Socrates MacSporran

Socrates MacSporran
No I am not Chick Young, but I can remember when Scottish football was good

Saturday 25 April 2015

That's Another Good Party I Missed

I WANTED to go to last night's Kilmarnock party to celebrate the 50th anniversary of their one and only League Championship, but, I had previously been booked for a family do, which, as patriach, I could not miss.
 
Just as, back when Bobby Ferguson was making his memorable save, and the late and much-missed Bertie Black and Brian McIlroy were setting-up and scoring the title-winning goal, I was elsewhere: playing rugby.
 
Never mind, this afternoon, for the first time in too-long, I will be back at my old rugby club, looking to see them clinch promotion. See this having a split personality, it gets difficult at times.
 
Young Alan Pattullo - well, he will always be "Young Alan" to me, wrote an excellent piece in today's Scotsman about that Killie title triumph. It was illustrated by a picture of the survivors of the 1965 squad who made it to last night's party, including the same Bobby Ferguson, who came back, all the way from his Australian home.
 
The thing which struck me about the picture, was the way Tommy McLean appears to have morphed into Jim McLean - scary.
 
 
 
SO, for once, common sense prevailed and Josh Meekings WILL have his day in the Hampden sun for the Scottish Cup Final. Might I suggest to the SFA mandarins: next time you appoint a Compliance Officer, make sure he has a neutral name. Tony McGlennan does, to those of us brought up to interpret the nuances of West of Scotland sectarianism, sound "Kafflik", ie, a member of the Celtic Family, in much the same was as Vincent Lunney did.
 
Of course, Both gentlemen might not be what they appear to be to the great unwashed on the sidelines; but, in reality, that's more Scotland's problem than Scottish football's.
 
I reckon it is long past time the SFA had a competent and neutral legal eagle go through their rule book with a fine tooth comb and bring it up to date and fit for purpose - might the esteemed Cowdenbeath Chairman be that man? Or maybe not.
 
I have long argued, if football is going to go down the road of retrospective punishments, then they have to start by rewriting the Laws of the Game. When rugby brought in citings and citing officers, they also rewrote the Laws of their Game, so that, when once, as is still the case in Football: "The referee is the sole judge of fact" was gospel in both codes. In rugby this became: "The referee is the sole judge of fact for the duration of the game" (this may not be the actual wording, but it gets the gist).
 
That way, the after-match intrusions of citing officers, compliance officers and so-forth, are legitemised. AND, I would seriously consider tennis-style challenges to decisions, which can be re-evaluated by video replays. HOWEVER, I would go down the American Football route, whereby the referee gets ONE video replay look at an incident - IN REAL TIME. Slow-motion replays are a can of worms.
 
 
 
 I attended a couple of events in the magnificent Mitchell Library, during the Aye Write festival this week. The first was a discussion on the current state of Scottish Footbll, chaired by my old mate Big Shug Macdonald of the Herald, which featured "Educated and erudite Hun" Alan Bisset, "Suffering Hibbee" Aidan Smith, that "Devout Blue Brazilian" the Rev. Ron Ferguson and "Dandy Don" Stuart Donald.

Unfortunately, because another event was following it into the main hall of the Mitchell, the conversation had to be cut-off after one hour - so much for football matches lasting 90 minutes - ending just as audience and panel were getting into their stride. However, some good points were well made; it was an enjoyable night.

The second event, on Thursday night, featured BBC Scotland's in-house Aberdeen fan, Richard Gordon and English writer James Montague. This one had a World Cup theme, centred around Gordon's book on the iconic 1974 World Cup campaign in Germany and Montague's trawl round the nether regions of World Cup entrants, especially the hapless American Samoan team which crashed 0-31 to Australia.

Apparently, as Montague demonstrated, there is in American Samoa, a tradition of trans-genderism, involving people who are biologically male, but dress and act and by every other measurement are women. The American Samoa centre half is one such person.

Well, it certainly gives a whole new meaning to: "That centre half plays like a big Jessie". It is great that he/she is accepted in a mainstream sport, some day, who knows, we might be grown-up enough here to see it in the West of Scotland juniors, but, I don't think I will be around to see it.



SPEAKING of the West of Scotland juniors, the mighty Lugar Boswell Thistle has been saved. The Jaggy Bunnets were threatened with folding at the end of the season, with long-serving secretary Kenny Young being forced by illness to stand down, and the club committee lacking bodies.

Thanksfully, at a crisis meeting at Rosebank Park on Sunday, the club was saved, with Lugar Legend Lauhlan Miller stepping up to the plate as the new secretary. So, Lugar will compete next season, the 60th anniversary of their solitary appearance in the Junior Cup Final, in which they lost heavily to Petershill, and scarred this young Lugar fan for life.
 
