REAL fitba first today, and last night's semi-final draw for the Scottish Junior Cup. Down here in God's Orange County, the natives are getting a wee bit restless, with, potentially an all-Ayrshire semi-final line-up - the draw being: Camelon or Whitletts Victoria v Glenafton Athletic and Hurlford United v Irvine Meadow or Bo'ness United.
Hopefully the last four will be known by tomorrow night, and while it would be a terrific boost for the blood, sweat and tears which Chairman John Dalton and his back-room team have put into in keeping Whitletts alive and getting them to this stage, reality suggests Camelon will be the end of a long and exciting road for Ayr's other fitba team.
The other quarter-final tie to be played tomorrow is potentially a cracker. Bo'ness have already done the hardest bit of winning the Junior Cup, they got rid of Auchinleck Talbot and, in this competition, when you beat the best, it would be downright careless not to go on and win the trophy.
However, the Meadow will not be easily "mown". The club has never quite got back to the level it played at during Bob Alexander's tenure as match secretary all those years ago, indeed, the consensus in Ayrshire is that the Medda's followers guid conceit o' themselves has, over the past several years, not been matched by deeds on the park.
Fifty years ago, the Meadow and Glenafton were the Kings of Ayrshire Junior Football, so, it would be good to see them contesting a Rugby Park final on 25 May.
What might not be so good, would be a Glenafton v Hurlford United show-down. Let's just say, the manner in which Darren Henderson left Loch Park to take over United at Blair Park, has not been forgotten in New Cumnock. IF it came down to a Glen v Hurlford final, 20-years after the notorious "Shame Game", when Glens and Largs staged an unarmed combat spectacular posing as a football match at Ibrox, the gloves just might be off again.
AND SO, that soap opera - 'Edmiston Drive' soldiers on. It is difficult to even comment on the hullabaloo surrounding the Rangers' tribute act any longer, other than to say: is there no way the SFA and the SPFL can knock heads together and bring some type of order to a seemingly endless situation which brings football into disrepute.
It is time the rest of Scottish football decided, once and for all - either the Rangers "brand" is too-big-to-fail, too-important to Scottish football OR they decide, this is just another club which should, if its management cannot act with propriety and run it properly, should be allowed to die - again.
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