Scotch egged
It’s incredible to think that Scotland have never made it out of the group stages at a major tournament. I mean if teams that included Souness, Hansen, McGrain, Dalglish, Archibald, Strachan, Gemmill, McCoist, Jordan, Wark and Law couldn’t do it, then what actual chance do those that include Che Adams?
It was heartbreaking for the Scots on Sunday night, and I did spare a thought for my old mate Dave Thomson, who would’ve had his head in his hands up there in heaven’s top tier.
I am not one those Englishmen that wishes only ill on our neighbours in the Kingdom. I have always cheered on the Scots, Welsh and Irish at tournaments unless they are playing us of course.
Yet, the Scots weren’t good enough to make it through this time, and I can’t see a bulging conveyor belt of talent either. You can’t replace an absence of any real quality with heart or Lawrence Shankland.
I really don’t know enough about Scottish league football but the two Glasgow giants should do more to promote young talent from the country in which they take the majority of the cash.
Mind you, Hungary to make it through after losing two games also doesn’t seem right, but at least this format of group qualification means that the last games have a lot more jeopardy to them.
Two points might still be enough to qualify if results go the right way. How would that make the Scots feel?
England tomorrow then, who have been pretty roughed up by the media, and not just the tabloids but a whole range of ex-pros, who might have forgotten how they pretty much let us down over and over in their time.
It could all change tomorrow, and I am really hopeful that we turn it on and put the expectancy back into our short memories. We’ll see.
Wishful thinking re England, Chicago but a good point about former players turned pundits who have let us all down!
Very altruistic of you Chig, declaring your support for the
followers of Scottish football
For me, I revel in every Scottish football defeat. Their disgraceful and hateful “anyone but England’ attitude alienated me back in 1966. They’ve done nothing to remove that since.
Tonight the pubs in Scotland will be full of Scots cheering on Slovenia. It’s all they have left after their usual humiliating exit from a major competition.
I know. I am a rare breed.
Home before the postcards…again.
Small nations can and do win tournaments, Portugal and Denmark have won the Euros in recent years, Wales made the semis, Iceland had a good run and Belgium have outperformed themselves given the size of their nation etc, so it’s not the size of the leagues that determines the outcome. Scotland has a flourishing football culture to boast of – but they don’t make the best of what they have and that’s where they need to start the inquest.
In this edition of the Euros they let themselves down, they were poor against Germany, improved for the Switzerland match but without ever looking that they could win and in the match that mattered against Hungary they just didn’t show up. Ok, they should have had a penalty but that aside they didn’t have a shot on target or create anything that said “we want this”.
For a team that worked hard to make the finals and had a lot of expectation plus the support of tens of thousands of fans the only they did was to let everyone down.
And isn’t that sad Chicago. Interested that Daggs was alienated so far back – we have very good friends from all the home nations, but sadly we have felt a sea-change in relationships over the last 10+ years. We always cheered them on but it appears they have never done that for us and we have been very naive. I put it down to the rise in nationalism – never a good thing.
Anyway, Slovenia doing so well puts paid to one of the Scots excuses of being a small nation and not having much choice – only 2 point something million in Slovenia.