in the old Division B.

 

Such was his influence at Somerset Park, the years when he wore the number nine shirt are known as: The Price Era".

 

The Killie player to hear the final whistle was Matt Watson; for my money, the best full-back NEVER to be capped by Scotland. A Paisley Buddie, Watson was unfortunate in that his career was contemporanious with that of the great Eric Caldow at Rangers - believe me, ability-wise, there was little or nothing between the two men.

 

Watson signed for Kilmarnock in 1954, just as the club returned to the first division and he was a fixture in the team right through the Willie Waddell years. He, Jackie McInally, Bertie Black and skipper Frank Beattie, having come all the way through the Waddell years together, were all there on that unforgettable day, 24 April, 1965, when Killie went to Tynecastle and beat Hearts 2-0 to win the league for the only time.

 

Two marvellous servants of their clubs - they will be sadly missed.

 

 

A Family In Pain - And What Pain They Are Feeling

THERE has been so much fall-out from Celtic's defeat in Molde on Thursday night, it could turn into a nuclear winter along Kerrydale Street. As my old mate Lance-Corporal Billy King remarked in the pub last night: "They don't like it up 'em".

The Celtic family is hurting, and, like most families following a sudden bereavement, some wee cracks in the facade of unity are opening. "Uncle Sean", who never liked the idea of an unknown Norwegian managing his club anyway, has suddenly become more-vocal in his criticism of Mr Deila. Cousin Liam is going round telling anyone who will listen: "Ah aye said, thae twa centre-haufs wurney oany guid"; while Wee Tim is saying something similar about John Collins.

Once upon a time, a wee 3-0 win over the next Scottish "Diddy Team" to come calling at Celtic Park might have restored equilibrium and brought a smile back to greetin' faces, however - these days are past.

I have seldom seen such miserable faces on a bunch of Scottish fans as those we saw in the crowd shots from Molde, during the match transmission. These guys were hurting, and hurting badly.

Sure, Celtic are still odds-on to win the Scottish title again come May. They will be back in Europe again next season, but, to what end?

Preparations are already under way for the club to extract a good few more pounds sterling from the wallets of the Celtic Family, come May 2017. Then, it will be 50-years since the Legend of the Lisbon Lions were born.

But, before the Lions, whose magnificent triumph, the greatest feat by a Scottish club side, came, remember, 12-years into regular competitive European club football, Celtic in Europe was a case of tumbleweek being blown through a ghost town.

For that club, 1966 was Year Zero - Celtic, European Superpower, was born in 1967. Prior to the demolition of Inter Milan, few in Europe had heard of Celtic, afterwards, everyone had.

Todays Celtic is not the unknown factor which Jock Stein was able to unleash on unsuspecting continentals. This is a club with a seat on the European Clubs Association board. Celtic are a Big European Club, albeit one currently in a bit of disarray.

But, they are not alone in this. Celtic are bottom of Group A in the Europa League, second-bottom are Ajax, a club with a more-impressive European record than the Hoops, while, elsewhere, "bigger" clubs, with proven European track records and with European Cup or UEFA Cup triumphs etched on their escutcheons are also trailing comparatively unrated teams.

Of course, Celtic have problems - most-obviously a defence which would have no defence if charged with taking money under false pretences. As every manager worth his salt has known, when seeking to take a club forward, the first thing you do is make sure you are secure at the back.

Against the chances who pass for forwards in Scotland, the Celtic defence can cope, but, as was shown yet again in Molde, take them out of their SPFL comfort zone and they are little boys lost.

There is nothing wrong with Celtic that a few minor adjustments could not repair. They had 60% of the possession on Thursday night, but could only score one goal, from comparatively long range.

Celtic were not embarrassed on a technical level by Molde - the tools and equipment are there, just not being utilised properly. Maybe Carlton Cole's physical presence in the penalty area will afford Leigh Griffiths greater freedom to score from knock-downs and "second balls". The midfielders who didn't impose themselves on Molde will surely come good in other games, but, until that defence is sorted-out, Celtic are going nowhere.

And, by the way, a word to the stupid. Leigh Griffiths - when you lose and the fans turn on you, suck it up and say nothing son. The guys who gave you grief after the match on Thursday night are the sons and grand-sons of the guys who hitch-hiked to Lisbon. They are also the grand-fathers of the guys who will, at some point in the future, hail another magnificent against-the-odds Celtic glory night in Europe.

Players are transient, at clubs, in the case of Celtic particularly so, fans are forever. You let them down, they had every right to have a go at you - live with it.

TODAY sees the second round of the 2015-16 Scottish Junior Cup. In some ways, this is the real start of the competition, since the first round is merely a way of getting the draw down to a manageable 128 clubs.

