A Wise Decision By Scott Brown

SCOTT BROWN has apparently called time – again – on his Scotland career, following a weekend meeting with Alex McLeish.

Scott Brown - Has Again Retired From Scotland Duties

Good decision Scott, since, as you proved conclusively in St Petersburg last week, you can no longer cut it on the international stage at club, far less international level. I would never denigrate Brown's efforts for the national team, but, in all honesty, had be been born a generation or two earlier, he would never have got close to a Scotland cap.

So, we move on, and Big Eck now has a choice to make, as to who is to be Scotland captain. Of course, Darren Fletcher will still be there, and could reclaim the armband which he has worn so-often and so-well; or, is it perhaps time to trust in the next generation?

Kieran Tierney seems to be the future, but, perhaps he should be spared the extra pressure of the captaincy, until, as he surely will, he succeeds Brown as Celtic captain. To be honest, we don't have many obvious options to Fletcher in any squad Eck is likely to pick.

Given the way the international calendar has expanded, and continues to do, the day might not be far away when we have cricket and Welsh Rugby-style central contracts, aimed at ensuring our top talent is not over-played. However, that will take a bit of fixing between clubs and national association, not forgetting the agents. However, sooner or later – it will happen.

THE RWM of the Lap Top Loyal was writing more shite at the weekend. Apparently, after Celtic's simple win at Pittodrie, which leaves them nine points clear at the top of the table, with ten fixtures left – the title race is, according to the RWM, over.

OK, given what we know about Scottish football, he may well be correct, however, a nine-point lead at this stage, particularly when you have to play your main rivals and closes challengers twice, is not insurmountable.

Manchester City might have won the Carabao Cup and be 13 points clear at the top of the league, but, nobody is rushing to prematurely crown them Champions.

In England, Manchester City has an even-greater advantage over the chasing pack, again with ten (well in their case eleven games to go), but, nobody in the English media is rushing to say, their title race is over.

Certainly in the case of Celtic, the only fixture between now and the top-six/bottom-six split which anyone can see them losing, is their Ibrox clash with Rangers on 11 March. Their other four fixtures pit them against struggling clubs, and ought to be bankers for the table-toppers. After that, it all comes down to how the post-split games are scheduled.

I suspect Celtic will win the league, but, it's still a bit early to crown them.

THE Daily Record's circulation, particularly since 2014, has been draining away faster than any bath ever could. Mind you, newspaper circulations in general have been declining, but, the Record's readership loss has been particularly spectacular, albeit unimpressive.

There are various reasons for this, but, one might be a lack of talent on the editorial floor. Sure, there are some good operators still in there, but, one or two “names” to whom I would not give outhouse room. In particular, I believe their Chief Football Writer is just about the ultimate case of over-promotion, way beyond any discernible talent.

Let's just say, his talent is: “Off the radar”, inasmuch as, you couldn't find any, even with the most-sophisticated radar. He has written a condescending load of shite this morning, about what he thinks might happen if big football matches do indeed end-up being played at Murrayfield after 2020, which is pure pish. Barbour jackets, prosecco, Hooray Hamishes, egg-chasers, he gets every anti-rugby cliché you could think of into the piece.

 Murrayfield will easily handle big football matches

I, for one, accept the good citizens of the area around Murrayfield will take too-kindly to the Old Firm Neanderthals invading their locale. I can see the local community groups giving the Police Scotland Divisional Commander a hard time in the wake of the first Old Firm game in the capital, but, I have every confidence in the Polis getting on top of the considerable anti-social element which follows the Bigot Brothers, in very short order.

Of course, the writer, in the piece makes the usual Scottish media assumption – the boys, and the bhoys, have always behaved badly and always will. Maybe, just maybe, when Holyrood gets round to redrawing OBFA, and funding Scottish Football in the years ahead, they will start to make the clubs responsible for their fans' behaviour. It's way past time this happened – and the mainstream Scottish football media got behind making it happen.

I HAVE mentioned my mate Johnny on this blog before. He's the “Ayr United Supporter” who only ever gets het-up, when I have a go at Celtic. Well, surprise, surprise, Johnny found his way to Somerset Park on Saturday – to see the Honest Men become the first team in the UK to reach 100 goals for the season.