It is great that the old club - which invented the 2-3-5 formation - will be carrying. A previous Lugar secretary, Felix Wright, confided to me, some 30-years ago, that he did not think the club could last into the 21st century. They have, and, hopefully, Lugar Boswell Thistle will be around for a few years yet.

Wednesday 22 April 2015

Facts Are Chiels That Wanna Ding - Except Where Celtic Are Concerned

LAW 5 of the Laws of the Game of Association Football is pretty clear, the referee is the sole judge of fact. Therefore, Inverness Caledonian Thistle did beat Celtic in Sunday's Scottish FA Cup semi-final.

So, in regard to Sunday's match, and in particular to THE big contentious issue of the day - the "stonewall" penalty which Celtic didn't get:

It is a FACT that referee Steven McLean, who had charge of Sunday's game, missed an incidence of handball by ICT full-back Josh Meekings.

Had Mr McLean seen it, he MIGHT have awarded a penalty to Celtic.

His OPINION  could, however, have been that the ball had struck Meekings, rather than Meekings had handled it.

Mr McLean's OPINION might have been, that while Meekings handling the ball was a foul, and therefore worthy of the punishment of a penalty kick, he MIGHT have decided to take no further action as regards the player; or, he could have decided to only yellow card the player.

Mr McLean MIGHT, however, have decided Meekings had denied Celtic a clear goal-scoring opportunity, and red-carded him. 

Celtic MIGHT have scored with the kick, to square the game and take it to a penalty shoot-out, which Celtic MIGHT have won.

Ryan Esson the ICT goalkeeper MIGHT, however, have saved the kick. Whichever Caltic player took this hypothetical penalty MIGHT have missed it.

Now, the SFA's compliance officer has decided:

The handball - the one unarguable FACT of the whole situation, should IN HIS OPINION, have resulted in, not only a penalty kick to Celtic, but also, a red card for Meekings; and that the ICT player should be banned from the final.

Thus, we have a man who is not a qualified referee, deciding, on the basis of an opinion he is not qualified to give, to deprive a player of an appearance in a national cup final. You could not make this up.

Can the Hampden blazers make themselves look any more ridiculous?

And, all because, the men in charge at Celtic continue their club's ridiculous stance: Celtic FC, since 1888 - NEVER DEFEATED, ALWAYS CHEATED.

I believe, ICT will win any legal challenge they make to this decision. For the integrity of Scottish football - they have to.

Sadly, as ever, the mainstream Scottish media, with the honourable exception of the excellent Mr Graham Spiers my old mate, have chosen to ignore this childish bit of dummy spitting by Celtic and the compliance officer's craven support for Celtic's position.



STILL on Celtic, we have the usual tsunami of dummy spitting and greeting from the self-styled "Greatest Fans In The World", because Lord Carloway, one of Scotland's most-senior judges, has decreed their song "Roll of Honour" to be in violation of the anti-sectarianism in football regulations.

Now this particular piece of legal nonsense - the anti-sectarian legislation I mean, is just about the worst-thought-out and over-hurriedly-introduced law I have come across. IT IS BAD LAW. On this, and on very little else, I am in agreement with Jim Murphy.

But, it is law and the Celtic support will simply have to suck it up.

Sectarianism in Scotland is not merely a football problem, but, neither is it a one-way street.



I HAVE been, perhaps a tad hard on the Celtic family today, but, credit where credit is due. I did like the comment which one Celtic fan posted on a national newspaper website about the penalty which never way. He suggested the problem with Scottish referees was that too-many of them had "16:90 vision".

Now that is funny.     

Sunday 19 April 2015

I Wouldn't Rush To Criticise The Officials, But, The System Needs Updating

IN  some ways, I feel sorry for Celtic, now they cannot win a domestic Treble. However, in all honesty, I do not see the current Celtic squad as being good enough to deserve that rarity a Treble.
 
Of course, how they lost to Caley Thistle this afternoon has caused the usual overkill which seems to follow one of the "diddy" team besting either half of the Old Firm. I dare say the usual suspects from the wider Celtic Family will block the interweb for the next week, with accusations of a Masonic conspiracy to defeat their favourites. In response, several tribunes of Ra Peepul will be on with their usual: Celtic FC - Never defeated, always cheated suggestions.
 
In the case of today's most-contentious incident, the penalty which Celtic didn't get. Let's get it straight, the match officials have one look, in real time - a fraction of a second, in which to make their decision. With the benefit of several looks at the TV pictures, shot from various angles, it is impossible to come to any conclusion other than - it was a clear penalty.
 