In truth, few of the ties really catch the imagination; holders Auchinleck Talbot, because of their (Senior) Scottish Cup commitments, must wait a week before they begin their quest for yet another victory, away at Tranent, a club with a history of tripping-up clubs with ambitions towards winning the trophy. They may well need to bring Tranent back to Beechwood to do it, but, I don't see the 'Bot making an early exit.

Another tie which caught my eye was the clash of Petershill and Newtongrange Star, two of the perennial big hitters in the Juniors. "Nitton" always do the East Region proud, while the Peasie, having won the Sectional League Cup the other Sunday, are a flourishing rose in the wasteland which is Junior football in Glasgow.

It will be 60-years in June, since Petershill broke my young heart, by beating Lugar Boswell Thistle at Hampden to lift the big prize. That was their last win in the competition. Might they mark the anniversary and win it again this season?

Linlithgow Rose are another team who are always mentioned in despatches when it comes to the Cup. They too are on Senior Scottish Cup action today so will  kick-off with a home tie against Annbank United next Saturday. I expect the Rose to still be blooming come full-time.

Twenty-five years ago, in 1990, the Junior Cup Final, at Rugby Park, pitted Hill o' Beath against Lesmahagow, with Beath winning 1-0. The sides lock horns again this afternoon, but, both sides have slipped somewhat from a quarter of a century ago. I hope the game goes well and old friendships are re-kindled.

Finally, I must mention another of the perennial big names - Irvine Meadow. The "Medda" were well and truly mown, thrashed 8-0 at Troon last week. This afternoon they are at Dunbar, a team always capable of beating a fancied side. This one just might be a cracking tie.

FINALLY - can we be done with this carping about "protection" for Nathan Oduwa. Yes, he was given a severe kicking in midweek. Certainly, it seemed to me as if the Livingston players had been instructed to "Rummel 'im up", and did so, in spaded.

Yes, he might have got better protection from Andrew Dallas, but, for the usual pro-Ibrox suspects to come out and demand: "protect the ball players"!!

This is taking two-facedness to extremes. John Greig might have called for: Protection for us ball players", when he was playing, but, we all knew his tongue was firmly in his cheek.

For the fans and former players of the club which gave us: Harold Davies, John Greig, Davie Provan, Tam Forsyth, Gregor Stevens, Kenny Black, Graham Roberts, Terry Hurlock, Graeme Souness, John Brown, Lorenzo Amoruso and Lee McCulloch to go all self-righteous on us about "over-robust challenges" - as they say in the South of England; Nar, ye'r avin a larff".

   

 

 

Altogether Now - The Cry Was No Defenders

DISASTER for Celtic in Molde, last night - but, why are we surprised?

It is not as if the Hoops were the first Scottish team to stumble and trip-up in Norway; we still think of the Norwegians as easy meat for Scottish teams, but, recent football history tends to indicate they are now, at least our equals, if not our superiors.

Celtic had over 60% of the possession and territory, but, not for the first time, the cry was no defenders, as they crashed to defeat. 

Celtic's defence, if that's not a breach of the Trades Description Act, might be adequate for the relatively calm waters of the SPFL, but, in Europe, it is the football equivalent of the three-pin electrical plug. Until the well-documented failings of the defence are straightened-out, Celtic are going nowhere in Europe but OOT.

I have long believed Celtic and the RTA both require "A fan on the park" - an influential player who, if he wasn't out there playing, would be in the crowd cheering-on the team. Scott Brown, and as he made all too clear when subbed, Kris Commons, both care, deeply. But, neither is a brought up in the faith, dyed in the wool member of the "Celtic Family" - a McNeill, Burns, Aitken etc, who bleeds green. I fear, until they find such a player, Celtic will be vulnerable. 

Tuesday Night Was A Truly Unedifying Non-Spectacle

One of the alleged benefits of the internet is, it offers everyone the opportunity to comment immediately on matters in the public domain. Once upon a time, if the average member of the public felt sufficiently moved by a comment made on the radio or television, they could write a letter to the Editor of the publication involved, or to the broadcasting medium, and, given good luck in the lottery which was the selection process, see their views published or broadcast.

 

Of course, back then, there was an element of choice, if your view as "Disgusted of Dunblane" did not concur with that of the journalist sifting through the responses to decide which comments to publish or broadcast, then, tough luck, your views remained your own.

 

With the internet, however, anyone and everyone can post their views and, in all but a few cases where moderation takes place, see these views published. This has led to the phenomenon known as "clickbait", whereby, say a newspaper's website, deliberately encourages controversial opinions, to encouraged outraged responses, and enable the said newspaper to claim: "Our website has had X-million "hits" in the past six months, or whatever".

 

One guaranteed means of generating "hits" is used by Scotland's four biggest newspaper websites, those of the Sun and Daily Record, the Herald and Scotsman. This is, to put Celtic or Rangers stories in a prominent position, secure in the knowledge - the two tribes will bite and bite big.

