Put Up The Marquee

THE most thought-provoking statement I saw last week, a period dominated again by off-field issues, was Walter Smith's confession that he had opted to sign Nikica Jelavic - a single big-money buy, rather than augment an already shallow squad by signing three or four cheaper, and therefore by implication, inferior quality players.

This just might be the way ahead for the cash-strapped Scottish game. Not that I believe Rangers to be as skint as they're making themselves out to be. Compared to all but one other Scottish side - they are still, in spite of the years of mis-management, comfortably-off. Rangers are also, a richer club than many of the so-called millionaires in the English Premiership.

Jelavic is what is termed in North America a "marquee" signing. A better player than his team mates and someone around whom ticket-selling and marketing campaigns can be built. For instance, under the equality rules which exist in professional sport in North America, with moves such as salary caps, "marquee" signings are common-place.

David Beckham, for instance, gets paid a great deal more than any of his LA Galaxy team mates, while in the NBA, an outstanding college basketball player, who is already seen as a future superstar, will often end up at a struggling franchise as the marquee signing who will hopefully inspire a revival.

Lets extrapolate this system into Scottish football. You sign a really good, big-name player, to build your side around, and you complete your pool with good, young locally-sourced players who will do the spade work, while the big name gets the glory.

This sort of squad profile might grate over here, but, wasn't it always thus? This scenario in a club was perhaps best summed-up by Tommy Docherty in his Preston North End days. He had no quibble with Tom Finney being better-paid during the season, since he was clearly the better player, but the Doc argued that to continue to pay Finney more during the close season was a nonsense, since he couldn't be a better player when he wasn't playing.

So, instead of buying third-rate foreign players, why don't the Scottish clubs each buy a solitary second-rater and otherwise fill their squads with young Scots. It would be cheaper, it would bring through fresh new talent and, who knows, one or two of these young Scots might become in time a super star.

Unintentionally, perhaps, Rangers have maybe found the way forward and set a trend.

PAUL McBride QC has made a few waves of late, but, the back-lash might be under way. I hear whispers of one or two newspapers digging for dirt on the bold Paul from his refereeing days.

In particular I hear one case is being pursued which, if what I've been told is, in hack-speak: "stood up", Master McBride will be shown to be, at best a hypocrite and at worst a bare-faced liar.

MOST of the attention at the weekend was on the Scottish and English Cup semi-finals; in fact there was scandalously little mention made of the Scottish Junior Cup semi-finals. You know the Juniors, real fitba, or as those of us who know and love the genre prefer - a uniquely Scottish form of unarmed combat.

Auchinleck Talbot, or Auchinleck Taliban as we prefer to call them, will take a two-goal lead to Bo'ness for Saturday's second leg, while Musselburgh will take a narrow one-goal lead to Dalry for their second leg.

Given their unmatched cup pedigree, I don't see the 'Bot surrendering their advantage, even at Bo'ness, while Musselburgh are in for a 90 minute hammering, because Dalry don't lose too often at home.

I hope these games attract a bit more attention than the first legs did.

WAS anyone else not suprised at Paul Scholes picking up a red card at Wembley on Saturday? Scholes used to be a class act, but over the past two years, he has increasingly been side-lined at Old Trafford and, when he has got onto the park, he has usually attracted more attention with wild "tackles" than from the great individual touches he formerly produced.

Fergie's loyalty to his Golden Generation has been terrific, but he really ought to tell Scholes: "Your tea's oot son". Time to retire. He was once arguably the best midfielder in Europe, now he's "tackling" like Gregor "Sid Vicious" Stevens or Tam "Jaws" Forsyth - time to go.

ALL this Rangers v UEFA v FARE stuff is gripping, but, thankfully, there are still flashes of humour in the on-going saga. How rich, for instance, to find that the UEFA observer at Ibrox for the game v PSV was William Campbell of the (Northern) Irish Football Association.

I don't see Bro. Campbell thinking there was anything wrong with the Broomloan Road Stand Singers' repetoire of "music" on the night - do you?