However, the refereeing team do not have the luxury of several slo-mo views of the incident. In the case of poor old Alan Muir, the additional official behind the goal, from where he was stood, he had no way of seeing the ball hitting the Falkirk player's arm; ditto the far-side linesman. But, from where he was standing, it looked as if referee Stevie McLean had a clear, uninterrupted view of the incident. However, I am not so sure.
 
I reckon, from where Mr McLan was standing, it might have looked as if the ball had hit head, then arm - in which case, it isn't a penalty.
 .
 
 
There has been a lot of talk of late about using technology for contentious incidents of late. This single incident has surely reinforced these calls. I reckon, if, and it is a huge IF, clubs were allowed  a couple of tennis or cricket-style challenges to contentious decisions, such controversies would be a thing of the past.
 
 
 
WELL, we ken noo. The Dyslexia Scotland Scottish Junior Cup final will feature Musselburgh Athletic and, yawn, not them again - Auchinleck Talbot. Once they had taken a two-goal lead from last Saturday's first leg semi-final at Blair Park, against cup-holders Hurlford, Talbot were always odds-on to reach the final. I cannot think when last visitors to Beechwood Park have gone away with the three-goal win United would have needed to rach back-to-back finals.
 
But, well done Athletic. The pressure was on them after snatching that odd-goal-in-five win at Linlithgow in the first leg, but, they survived to draw the second leg and go through. You still have to fancy Talbot for the final, however.
 
 
 
NEIL Doncaster has been getting pelters this week, after the shambles of the final Championship fixtures this season. I have never been convinced by Mr Doncaster, he strikes me as one of the many over-promoted English-trained administrators we have running so-many organisations in Scottish public life.
 
In my view, a lot of these guys have got their jobs, simply because they have English accents, and our officials have been guilty of the Scottish cringe in appointing them>
 
"They're English, they must be better than our own guys" is the wrong attitude, but, it will take a long time, I think, to rid our public life of this attitude. 

Monday 13 April 2015

Things Are Getting Exciting Doon Hame

THE way things work in journalism, freelance reporters are generally sent to the match closest to where they live. Thus, for years I spent alternate Saturdays at Rugby Park, Kilmarnock and Somerset Park, Ayr - the two closest grounds to my home.
 
Latterly during my years covering football, I would be sent, quite often, to Stair Park, to cover Stranraer, or to Palmerston, to cover Queen of the South. This has led me to having a wee soft spot for both clubs, in particular the Doonhamers, where Saturday afternoons spent in the company of Bert Houston, Jim Burgoyne and Sandra Brown in the press box were always good times.
 
I was therefore pleased to see Queens beating "Rangers", at Palmerston last week. You still have to favour either Hibs or the Rangers Tribute Act to come through to face whichever Premiership outfit has to go into the promotion/relegation play-off, but, it would be wrong to totally write-off the Doonhamers' chances of causing an upset.
 
The many good guys at the club, such as my old mate Euan Lithgow, deserve a wee season or two in the sun.
 
 
 
THE citizens of the Nation of Leith certainly trooped off to work this morning with a spring in their step. Yesterday's victory over the other Edinburgh side was a great boost for every Hibbee, one they badly needed after a couple of duff results.
 
But, I have a certain symathy for the Jam Tarts. It must be very difficult, having done the hard bit and won the league with games to spare, to keep-up the necessary intensity in what are, after all, for them meaningless matches.
 
The league is won, promotion is assured - job done. They can surely be forgiven for relaxing, even in local derbies. That's football.
 
 
 
WELL, that's Auchinleck Talbot into another Scottish Junior Cup final. I know, they still have to go through the formality of their semi-final second-leg, with holders Hurlford United.
 
But, in all honesty, there is just no way United can go to Beechwood Park and win by the three clear goals they will need to overhaul the 'Bot. That will not happen. The Affleck lieges can begin their preparations for another final. And, with "Scumnock" looking more and more like relegation fodder with each passing game, the "Talbot Bees" are buzzing.
 
The other semi-final, between Linlithgow Rose and Musselburgh Athletic is nicely poised, however. Athletic went to Linlithgow on Saturday and snatched a 3-2 win. You  cannot rule-out Rose turning things around in the second leg, which promises to be a cracker.
 
 
 
   

Monday 6 April 2015

Rangers Captain Sent Off - shockeroonie!!!