 

This has led the that other phenomenon of the internet in Scotland, rampant whitabootery, whereby incidents and grievances gong back to 1690 are raised and rehashed by two sides, neither of which is listening, merely demonstrating their bigotry and stupidity.

 

Right now, this aspect of 21st century Scottish life is all too evident in the fall-out over the Livingston players' repeated fouling of Nathan Oduwa at Ibrox on Tuesday night.

 

Quite how Andrew Dallas allowed Livvi to finish the game with their full 11-man compliment, I will never know. I reckon his father, who for all the accusations of pro-Rangers bias and his part in the so-called "Masonic conspiracy" at the heart of Scottish refereeing, was an excellent referee, would surely have had his red card out at least once and perhaps twice, in response to some of the Livingston challenges.

 

Young Dallas did himself no favours.

 

Now, cutting through all the bullshit about the actions of John Greig, Graeme Souness, Roy Aitken or Bobo Balde which have been aired over the internet since the game, can we look calmly at what I see as the main talking point.

 

This is, football's attitude to bad challenges. Yes, the beautiful game is the most free-form of the many codes of football played on this planet. Referees are encouraged, as far as possible to: "Let the game flow". This means, occasionally, poor challenges are let go, or, are not punished as rigorously as they perhaps should be.

 

Today's game is a lot faster, a game for athletes, to an extent we never saw, 40, 50 or 60 years ago, unfortunately, here in the United Kingdom, we still allow the sort of challenges which, back in the day, were none too serious, but which are today, when perpetrated against the quicker players in the modern game, potentially career-ending.

 

We will never end badly mistimed challenges, but, I feel we could get rid of some of the poor fouls, such as one or two committed on Oduwa on Tuesday night, if football adopted one or two ideas from other sports.

 

Let's start with what I think is the most-obvious, Rugby Union's yellow card protocol. With this, if a player is yellow-carded, he goes off for ten minutes in the sin bin. During this period, it is very rare for the team with the one-man advantage not to score once or twice, hence, in a game where the opportunity to really hurt an opponent, and where the Laws as regards certain aspects of play are so complex one almost needs to be a lawyer to understand them, you don't see many yellow cards.

 

I guarantee, if football introduced the ten-minute rule, it would be cleaned-up within a season - clubs simply could not risk picking up three, four or more yellow cards per game.

 

Or, if ten-minutes is too-long a spell to go short-handed, why not try ice hockey's system of major and minor penalties. Take things such as jersey-pulling, kicking the ball away and so on, which attract yellow cards today; ten minutes in the sin bin for such offences might be over-kill, som count these as minor crimes and have maybe three or five minutes in the bin as punishment, leaving the ten-minute sanction for poor tackles, short of the potential leg-breakers, which should continue to be red-card offences.

 

I got the distinct impression, watching the way the Livvi players seemed to take it in turns to kick Oduwa on Tuesday night, they had been told to, in that quaint old Scottish phrase: "rummel him up". Well an idea from basketball would, I believe, soon sort this idea out.

 

In that game, which is of course non-contact, each player is allowed four fouls, on commiting a fifth, he is out of the game. OK, he can be replaced, but, the guy with five fouls takes no further part. Also, if a team commits more than a certain number of fouls, seven I think, thereafter, if they concede a defensive foul, anywhere on the court, the opposition gets a free throw - basketball's equivalent of a penalty.

 

Now, bring these ideas into football and we would soon be rid of that Scottish football phenomenon: "the hammer throwers". Clubs simply could not afford to carry guys who were more brawn than brain. Thus, entertainers such as Nathan Oduwa might be allowed to flourish in our game.

 

And, while I am at it, can I say again: bring in another Rugby Union law - the ten-metre back award for not immediately accepting the referee's decision and retiring backwards. If that came in, it would soon do away with the scenes of a knot of players surrounding the officials, arguing and pushing and pulling. 

 

Let's clean-up football, now. 

New Hall Of Fame Inductees - Overlooked Again

OUR national team is out of Europe, Celtic are back at the top of the SPFL Premier Division, they've got an away Europa League match on Thursday night, but, before then, the Rangers Tribute Act has a What the fuck is that competition called again Cup-tie, against Livingston.

 

Aah! the thrill-a-minute entertainment medium that is Scottish football.

At times like this, what does your everyday Scottish Football Philosopher do to pass his time? How does he philosophise in the face of such tedious fare?

 

Well, he rails against something peripheral and insignificant.

 

For instance - the 2015 Inductees were admitted to the Scottish Football Hall of Fame (SFHOF) on Sunday night. I have absolutely nothing against the new boys - Bobby Brown, George Graham, Professor Stewart Hillis, Ally MacLeod and Maurice Malpas.

 

All are worthy of their place, but, I question the credentials of the anonymous panel of the "Great and the Good" who decide who gets in, and when.