The placard says it all - Congratulations to Ayr United

Trouble was, Johnny was keen to get home in time to see the Calcutta Cup rugby on TV. Even when Andy Geggan scored the crucial 100^th goal, the bold Johnny wasn't sure he could safely slip out and head home; but, after the second goal, off he went, along with his grandson, who apparently wanted to hang-on. Sure enough, a couple of hundred yards down Somerset Road, they heard the roar which signalled Ayr's third goal.

Another mate, who managed to go cold turkey on a genuine life-long love affair with the Honest Men, to get involved at the sharp end of real fitba, with his local junior outfit, took advantage of a blank Saturday for his junior team to head along to Somerset and see the 100^th, 101^st and 102^nd goals scored.

I suppose we can forgive him for turning into a glory seeker, he suffered enough anguish when he was a Somerset regular.

But seriously, every congratulation has to go to wee Ian McCall and his men, however, the job isn't done, they still have to win promotion and get back into the Championship, or those 100-plus goals will mean nothing.

Aberdeen May Never Have A Better Chance Of Beating Celtic Than They Have Today

I AM composing this blog post on Sunday morning, prior to the lunch time kick-off at Pittodrie, where Aberdeen entertain Celtic.

Received wisdom has it that Celtic only really need to turn-up against Aberdeen, and they will win. I would say, today represents Aberdeen's best chance all season of lowering their visitors' colours. If they cannot win, on home soil, against a Celtic team in crisis – they might just as well pack it in and hand Celtic all 12 available points from this, or any season.

Kieran Tierney, here playing for Scotland, is the only current Celt who could have got a game in the first Celtic team I ever saw

As I have long said – for all the money Brendan Rodgers has spent on players, this is not a good Celtic team – from memory, the first Celtic team I ever saw began Haffey; McKay, Mochan; Crerand, McNeill, Peacock. The rest would be a guess, but, apart from Kieran Tierney being a better left-back than dear old Neil Mochan – who had stepped back from being a forward at the tail-end of his career, not a single Celtic player today would get picked ahead of that late 1950s Celtic side.

Mind you, I don't think many of Derek McInnes's current side would have got on the bench in an Eddie Turnbull or Alex Ferguson Aberdeen team either.

Celtic were woeful in St Petersburg. They had the trip out there, into difficult conditions, they then had a disappointing match, a tiring trip home, and now they have to travel to Aberdeen. Celtic should be beatable today, and, if Aberdeen can pull that off, they just might revive a season which was drifting into insignificance.

Beating Celtic and keeping their lead at the top of the table to six points, just might galvanise the Dons and Rangers to have a right go at Celtic over the final weeks of the season, and God knows, we need a competitive season, following recent processions for the Champions.

MY OLD Buddie, Charles Young Esq., made a cameo appearance on my favourite radio football programme: “Off the Ball” yesterday.

 Chick Young - He's a St Mirren fan - honest

Dukla Pumpherston's Director of Football used his appearance to flag-up a Renfrewshire Council initiative, to allow the general public to select the names of the various streets in the new residential development on the old Love Street Stadium site.

Apparently, the short list of names which a panel of Buddies fans, chaired by Chic, has chosen for the proposed streets will go up on the Cooncil website tomorrow, and the final vote will be down to the public.

Chic hinted, Torfassen Terrace might be on that list, as a tribute to the great Guni, but, the question is, which other Saints legends will be name-checked? I quite fancy voting for a “Bash or Basher Street”, in honour of “Basher” Lavety – my all-time favourite Saints'player. And, if “Basher” is to be immortalised, well, we could not possibly leave out his partner in crime – Big Mark Yardley.

Bash or Basher Street has a certain rign to it, in honour of Barry Lavety

Surely Davie Lapsley, immortal skipper of the 1959 Scottish Cup winners has to be in there, while not having Tony Fitzpatrick name-checked on the short leet would be impossible.

Given the years I spent, happily following the Buddies home and away for the Paisley Daily Express, I await the announcement of the potential street names with interest.

