FIFTY years and more ago, when I was a boy, just becoming interested in football, we never had wall-to-wall coverage. In fact, televised football was a very rare treat. The first game I can remember seeing on the box was the 1953 "Matthews Match" - the FA Cup final between Blackpool and Bolton Wanderers.
We didn't even have a TV back then. BBC TV had only come to Scotland six months or so previously, and my Dad and I watched the great Stanley Matthews pick-up his long-awaited cup medal on our next-door neighbour's 12 inch Pye set - along with half the men in the street.
Stanley Matthews beats Bolton's Malcolm Barrass before crossing for the winning goal in the 1953 FA Cup Final
The FA Cup Final was just about the only match ever seen live on TV back then; the first Scottish Cup Final to be televised was the 1955 match between Clyde and Celtic. Indeed, when the Scottish and English and Scottish cup finals were on on the same day, we seldom, back then, got either match, since the SFA was dead against televising live games.
One thing I did notice, when comparing coverage of the Scottish and English showpieces was this - while the Wembley turf was pristine, like a bowling green, the Hampden surface was always pitted, with bare patches in both goal-mouths.
This was, of course, because, while Wembley was only ever used for the Cup Final and England games, Hampden was in use on almost a weekly basis, by Queen's Park. Given the wear and tear to which it was subjected, there is no way the Hampden turf could look as good as that at Wembley.
Hampden Park, pictured during a Queen's Park game
Fast forward 60-years and the Hampden pitch is now, not just a lot worse than Wembley's, it is attracting criticism from even Scotland players. The surface for Tuesday night's Scotland v Denmark game has since been heavily criticised.
The reality is, if Hampden is indeed, to be our National Stadium, then maybe it should be treated as such, I realise, when it was given its piecemeal upgrade towards the end of last century, the SFA and Queen's Park, who continue to own the ground they had the foresight to build back in the Edwardian era, had to fund the redevelopment themselves.
Hampden was never seen, down in the seat of power in that there Wastemonster, as "a National Asset" in the same way as Wembley was and is. It was simply some Glasgow ground where the Jocks assembled - their but and ben, let them sort it out.
Thus we have a ground which is today, totally inadequate for international football. The sight lines are poor, there is wasted space behind either goal, it is not fit for purpose.
I get the distinct impression bringing Hampden up to scratch and into the 21st century will require government funding, and, the will to fund it, when there are so many other, more-worthy causes in Scotland, simply is not there.
It is not there in football either - I can think of at least two Scottish clubs, who would be unwilling to help fund the necessary work, reckoning they have stadiums which are every bit as capable, if not more-so, of hosting the big games. Otherwise, the money isn't in Scottish football to underwrite the work.
Lesser Hampden Park
But, there is one thing we could do, to at least ease the pressure on the pitch. That would be, to persuade Queen's Park, to play their club games on the adjacent Lesser Hampden. Modifying that small, next-door ground, to meet the needs of the Spiders, would be a comparatively inexpensive fix, which would allow the big pitch to recover, and be brought-up to international standard, even if the seats around it were still not quite top-class.
In Wales, where once Cardiff Rugby Club played on the itch at the National Stadium, when it was given its multi-million £ make-over to become the Millennium Stadium, the adjacent club ground, still known as Cardiff Arms Park, was upgraded for the club. Surely Scotland could do that for Queen's Park.
I HAVE a somewhat undeserved reputation as a tight bastard. This is untrue, it is simply a case of, having four daughters, who even in their forties, take all my money and leave me permanently skint; that's before I discuss the demands of my five grandsons, and, in particular my only grand-daughter.
Nutmeg Magazine - hopefully coming soon to Scottish Football
However, this week I pledged a sum of money to a project which I believe in, the launch of an exciting new Scottish football magazine, with the working title: "Nutmeg".
A lot of good guys are backing this new addition to our football media, terrific football writers such as Alan Pattullo of The Scotsman, the Sun's Bill Leckie and Graeme McPherson of the Herald. The production guys behind it - Ally Palmer and Terry Watson, are top-class too, and, hopefully, the project will come to fruition come the start of the new season.
Given the often banal coverage our football gets, I am looking forward to writer-driven, in-depth analysis of and comment on fitba. Fingers crossed it will happen.
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