 

I understand, the panel includes some of our "most-distinguished sports journalists" - if, by that, they mean some long-standing members of the Scottish Football Writers Association, all I can say is: "Jings, crivvens, help ma Boab". Leaving selection to the Lap Top Loyal and the Celtic Apologists - no thanks.

 

For instance - and I have said this before: Scotland's greatest international victories are widely held to be: the Wembley Wizards' thrashing of England in 1928 and the 1967 win over reigning World Champions England. When it comes to club successes -  we have: The Lisbon Lions, The Barcelona Bears and The Gothenburg Greats.

 

Hughie Gallacher, Jim Baxter, Denis Law, John Greig, Willie Miller and so on are already (rightly) members of the SFHOF - but, not every member of these five iconic Scottish sides is in there.

 

Football is a team game - 11 v 11. Those members of these great teams would not have won the matches concerned without the help of the perceived lesser lights around them.

 

I have long argued, EVERY member of the 1928, 1967x2, 1972 and 1983 teams should be inducted, as soon as possible.

 

For instance, Jimmy McMullan, skipper of the Wizards, remains to this day, one of the greatest captains Scotland has had - yet he is not a member. Bob Gardner, the very first Scottish internationalist, as goalkeeper in our first international team, also, as Queen's Park secretary at the time, the man who organised that first international from the Scottish end, he has not yet been recognised.

 

Rose Reilly's induction I welcomed at the time. I realise she is still playing, but, surely Julie Fleeting has as great a case for admission. Junior football plays such an important part in the overall picture of the Beautiful Game in this country - so where in the list of inductees is Willie Knox of Auchinleck Talbot, the most-successful manager in the history of the junior game?

 

The selection committee, to me, seems to have little or no regard for Scottish Football History lang syne. This is wrong. If they want the names of one or two experts on Scottish Football History, who could put forward a case for players from the real Golden Age of Scottish Football - well, I could give them a few names - of both potential selectors and potential inductees.

 

 

 

IF YOU want fitba in the raw, passion aplenty and appreciate playing for the jersey - then you could well get what you crave this weekend. Because Saturday sees the second-round ties in the Scottish Junior Cup being played.

 

I hope to properly preview this great event closer to the weekend.

 

 

Start Planning Now For Campaigns To Come

AT LEAST, the manager's position has been settled, and Wee Gordon Strachan will continue as the Gaffer until at least the end of our 2018 World Cup Qualifying Campaign.

 

The consensus is that the unsuccessful 2016 European Championships Qualifying Camaign went rather well. WGS has, according to the commentators in the mainstream media (msm), put the smile back on the faces of the Tartan Army. 

 

In reality, however, we, at best, stood still during the campaign which has just ended in our failure to get our of our qualifying pool. The campaign which has just ended was our ninth, since UEFA introduced the concept of seeded draws.

 

Our best was the 2008 campaign. Coming from a low start of a ranking of 27, we reached the play-offs, finishing ranked 15.

 

Second-best was the 1996 campaign. We began ranked 19th in Europe, finished the qualifying campaign ranked 12th, and qualified for the finals in England.

 

Next came the 1992 campaign, during which we started ranked 13th in Europe, but finished as the 7th ranked side, and, for the first time, we qualified for the final tournament in Sweden.

 

Our 1988 campaign is now seen as something of a non-event; we went into it ranked 24th in Europe, and finished it in position 22. This is the same two-place advance which we have just made in our "good" 2016 campaign!!

 

Next best was the 2004 campaign, under Berti Vogts. We didn't qualify, but, in starting and finishing in 20th position in the rankings, we at least stood our ground. Then comes the 2012 campaign under Craig Levein. This period is viewed as an unmitigated disaster; maybes aye, maybes naw, but, in sliding from a starting ranking of 24 to finish-up as the 27th best in Europe, well, we've been worse.

 

We certainly were in 1984, the first time the draw was seeded. We went into that campaign with an experienced squad - Leighton, McLeish and Miller, Alan Hanson, Graeme Souness, Kenny Dalglish etc., managed by Jock Stein. We were ranked 15th, finished in 25th place, a drop of ten places.

 

That was the low point, until the 2000 campaign. When the draw was made, we were right up there alongside the big boys in Pot One. The pecking order, from one to nine, was:

Germany, Spain, Romania, England, SCOTLAND, Yugoslavia, Italy and Norway.

 

We might have started off in sixth spot, but when th qualifying campaign was over, we were down among the also-rans in 17th spot. OK, we finished second in our qualifying group to reach the play-offs. But, while losing out at that stage was bad enough, the fact we lost to England, after beating them at Wembley, well, that was adding insult to injury.

 

I appreciate, some might say: "Ah but, we reached the play-offs". Maybe so, but, we still did not qualify, we did not perform as we should have.

 

That's the history. How can we turn things around for the upcoming campaigns, for World Cup 2018, then Euro 2020?