OH DEAR! Scotland's greatest current dummp-spitter and toys oot the pram thrower, wee Neil Lennon, was at it again yesterday.

The wee Ginger Whinger was not best pleased when his side failed to properly defend the two-goal lead they built-up in a flying start at Rugby Park, and - when referee Kevin Clancy awarded the controversial penalty which, although saved, allowed Kris Boyd to score from the rebound an clinch a come-back point for Killie – Lenny lost the plot.

Lenny in full spitting the dummy mode at Rugby Park on Saturday

I fear he will require to schedule a meeting with the SFA's Compliance Officer and can look forward to a lengthy spell watching from the stand, his comments re Clancy were bang out of order.

Hand ball in the bois, I often think, just about the hardest call for a referee to get correct. When the ball hits an arm, it isn't always a penalty, but, I always feel, apart from the Old Firm (where as I have often said, SFA special rules 16/90 and 18/88 come into play), these contentious penalty calls tend to even themselves out.

Lenny would do well to heed the wise words of a far-better Celtic manager than he ever was, Jock Stein, who always instructed his men to, as far as they could, take the referee out of the equation, by not giving him the chance to make wrong calls.

I HONESTLY forgot to mention how pleased I was to see Dumbarton qualify for the final of the Irn-Bru Cup, where they will meet Inverness Caledonian Thistle, at McDiarmid Park, on 24 March.

The Sons haven't been in a national cup final, since 1897, when they lost to Rangers in the Scottish Cup Final at the 2^nd Hampden Park – now Cathkin. They haven't actually won national silverware since they beat local rivals Vale of Leven, to win the Scottish Cup at the original Hampden Park in 1883.

One hundred and thirty-five years since they last lifted a national trophy is one Hell of a long wait – in fact, my old mate Brian Henson, who was the “house freelance” at Boghead and the Rock Stadium for so many years was maybe still a ball boy when the Sons won that Scottish Cup.

I don't think even the most-biased ICT fan would begrudge Stevie Aitken and his men victory next month, they have, after all, had a long wait for the chance to win one.

Celtic Departed Europe With Narry a Whimper - Far-Less A Roar

EVEN by the exceptionally low standards we have come to expect from Scottish club sides in Europe, last night's tame Celtic capitulation in St Petersburg was shite.

Bobby Murdoch - how Celtic could have done with someone with his passing range

It's not as if the Russians were a particularly good side. I will be amazed if they get through the next round. The victors weren't very good, but, they didn't have to be to win – so devoid of ideas and talent were Celtic.

Celtic had a huge amount of possession – more than 40 metres from the Zenit goal; possession they did nothing with. They moved it left to right across their back four, then a short ball was played forward, to a midfielder who immediately played it back. Barry Ferguson used to get pelters every week for passing square and backwards. Bazza had the passing vision of a Jim Baxter or, more-tellingly in a Celtic context, a Bobby Murdoch in comparison to the Celtic players last night.

There was one wee vignette I noticed last night. Celtic had possession, but nine of the ten outfield Zenit players were between the ball and the goal – stretched-out, Rugby-style across the park. It was calling out for a diagonal pass between a couple of them, to a Celtic player sprinting round the outside. The right pass, and James Forrest or Kieran Tierney would have been behind the defence, heading for the by-line and able to cut the ball back to supporting runners into the box. It didn't happen.

When you have a team incapable of playing such a basic ball, against a simple defensive tactic, you are not going to get far in football. Zenit were quite happy to drop into their defensive formation and allow Celtic to pass the ball across the park in front of them – there was no penetration, not a single Celtic player could see, far-less complete, the killer through ball. They were never gong to advance, once that first Zent goal went in.

And, what a dumb goal that was to lose. It's not as if they didn't know about the Ivanvic aerial threat, but, they gave him a free header. Amazingly inept. As for the second goal, the go-ahead one in the tie. That goal demonstrated what we all knew – De Vries is not Celtic class.

Yet, this Celtic team, having had its many deficiencies cruelly exposed on the big stage, is still nine points clear of the field in Scotland.

Altogether now: “We're shite, and we know we are.....” repeat ad nauseum.

