Awe Right Lasssies - Gerrintaerum

SCOTLAND'S Women open their 2017 European Championship Finals campaign tonight with a match against England. As ever, the English media – or at least those parts of it interested in Women's Football, are giving the impression “The Lionesses” only have to turn-up to win the thing.

Anna Signeul - Scotland's Coach

Scotland Goalkeper and captain Gemma Fay

 If the definition of insanity is: repeatedly doing the same thing, and hoping for a different outcome; then the English football media is collectively insane – we've had this same notion for 12 World Cup and 13 European Championship campaigns since, seemingly, England won the Men's World Cup in 1966 (you don't hear much about that, do you).

Now, that same pressure which has done for several golden generations of top talent such as Alex Stepney, Steve Foster, Tony Dorigo, Darius Vassell, Emile Heskey and Rickie Lambert is being put on the Women. To be fair, England's Women do appear to be a good squad, with a genuine chance of going far, if not winning the thing, but, how will they cope with the whole England Expects thing?

To be honest, IF we had all our big guns available – Kim Little, Jenni Beattie etc, I would expect us to give them a real game and, following the usual pre-match impression of an England v Scotland game – based on my 50-plus years with the Tartan Army: if we all play well and one or two of them have an off-day, we win; otherwise, expect England to win – I approach tonight's match in Utrecht more in hope than expectation.

But, come 7.45pm, I will be there, in front of my television, ready for yet another 90 minutes of emotional roller-coaster ride. Awright Lassies – gerrintaerum! And, the best of luck.

THE BETFRED CUP, as the League Cup is now identified, is now underway, after last night's second group games. Once upon a time, the League Cup winners gained entry into the following season's European competitions, but, no longer.

Well, since the chance to start your season early and be booted-out of Europe before the Glasgow Fair is to be denied the winners – why doesn't that intellectually-challenged think tank in Hampden's corridors of powerlessness do something radical about it.

I appreciate economic reality is gradually causing our so-called top clubs to stop hiring cheap European “talent”, although one or two club still seemed wedded to this flawed concept. But, the reliance some outfits have on young English loan talent worries me.

Any way, why not, for the Betfred League Cup, boost Scottish talent – by making it a Scots only competition? Require every club to field an all-Scotland-qualified squad. If they say they cannot, tough, then handicap them, by penalising any club not fielding an all-Scottish squad by one goal for every two non-Scots who gets onto the field.

That way, local boys would be getting a chance to show what they could do.

But, would some of the bigger clubs go along with it?

Let's face it, it might persuade a few more fans to turn up and see what level of young, home-grown talent their club had. It might boost interest. What's to lose?

It;s not as if the powers-that-be have not already experimented with the competition. We've had all-in rounds, we've had groups, we've had seeding – this event is used to tinkering, so, why not tinker in a really radical way?

THE CONFIRMATION that Gary Lineker is, in the eyes of the BBC, worth twice as much as Scottish football hardly counts as bombshell news. We've been minor partners in BRITISH sports broadcasting for years.

Gary Lineker - he earns the market rate and good luck to him

OK, the money floating around in English football these days is obscene. It's the most over-funded, over-rated league in the world. English players and managers barely get a look-in, and, whereas, once upon a time the English clubs were owned by butchers, bakers and candle-stick makers, who put their spare cash into their local club, perhaps out of a sense of civic duty and altruism, today. English clubs are owned by Russian oligarchs, Saudi sheiks and Asian wide boys – old Bob Lord of Burnley must be spinning in his grave.

Scotland cannot compete with this over-hyped league next door, but, at least, a shite game in Scotland is a damned sight cheaper to watch than a shite game in England, so let's be thankful for small mercies.

I suppose, we will simply have to, until enough of us waken up and vote for Independence, thole being an occasional after-thought to England. Unless, we really stand up for ourselves and force the BBC to devote more time, energy and resources to Scottish – and Northern Irish and Welsh football.

Why should Football Focus be all about English football. It is on the British Broadcasting Corporation? The Scottish Government ought to be getting the Beeb telt, just as Belfast and Cardiff should be in there too getting a fairer portion of the sports broadcasting budget. Time tae gerrintaerum!!

PLEASED to see wee Chris Burke joining Kilmarnock. It doesn't seem all that long ago since he was starring in yon BBC Scotland documentary, about the young Rangers's players about to make waves at what was then Murray Park. Another youngster who featured in that series is Peter Leven, now Burke's assistant gaffer at Rugby Park.

Chris Burke in Scotland Action

Burke has had a good, if not great career, he is approaching the 500 games mark and I reckon ought to have more than his seven Scotland caps, since his debut in the Kirin Cup in Japan in 2006. I wish him well at Killie.