 

I worry about these campaigns, because, there does not appear to be a plan of campaign inside Hampden.

 

We do not have a meaningful fixture between now and the start of the 2018 campaign, 11-months away. OK, it may well be that we end up with a clutch of friendlies, as warm-up opposition for some of the 24 nations who will be playing in France next summer. And, as long experience has taught us, Scotland does not do meaningless games too well.

 

One of Berti Vogts's ideas when he was hired was to play a lot more development internationals, as a bridge between the Under-21 and A squads. Sadly, the Hampden blazers and the msm never bought-into this idea.

 

This is a notion which I feel we should re-assess. Also, may I bring-up one of my pet notions - bring back the Home Internationals. I do not, in this instance, mean full-blooded, A squad games, as were for so-long the mainstay of international football on these islands.

 

Why not make these Under-23, or Under-25, "B internationals", "Development Internationals". Call them what you will, but, make them low-key games, as a means of bringing through fresh talent.

 

I reckon the other countries in the British Isles would buy into such a tournament, which would surely attract both television coverage and sponsorship.

 

With such a tournament, WGS might find team-building easier and we would have a lot fewer examples of previously unknown players from the English Championship being capped.

 

It is, I feel, worth considering. 

 

      

We Are Just An Average Mid-Range European Nation

ANOTHER European Championship qualifying campaign is consigned to the dusty shelves of history, and, once again, all we can look forward to is wall-to-wall "Engerlund, Engerlund, Engerlund", as the London-based broadcasters beam the pictures into our living rooms from France, next summer.

Aye, situation normal, Scotland is on the outside looking-in, a position which has grown familiar since our last excursion to a tournament finals, in that same France, in 1998.

Deja vu all over again - but, what's new? the Euros have been a disaster zone for Scotland, ever since we got involved.

Qualifying for the 1968 finals - the first time there actually was a final tournament, was via the 1966-67 and 1967-68 Home Internationals.

Now, 1966-67 was the high-water mark for Scottish football post-World War II.

Celtic - European Champions
Rangers - European Cup-Winners Cup finalists
Kilmarnock - Inter-Cities Fairs Cup semi-finalists
Scotland - Home International Champions, plus, beating England, the reigning World Champions 3-2 at Wembley.

We know all these facts and victories, the trouble is, we didn't follow through in 1967-68, George Best virtually beat us on his own, when we faced Northern Ireland, at Windsor Park, we could only draw with England at Hampden, and England, rather than us, reached the finals.

This set a pattern as far as the European Championships were concerned. We didn't qualify in 1972, or 1976, or 1980. In each case, the draw was an all-in affair, but, regardless of opposition, we were as much use in Europe as a three-pin square plug.

In 1984, the qualifying criteria changed. For the first time, the qualifying draw was seeded. The 32 competing nations were placed in five seeding "pots", with one from each pot going into the qualifying groups.

Scotland was in pot three, seeded 15th - the top team in that pot. Little good it did us as we finished fourth in our group and failed to qualify for the finals in France. In fact, we finished 25th overall, ten places below our seeding. Of the 32 nations, only Poland, who slipped 19-places, from their second-place seeding, and Italy, who slipped from 4th seeds to 24th, had worse campaigns.

And this with Jock Stein managing an a squad which included the likes of Alex McLeish, Willie Miller an Alan Hansen, Graeme Souness, Kenny Dalglish and Gordon Strachan.

This disaster, plus a 1986 World Cup campaign which failed to lift the spirits, saw Scotland drop into pot four, 24th seeds. in the 1988 qualifying campaign.

We certainly did better than we had four years previously, finishing 22nd overall, two places above where we started. But, we were still outside looking in as Holland became European Champions.

We managed, however, to reach the 1990 World Cup Finals, which helped us to be placed in pot 2, 13th seeds, in the qualifying round for the 1992 Championships.

And, for once, we got our act together, winning our qualifying group, to reach the finals in Sweden. We qualified seventh, a rise of six places.
  
Being in the Championships proper should have been a jumping-off point for greater things, but, being Scotland, the three steps forward of 1992 were followed by two steps back in the qualifying phase for the 1994 World Cup. We failed to reach those finals and this helped dump us back in pot 3, 19th seeds, when qualifying for the Euro '96 in England kicked-off.

But, manager Craig Brown and the squad rose to the challenge, we finished second in our qualifying group, 12th overall, and this rise of seven places above our seeding got us through to the big show in England.

Back-to-back qualifiers in Europe, gave us the confidence to reach the 1998 World Cup Finals in France, and, when the qualifying draw for the 2000 Euros, in Belgium and Holland was made, we were in pot one - judged to be the sixth-best footballing nation in Europe.

Could we justify this lofty ranking? Come-on, this is Scotland we are speaking about. We failed to win our group, but, second-place got us into the play-off round, where we lost by a single goal, over two legs, to England.

