Typical Scotland - We're Great At Winning Meaningless Games

VICTORY in Prague, in a meaningless match, and, once again Scotland can walk a little bit taller across the surface of World Football. But, pardon me if I don't join in the celebrations; how typically Scottish, to win a friendly, to brighten-up the end of a disappointing season. This is something we are rather good at.

Let's look at some of the iconic Scottish victories:

1928 - The Wembley Wizards beat England 5-1 : this was a wooden spoon match in the Home Internationals.

The Wembley Wizards

1963 - We beat Spain 6-2 in the Bernabeu : a consolation prize, after losing to the amateurs of Norway and the Republic of Ireland.

1967 - We beat World Champions England at Wembley : only nine months too late, it didn't matter.

Jim Baxter plays keepie-uppie at Wembley in 1967

1978 - We beat Netherlands in Mendoza, Archie Gemmill scores that goal : it didn't matter, we were still going out of the World Cup and on our way home.

Archie Gemmill wheels away aftr scoring that goal in Mendoza

These are just four victories, plucked off the top of my head. It's a Scotland thing - we can be very good when it doesn't matter; too often we crap ourselves when the chips are down.

By all means, celebrate a win over a country which managed to do what we couldn't - qualify for this summer's European Championships. But, pardon me if, old fart that I am, I suggest this win only papers over the cracks. Sure, we beat the Czechs, but, our league is still third-rate, our players lack technical skills, we do not have a workable system in place to bring promising kids through from the age group national sides to the full team.

But, this is the Scottish way, it has aye been done this way. We have not qualified for a major finals for 18-years, and, as far as the 2018 World Cup qualifiers go, we are already, before a ball has been kicked, playing for second place and possible qualifying through the play-offs - much as I want to see us beating England, it isn't going to happen.

However, the Hampden blazers still got their wee jaunt to Prague, we still have our place on IFAB, "Rangers" will be back in the Premiership next season and all is well with the world of Scottish Fitba - Aye Right.

Berti Vogts is left flat-footed as Johan Cruyff does his Turn

FOOTBALL lost one of its greatest talents this week, when Johan Cruyff lost his long and courageous battle against Lung Cancer.

In the pantheon of football heroes - four men stand unchallenged on the topmost step - Alfredo di Stefano, Pele, Cruyff and Maradona. Sure, there are other greats one step down - John Charles, Bobby Moore, Kenny Dalglish, Zinadene Zidane, Franz Beckenbauer, Michel Platini, George Best for instance. But, when it comes to a lasting influence on the global game, perhaps only Beckenbauer, "Der Kaiser", comes close to matching Cruyff.

However, as with Ali against every other boxer who stepped into the ring, Cruyff in football gets top billing, because he entertained, he did things his way, and, of those greats named, only Beckenbauer had influence as a coach (and in his case an administrator) as well as as a player.

Rinus Michaels may have come up with the concept of "Total Football", but, as his on-field lieutenant, Cruyff made it work. Not only that, once he got into management, Cruyff persuaded other players, Pep Guardiola for one, to buy into the concept of Total Football and refine it.

You look at the other names on that list I gave: in order, an Argentinian, a Brazilian, a Dutchman, another Argentinian, a Welshman, an Englishman, a Scot, a Frenchman, a German, another Frenchman and an Irishman. Argentine, Brazil, Wales, England, Scotland, France, Germany and Northern Ireland all have long and distinguished football histories. Yes, they had been playing football there for almost a century, but, until Cruyff came along, nobody rated Dutch football - he changed attitudes.

Cruyff did things his way. The Netherlands had a strip contract with Adidas, but, Cruyff's number 14 kit only had two strips, rather than Adidas's three - because he had a personal contract with Puma and would not wear the rival's kit.

If things didn't suit him, he walked away - as he did from the 1978 World Cup. Ali did things his way, and to Hell with the consequences, Cruyff was the same. He fell out with Ajax in his second spell there, and walked out, to join hated rivals Feyenoord - imagine an Old Firm icon pulling that one if you can.

He smoked, as did di Stefano, and although he finally quit and became an anti-smoking camaigner, his youthful vice probably helped to kill him fat too soon.

Above all, he was a winner. Ajax were in the doldrums when he made his debut as a 17-year-old, 13th in the Dutch League, the following season, they had the first of three successive league wins. Barcelona were a very poor team, a long way behind Real Madrid, when Cruyff joined them, they have never looked back.

Gary Lineker, who played under him at Barca said in a tribute: "He was the best player there in training". Football is truly, this week, mourning a true icon of the game.