JINGS, crivvens, help ma Boab! What is happening in Scottish football, when a Rangers captain cops a red card in a vital game? Who says Scottish football will never change.
Still, fair play to the Rangers Tribute Act, they showed much of the spirit we oldies expected of real Rangers, in seeing-out that second half, short-handed, to win the game. This, of course, demonstrates the value of a real manager in charge and I now expect the RTA to be in the Premiership next season - via the play-offs of course.


I SAID in my last post, Gary Locke would need good luck as Killie boss. Sure enough, no sooner is he appointed, that Gary sees his side lose to struggling Motherwell.
I knew this would happen, in 50-years of being a Killie fan, I have seen this movie before - frequently.
MUCH talk at the moment about moving the Scottish season. Count me in. Of course, this monumental change has to be very carefully thought through before it is implemented, and that's where I start to worry.
Scottish football has a long and not very distinguished history of rushing into change, not thinking things through and making a bad situation worse. We cannot afford to let this be another example of this frequent failing.
MUCH talk too about Charlie Adam's brilliant goal on Saturday. I must admit, I enjoyed my old mate Ken Smith's take on it in this morning's Herald Diary: suggesting, since it came to a choice of running with the ball, or simply hoofing it up the park, what was Charlie more-likely to do: yup - belt it up the park he did, to great effect.
I have seen that sort of goal before, most-memorably when big Jackie McInally (Rambo's more-talented Dad) scored from his own half, for Killie against Motherwell at Rugby Park back in 1960.
Mind you, big Jackie scored his goal, with a soaking-wet Thomson T-ball, on a dark December afternoon, into the teeth of a hurricane-driven rain storm.



AS someone who spent the best part of a decade following St Mirren for the Paisley paper, I have a soft spot for the Buddies. I fear, however, they may not be able to avoid the drop this season. An ominous gap has opened up, and, the Buddies are rapidly running out of games in which to bridge it.

Still, Saints have been relegated before and bounced back. I am sure they will be able to do so again, although, the Championship next season will perhaps be a more-competitive league than it has been this term.

Morton might be back in the Championship next season too, which will be another complication for the Buddies - should they be relegated.

Any points lost over four Renfrewshire Derbies could be costly.






Friday 3 April 2015

Good Luck Gary - You're Gonna Need it

HOPEFULLY, today's announcement of Gary Locke's "permanent" appointment as Kilmarnock manager will be the start of better times for him. After all, Gary has had more than his fair share of adversity in recent years.
Injury blighted the final years of his playing career; in his early time as a player-coach at Kilmarnock, a promising start foundered when Jim Jefferies and Billy Brown, his mentors, left the club.
He inherited the Hearts management at a bad time; survived a torrid start, but, finished his second spell at Tynecastle on a high, as he got his doomed team playing some very good football.
Gary's reward was the boot. Yes, he was unlucky at Hearts, but, plucked from the dole queue by former team mate Allan Johnson, he succeeded "Magic" as Killie manager, and now, after a good start, he has had his appointment as Killie boss confirmed.
I wish him well. The timing is good; 50-years on from that legendary day when Killie beat Hearts 2-0, the only result which mattered, at Tynecastle, to lift the Scottish League Championship for the only time - might another Killie boss, albeit with a distinct Hearts' pedigree, go on to become as successful for the club, as Willie Waddell was half a century ago.
I have, most-certainly, a vested interest in seeing a successful Kilmarnock team competing at the very top in Scotland and doing well in Europe, just as the club did in the Waddell days.
The club, perhaps more than most of the second level clubs in Scotland, has suffered over the years from low-grade management, in the board room and, sadly, also in the technical area.
A period of consolidation would be no bad thing.
I would also hope Locke could find a way of tapping-into the local talent pool.
I SEE there is some paper talk about the Scottish football season moving. Count me in. Unfortunately, such are the vagaries of the Scottish climate, we cannot, in all honesty, go for a winter shut-down.
I can just see it, Scottish football closes down for the winter, and during the shut-down we have half-decent winter weather. We resume playing and get snowed under for weeks, or half the pitches are washed away.
This might, of course, also happen during the summer. After all, where else in the world can you get all four seasons in an afternoon, but, in better weather, on better pitches, we might re-discover the traditional Scottish football skills.
Also, if we were playing at a different time from the all-pervading English game, we just might be able to negotiate a better TV deal. Mind you, for that to happen, we would need to appoint better administrators and negotiators than we currently have.
SO, the Rangers Tribute Act has been de-listed from the AIM stock exchange. I can only repeat what I have been writing for months - the travails around Ibrox will ensure a few lawyers, from Glasgow and beyond, will not have to worry about their offsprings' school fees for a good few years.