That hurt, even more than our final placing of 17th, a drop of 11 places.

For the qualifying draw for the 2004 Euros, we were back in pot 3, seeded 20th. We didn't qualify for those finals, but, finishing 20th, we appeared to have halted our slide down the rankings.

That halt was temporary. Scottish football was now on the skids an when the draw for Euro 2008 was made, we were in pot 4, seeded 27th.

Again we failed to qualify, finishing third in our group, but we did improve to finish 15th overall.

With our World Cup woes continuing via another failure to qualify for the 2010 tournament, we were in pot three, seeded 24th, when the raw for Euro 2012 was made.

This campaign was another disaster, we finished third in a five-nation group, 27th overall.

But, as we now assume, things have looked-up since Gordon Strachan took over. We went into Euro 2016 as the 30th seeds - we finished 28th. Aye, we rose two places, but, since only 23 nations can qualify, a fat lot of good it did us.

So, nine tournaments since pots and seedings started. In five of these nine - 1988, 1992, 1996, 2008 and 2016 we have surpassed our starting seeding; in 2004 we started as 20th seeds, and finished in that position, while in 1984, 2000 and 2012 we finished in a lower placing than we started.

That sounds like Scotland, no consistency. Overall, our average starting position has been 20th seed; our average finishing position is 19th.

Only once, in these nine campaigns, in 2000, have we reached the lofty heights of being in pool one - one of the top nations in Europe; twice we have been in pool two; we have had three appearances in pool three and three in pool four.

From this we can deduce - we are simply a mid-range European nation. We really should forget all these notions we have of being a power on the continent. Or, we should do something to make this happen, and get up among the leading lights.

We could start by having an in-depth examination of Scottish football, deciding what, if anything, works, then sorting out what doesn't. We will have to make some hard choices, but, it is clear, we cannot do nothing, or we will simply bumble along in mid-table going nowhere fast.

But, I am not holding my breath for Hampden to sort things out. 

   

Shit Happens, But, That Was Ridiculous

I ONCE worked under a very unflappable Glasgow-Italian Deputy Editor, who had swapped the frenetic days of the Evening Citizen v Evening Times circulation battles of the 1960s, for the calmer waters of North American journalism.

I met him when he briefly came home,before he became one of the first experienced Herald hands to take a deal and decamp to Dubai to top-up his retirement pot.

When, as frequently happens on a Daily newspaper title, the smelly stuff hit the fan big style, he would smile and say: "Hey guys - shit happens".

I commend his stance to those members of the Tartan Army, who are still moaning, wailing and gnashing their teeth in the wake of Thursday night's events at Hampden.

The way the game against Poland surprised me. I knew we would blow participation in Euro 2016 in France next summer. I rather fancied we would scrape into the Play-Offs, there we would be drawn against a "big" nation that had misfired and under-performed in their pool. Suddenly, faced with the might of Scotland, this other nation would rediscover its mojo and skelp oor earses good style.

Going out to a 95th minute toe-poke from less than a yard; nope, never saw that one coming.

But, it's not as if we are not used to non-qualification. Mind you, no matter how we contrive non-qualification in the future, we will surely never reach the heights of absurdity reached by Sir George Graham and the SFA in 1950, when they knocked-back what was in effect a free ticket to the World Cup Finals, in Brazil - because it wasn't what they had signed-up for.

When we entered for that World Cup, we knew the Home International Championships of season 1949-50 was doubling-up as a qualifying group. The Winners were going to Brazil, the other three nations were staying at home.

However, with the finals just weeks away, FIFA were suddenly faced with a whole raft of European nations, which had qualified, suddenly discovering they couldn't afford to travel to South America. So, they offered the nation which finished second in the Home Internationals, a wild card entry to the event in Brazil. This was Scotland.

But, in a decision which still defies logic, the SFA said: "No". They justified this by saying they had signed-up to a system whereby only the competition winners would go, and they were not prepared to alter their stance.

A triumph, perhaps, for Victorian values of fair-play and sportsmanship, but, common-sense, nope!

Anyway, compared to that decision of 65-years ago, this latest method of non-qualification is fairly average.

I was asked this week if the 1970s was the "Golden Age" of Scottish Football. I said no. I have long held the 1870s was indeed the "Golden Age". But, given those warm memories we have of West Germany 1974, and the fact, forgetting the fact it all went tits-up in the end, the 1978 World Cup campaign was great fun, I can see why we like to remember the 1970s.

We should remember, we had one or two more disasters than just Peru and Iran back then, you don't believe me:

This was the decade in which manager Bobby Brown was forced to plead with players to turn-up for an end-of-season trip to Denmark and USSR which included a European Championship qualifier in Copenhagen; the one during which England thrashed us 5-0 at Hampden, then 5-1 at Wembley; in which then unrated Belgium gave us three beatings in European qualifiers - and that's leaving aside Peru and Iran.

