RATHER THAN joining-in
the general wailing and gnashing of teeth in the aftermath of another
“Disaster for Scotland,” in Nursultan last night, I thought I'd
have a look at our playing record since the end of World War II.
I
split the record up, looking at it in terms of, initially a four-year
World Cup span, then, from 1967 on, into two-year spans, to cover
European Championships and World Cups qualifying campaign. I did this
on the basis - the idea is to at least qualify for the finals.
Since
the end of WWII and the four Home Nations rejoining FIFA, Scotland
has participated in 31 qualifying campaigns for either the World Cup
or European Championship finals. We have only, however, qualified for
11 – a 35.5% success rate. This, if you look at the two major
competitions in isolation comes down to qualifying for 9 of the 18
World Cups we have entered (although we decided not to go to Brazil
in 1950) – a 50% success rate there. The picture is not as-rosy
when we look at the European Championships, where we have qualified
just twice in 13 attempts – a 15.4% success rate.
Overall,
we have won a mere 43.4% of the full internationals we have played in
the past 73 years. When it comes to actually qualifying for the
finals, our record is slightly better, we have won 47.6% of our
qualifiers, and amassed 55.4% of the available points in qualifying
groups.
But,
it is still nowhere near as good as we would want it to be, and we
are, it has to be admitted, not nearly as-good as we think we are.
Of
course, losing to Kazakhstan, the team ranked 117th
in the world was a very-poor result. But, look at it this way. We are
ranked 24th in Europe – that makes us the Forfar Athletic of
European international football. We lost to Kazakhstan, the 46th
ranked team in Europe – the international equivalent of either
Brora Rangers or BSC Glasgow, either of which could presumably be
ranked the 46th
best team in Scotland.
Now,
if Forfar had to travel to either side – minus their captain and
two or three other probable starters – would you be all that
confident of their chances. Add a wee bit of in-built Scottish
football gallusness: “Ach, it's only the Kazakhs, whit dae they ken
aboot fitba,” and last night was an accident waiting to happen.
If
it hadn't been them, it would be some other minnows. We have been
fading for years and we simply refuse to admit it.
Our
two worst qualifying campaigns were the European Championship
campaigns for the 1980 and 1984 finals. In both of these campaign, we
won just one of six qualifying matches, a 16.6% winning percentage.
The
eclectic (most-selected) team from these six games reads: Alan Rough;
Sandy Jardine and Danny McGrain; Graeme Souness, Gordon McQueen and
Kenny Burns; Kenny Dalglish, John Wark, Joe Jordan, Asa Hartford and
John Robertson.
It
was nearly as-bad four years later, where again, we only won one game
of six, another 16.6% winning percentage. However, in 1984, we
collected 27.7% of he available points, as against 22.2% four years
before.
The
eclectic team from the 1984 campaign reads: Jim Leighton; Dave Narey,
Frankie Gray; Graeme Souness, Alex McLeish, Willie Miller; Gordon
Strachan, John Wark, Steve Archibald, Kenny Dalglish and John
Robertson. In both campaigns, the Scotland manager was Jock Stein.
OK,
no Stein-managed team ever lost to a nation as lowly-ranked as
Kazakhstan, but, when that manager and those players could only win
one game out of six in each campaign, why should McLeish, operating
with a far-lower quality of player, be so criticised?
Fifteen
of the 18 players used across these two disastrous campaigns – plus
Manager Stein - have now been inducted into the Scottish Football
Hall of Fame, while nine of them are also on the SFA's Roll of Honour
for having won more than 50 caps.
So,
I would suggest, we keep the heid about last night. Scottish fitba
has been in a mess for years. I often feel, it would not make a blind
bit of difference who was managing Scotland, we would still come up
with embarrassing setbacks like last night's.