Right now, we are evaluating a European Championships campaign, so, I will leave our World Cup campaigns aside and focus on our Euros record.

If we assume we will beat Gibraltar in our final 2016 qualifier, and, let's be honest - if we cannot beat them, we should immediately withdraw from international football - we will finish the 2016 campaign with a record which reads:

played 10 - won 4 - drawn 3 - lost 3 - 15 points from a possible 30 - 50%

our 1970s European Championships record reads:

played 12 - won 5 - drawn 3 - lost 4 - 18 points from a possible 36 - 50%.

We first entered the Euros in the 1968 qualifying campaign. This was run over two seasons' Home Internationals, during which we became the first team to beat reigning World Champions England, at Wembley in 1968. This put us in the box seat for qualification, but, next time out, we lost to a virtuoso one-man show of genius from George Best, who just about beat us on his own at Windsor Park.

England then came to Hampden in the final game, and got the draw which took them through at our expense.

That was the start of a difficult relationship with the Euros. Mind you, we took 61% of the available points back then, the fourth-best result we have had in 13 campaigns - during which we have qualified a mere twice, in 1992 and 1996..

We have to stop kidding ourselves. Scotland is now one of the weaker European nations. We are better than the real minnows - Gibraltar, Andorra, San Marino, Liechtenstein and Malta - but, we are a lot closer to these small nations than we are to the nations we aspire to compete with - Belgium, Holland and Sweden for example. And we are nowhere near where some of think we should be - competing head-to-head with England, Germany, Spain and Italy.

Scottish football is going backwards, it isn't working and needs fixing. But, do we really believe the SFA is capable of fixing things?

I know I am not a believer. 

The Shankly Approach Will Do Tonight

THE late Emlyn Hughes, before he was taken, far too soon, was one of the top draws on the lucrative after-dinner speaking circuit. He was quoted as saying this was an easy life - all he had to do was stand there and tell Bill Shankly stories for half an hour or so.

 

One of my favourite Shankly stories concerns his response to a suggestion from Bob Paisley and the other coaches in the legendary Anfield boot room, that he get up-to-date and use a tactics board, with magnetic "players" to illustrate the points he was trying to make in pre-match planning.

 

So, Wullie Shankly - he was never "Bill" to those in East Ayrshire who knew him best, duly obliged and, on the Friday before a game against Manchester United, the players found themselves gazing at a board, with 11 magnetic figures on it, laid-out in 4-3-3 formation.

 

Shankly pointed to the figure representing the goalkeeper, and began: "In goal, we have Alex Stepney; Tommy Docherty paid a lot of money for him, England goalkeeper, but only one cap, which says it all - rubbish". Whereupon the figure was flung in a waste bin.

 

He proceeded to pick up, run-down and throw away each of the other figures, until, he was left with just the front three. Turning to his players Shankly said: "And, here we have United's front three - George Best, Bobby Charlton and Denis Law. He smacked the board with a pointer and repeated: Best, Charlton and Law; well, if you cannot beat three men, you should not be playing for Liverpool".

 

I am reminded of that story, when I look at the media build-up to tonight's crucial Scotland v Poland European Championship qualifier, at Hampden.

 

Much of the pre-match talk has been about Robert Lewandowski, and how we handle the superstar Polish striker. I commend the Shankly approach to Wee Gordon Strachan.

 

Indeed, if our boys canny beat one man - they shouldn't be playing for Scotland.

LONG experience of disappointing Scotland qualifying campaigns has taught me not to have great expectations. But, we have already had our normal Disaster for Scotland qualifying match - away in Georgia. Given the way we have tended to do things in the past, we will rise to the occasion tonight, pole-axe our opponents, then, in Faro next week, we will struggle to beat Gibraltar, and find ourselves in the play-offs.

 

Here, we will be drawn against a good team which has struggled through their qualifying group and under-performed badly. I don't know which nation this will be, but, old foes Holland have been mis-firing badly.

 

These opponents, whichever country they may be, will then, faced with Scotland, suddenly re-discover their true form and blow us away.

 

We are Scotland remember, the wind is always in our face. Mind you at least, we haven't gone our of our own home-staged finals at the group stages - let's be thankful for small mercies.

 

 

 

LAST Saturday, Scotland's Rugby XV were comprehensively worked over by a rampant South Africa XV, at Newcastle United's St James Park.

 

In the course of the game, Scotland's Stuart Hogg perormed a quite outrageous "dive" after he was hit, perhaps fractionally late, by one of the South Africans.

 

It was a nothing incident, except, the way it was handled by referee Nigel Owens. The wee Welshman, for me the best referee in the world, is known for two things - being openly gay and for his quips to the players.

 

He wasn't joking, however, when he told Hogg: "Get up, if you want to do that, come back here in two weeks (when Newcastle United play their next home game), and do it then - we don't want that sort of stuff in rugby".

 

What a fantastic response, I wish more football referees were as quick to sort-out the divers and play-actors who besmirch the Beautiful Game..

 

I also wish footballers would give the referees the same degree of respect, which the whistlers in that game get from Rugby players. The hooligans, even after 150-years, are still a long way behind the gentlemen when it comes to on-field discipline.

 

    

Poland - They've Been Here Before

I MUST admit, as time goes by, I find it more and more difficult to be an almost lone voice, crying in the wilderness, about the ills befalling Scottish Football.

 

Basically, because, I do not see the concerns of myself, and those others who know all is not well in the game we love here in North Britain, but - NO MATTER WHAT WE SAY OR SUGGEST, NOTHING WILL CHANGE ANYTIME SOON.

 

We will continue to stumble from non-qualification for the European Championships to not qualifying for the 2018 World Cup and so-on, ad finitum. Our media will continue to over-hype kids who haven't got it, our clubs will more and more rely on loan deals with lesser English clubs, or cheap foreign imports. I do not see the necessary and long-overdue changes being implemented any time soon.

 

Still, for as long as they can be spoon-fed tittle-tattle from the Big Brothers, for as long as they rely on quotes from Rent-a-quote Has Beens, change will never happen.

 

In the corridors of power on Hampden's sixth floor, the stumblebums will stumble along, keeping their fellow members of the wee insiders clubs sweet, and to Hell with the Public - they will continue to come along.

 

Only, the numbers have been falling consistently for years and years now; and I cannot see the pattern changing any time soon. I despair.

 

 

 

OF COURSE, should we beat Poland, at Hampden, on Thursday night - it will be all-change. Aye right.

 

I honestly don't see us beating the Poles. In fact, with my interest in Scottish football history, I can see and fear a repeat of the Poles's visit to Hampden almost exactly 50-years ago.

 

This visit, on 13 October, 1965, was for a qualifying game for the 1966 World Cup. Scotland went into the game in what was, on-paper, a strong position. We had beaten Finland home and away - 3-1 at Hampden, 2-1 in Helsinki. We had gone to Poland less than five months previously, gone 0-1 down but escaped with a draw and a crucial away point after Denis Law's 76th minute equaliser. Then were denied an absolute stone-wall penalty when Willie Henderson was upended in the Polish box.

 

A win would leave us in a very good place, with just the two games against Italy to come. We had Jock Stein as (part-time) manager and he picked a strong team for the game: Bill Brown of Spurs was in goal, winning the 27th of his then record 28 caps; Alex Hamilton of Dundee  was winning his 24th and last cap; paired at full-back with new boy Eddie McCreadie, winning his sixth cap.

 

Our half-back line oozed strength and class - Paddy Crerand of Manchester United, winning his 16th cap, skipper Billy McNeill, winning cap number 19 and John Greig of Rangers, winning his 11th cap.

 

Up front Rangers's wingers Willie Henderson (18th cap) and debutant Willie Johnston offered a threat out wide, while inside them we had wee Billy Bremner, winning his second cap, Alan Gilzean of Tottenham, winning his eighth cap and the Lawman, winning his 34th cap.

 

With a 107,580 Tartan Army behind them, surely the Scots would win? And that win seemed closer, when McNeill shot home in 14 minutes. Law and Henerson then missed sitters while, twice, after Henderson, then Gilzean were sent crashing inside the Polish penalty area, the Swedish referee copped-out by awarding indirect free-kicks to Scotland!!!

 

Debutant Johnston tore the Polish right flank to shreds and a net-bound Gilzean back-heeler was cleared off the line. So, at the break, there was clear frustration inside the home dressing room.

 

The momentum wasn't maintained after the change-round, Poland came more into the game, the Scottish defence fell apart and two goals in the 84th and 86th minute sent Scotland tumbling to defeat.

 

Had we won that game, we would have gone onto seven points, and, in the final analysis, that home defeat rather did for us when it came to qualifying for 1966 and all that.

 

Assuming we had won against the Poles, after our win over Italy at Hampden on 9 November, 1965 - when big Greig scored that last-minute goal, we would have been on nine points to Italy's seven.

 

Even if we had then lost to Naples, as we actually did, we would still have had a play-off on neutral territory to get through, and who is to say we could not have beaten the Italians then.

 

Mind you, this being Scotland, even if we had beaten the Poles and got past the Italians, you have to ask, what kind of fuck-up would we have come up with against the North Koreans, who did for the Italians in the finals?

 

So, if a Polish team, without a striker of the quality of Robert Levandowski could beat that star-studded 1965 Scotland team; what chance have today's Caledonian journeymen got?

 

For'ard tho' ah canna see, ah guess and fear.