It
isn't the manager's fault that Scottish football has been for a long
time, and still is, in a mess. It's the whole bloody system, and the
fact, there does not seem to be an appetite within the game, and in
particular on the sixth floor at Hampden, to do something about our
continued ability to trip-up against minnows and embarrass ourselves.
Table
One – all Scotland games from 1946
|
Period
|
Event
|
Played
|
Won
|
Drew
|
Lost
|
Wins
%
|
Q/DNQ
|
|
1946-50
|
WC
|
21
|
10
|
3
|
8
|
47.6
|
Q*
|
|
1950-54
|
WC
|
26
|
13
|
4
|
9
|
50
|
Q
|
|
1954-58
|
WC
|
29
|
12
|
9
|
8
|
41.4
|
Q
|
|
1958-62
|
WC
|
25
|
11
|
4
|
10
|
44
|
DNQ
|
|
1962-66
|
WC
|
28
|
13
|
5
|
10
|
46.4
|
DNQ
|
|
1966-68
|
EC
|
8
|
3
|
3
|
2
|
37.5
|
DNQ
|
|
1968-70
|
WC
|
14
|
6
|
5
|
3
|
42.9
|
DNQ
|
|
1970-72
|
EC
|
18
|
6
|
3
|
9
|
33.3
|
DNQ
|
|
1972-74
|
WC
|
20
|
8
|
3
|
9
|
40
|
Q
|
|
1974-76
|
EC
|
16
|
10
|
4
|
2
|
62.5
|
DNQ
|
|
1976-78
|
WC
|
20
|
10
|
5
|
5
|
50
|
Q
|
|
1978-80
|
EC
|
18
|
5
|
2
|
11
|
27.8
|
DNQ
|
|
1980-82
|
WC
|
19
|
9
|
5
|
5
|
47.4
|
Q
|
|
1982-84
|
EC
|
16
|
7
|
4
|
5
|
43.75
|
DNQ
|
|
1984-86
|
WC
|
18
|
8
|
5
|
5
|
44.4
|
Q
|
|
1986-88
|
EC
|
16
|
4
|
8
|
4
|
25
|
DNQ
|
|
1988-90
|
WC
|
18
|
8
|
3
|
7
|
44.4
|
Q
|
|
1990-92
|
EC
|
17
|
8
|
4
|
5
|
47.1
|
Q
|
|
1992-94
|
WC
|
14
|
5
|
3
|
6
|
35.7
|
DNQ
|
|
1994-96
|
EC
|
20
|
10
|
4
|
6
|
50
|
Q
|
|
1996-98
|
WC
|
20
|
8
|
6
|
6
|
40
|
Q
|
|
1998-00
|
EC
|
16
|
8
|
4
|
4
|
50
|
DNQ
|
|
2000-02
|
WC
|
15
|
6
|
4
|
5
|
40
|
DNQ
|
|
2002-04
|
EC
|
22
|
8
|
4
|
10
|
36.4
|
DNQ
|
|
2004-06
|
WC
|
17
|
4
|
7
|
6
|
23.5
|
DNQ
|
|
2006-08
|
EC
|
14
|
8
|
1
|
5
|
57.1
|
DNQ
|
|
2008-10
|
WC
|
13
|
4
|
2
|
7
|
30.8
|
DNQ
|
|
2010-12
|
EC
|
18
|
8
|
4
|
6
|
44.4
|
DNQ
|
|
2012-14
|
WC
|
19
|
8
|
4
|
7
|
42.1
|
DNQ
|
|
2014-16
|
EC
|
17
|
8
|
3
|
6
|
47.1
|
DNQ
|
|
2016-18
|
WC
|
16
|
6
|
4
|
6
|
37.5
|
DNQ
|
|
Totals
|
|
558
|
242
|
130
|
196
|
43.4
|
11Q
20DNQ
|
Table
Two – World Cup and European Championship
Qualifying
Games since 1946
|
Period
|
Comp
|
Played
|
Won
|
Drawn
|
Lost
|
Wins%
|
Points
%
|
Outcome
|
|
1949-50
|
WC
|
3
|
2
|
0
|
1
|
66.6
|
66.6
|
Q
|
|
1953-54
|
WC
|
3
|
1
|
1
|
1
|
33.3
|
44.4
|
Q
|
|
1957-58
|
WC
|
4
|
3
|
0
|
1
|
75
|
75
|
Q
|
|
1961-62
|
WC
|
5
|
3
|
0
|
2
|
60
|
60
|
DNQ
|
|
1964-66
|
WC
|
6
|
3
|
1
|
2
|
50
|
55.5
|
DNQ
|
|
1966-68
|
EC
|
6
|
3
|
2
|
1
|
50
|
61.1
|
DNQ
|
|
1968-70
|
WC
|
6
|
3
|
1
|
2
|
50
|
55.5
|
DNQ
|
|
1970-72
|
EC
|
6
|
3
|
0
|
3
|
50
|
50
|
DNQ
|
|
1972-74
|
WC
|
4
|
3
|
0
|
1
|
75
|
75
|
Q
|
|
1974-76
|
EC
|
6
|
2
|
3
|
1
|
33.3
|
50
|
DNQ
|
|
1976-78
|
WC
|
4
|
3
|
0
|
1
|
75
|
75
|
Q
|
|
1978-80
|
EC
|
6
|
1
|
1
|
4
|
16.6
|
22.2
|
DNQ
|
|
1980-82
|
WC
|
8
|
4
|
3
|
1
|
50
|
62.5
|
Q
|
|
1982-84
|
EC
|
6
|
1
|
2
|
3
|
16.6
|
27.7
|
DNQ
|
|
1984-86
|
WC
|
8
|
4
|
2
|
2
|
50
|
58.3
|
Q
|
|
1986-88
|
EC
|
8
|
3
|
3
|
2
|
37.5
|
50
|
DNQ
|
|
1988-90
|
WC
|
8
|
4
|
2
|
2
|
50
|
58.3
|
Q
|
|
1990-92
|
EC
|
8
|
4
|
3
|
1
|
50
|
62.5
|
Q
|
|
1992-94
|
WC
|
10
|
4
|
3
|
3
|
40
|
50
|
DNQ
|
|
1994-96
|
EC
|
10
|
7
|
2
|
1
|
70
|
76.6
|
Q
|
|
1996-98
|
WC
|
10
|
7
|
2
|
1
|
70
|
76.6
|
Q
|
|
1998-00
|
EC
|
12
|
6
|
3
|
3
|
50
|
58.3
|
DNQ
|
|
2000-02
|
WC
|
8
|
4
|
3
|
1
|
50
|
62.5
|
DNQ
|
|
2002-04
|
EC
|
10
|
5
|
2
|
3
|
50
|
56.6
|
DNQ
|
|
2004-06
|
WC
|
10
|
3
|
4
|
3
|
30
|
43.3
|
DNQ
|
|
2006-08
|
EC
|
10
|
6
|
0
|
4
|
60
|
60
|
DNQ
|
|
2008-10
|
WC
|
8
|
3
|
1
|
4
|
37.5
|
41.6
|
DNQ
|
|
2010-12
|
EC
|
8
|
3
|
2
|
3
|
37.5
|
45.8
|
DNQ
|
|
2012-14
|
WC
|
10
|
3
|
2
|
5
|
30
|
36.6
|
DNQ
|
|
2014-16
|
EC
|
10
|
4
|
3
|
3
|
40
|
50
|
DNQ
|
|
2016-18
|
WC
|
10
|
5
|
3
|
2
|
50
|
60
|
DNQ
|
|
totals
|
|
231
|
110
|
54
|
67
|
47.6
|
55.4
|
11
Q – 20 DNQ
|
WC is World Cup; EC is European Championships, Q - Qualified; DNQ - Did Not Qualify.
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