Football finance is now so slewed against small leagues, in small countries such as Scotland – not even Celtic can afford to recruit and pay the top-quality ready-made players they will require if they are to start to again feature regularly at the sharp end in Europe.

 The Lions - I refuse to believe a Lions Mark 2 could not be assembled

But, even back in 1967, Celtic would not have chosen to match the wages being paid in Italy and Spain, yet, with a largely home-grown team of players, all from within 35-miles of Glasgow, they triumphed in Lisbon.

I do not believe these days are past, and in the past they shall remain. I believe, difficult though it would be to keep them together long enough – with the money available in England, and greedy agents trying to sell-on their clients, the Kelly/Stein formula could still work.

It would take great management, players who WANTED to be Celtic greats, and bloody hard work, but, it could be done – in spite of the shortfalls of the Scottish game.

Scottish clubs cannot compete in today's player market, so, they have to go back to basics, to making sure Scottish kids are technically accomplished, mentally strong and fit. Get back to playing Scottish football – the passing game, played at pace, and, forget about buying-in cheap foreign imports. That, for me, is the way ahead.

NEVER mind, we always have real fitba – the Juniors, with the Quarter-Final draw for the Scottish Junior Cup being made in Glasgow, yesterday.

The last eight line-up is as follows:

Beith Juniors v Lochee United

Bo'ness United v Hurlford United

Carnoustie Panmure v Auchinleck Talbot

Yoker Athletic/Wishaw or Forth Wanderers v Kirkintilloch Rob Roy

The Quarter-Final ties are due to be played on Saturday, 17 March.

We're only at the last eight, but, I would not be surprised to see this picture retaken - Talbot boss Tucker Sloan with a big trophy he has got to know rather well

Looking at that line-up, my immediate thought is – who are Talbot going to be playing in the final? A Beith v Talbot show-down at Rugby Park would, the vagaries of the draw notwithstanding, be my favoured outcome, but there are some famous names still involved at this stage.

IAIN KING, past RWM of the Lap Top Loyal, former Head of Scottish Sport at The Sun and, for all that – one of the good guys, occasionally blogs on his website:

www.iain-king.com/blog

I commend Kingie's musings to the House, his is a terrific tale, of a poacher turned gamekeeper, or perhaps it's the other way round. Kingie gave up one of the top jobs in Scottish sports journalism, to follow his dream of coaching professionally. He sunk over £20,000 of his hard-earned cash into getting his UEFA A licence, coached at East Kilbride, then at BSC Glasgow, before a short spell as CEO at Airdrieonians.

 Iain King - his blog is consistently good reading

He is now coaching in Canada with North Toronto Nitros, and loving it. When he comes to write his memoirs, and Kingie is a mere stripling, it will be a great read – who knows where he might end-up before he finally sits down to write the book.

Unfortunately, Kingie, who has such a lot to offer Scottish football, may join that long and distinguished group, the Scottish Diaspora, and may never return to put his ideas into practice, which will be Scottish football's loss.

It's Facts Rathern Than Rumours We Require Around Hampden's Future

THE feature does, I suppose, what it says on the can – so, when this morning's “Rumour Mill” on the online version of The Hootsmon leads with a piece suggesting the SFA is in talks to purchase Hampden Park, well, you can believe or disbelieve as you will.

Hampden Park - facts rather than rumours required

 

From my perspective, whether or not to purchase Hampden is one issue which ought to be parked until the new Chief Executive of the SFA has his feet under the desk and has truly recognised what an absolute bourach of bother he has landed in.

On the one hand,not that long ago – we were being told the SFA and the SPFL could not afford the supposed £3 million cost of having VAR or goal line technology installed at our top division ground. Well, pardon me, if they cannot afford £3 million, how the Hell are they going to afford to buy Hampden, bring it into the 21^st century an run it?

OK, I know, funding a Hampden make-over will be an easier job, if they can get the government etc. on-board, but, for a start, having had OBFA scuttled by the stupidity and self-interest of the Unionist parties, and the daft Greens, the SNP Government is going to play hard ball with the SFA.

I have never deviated from the idea – if we were doing the whole National Stadium thing correctly, we would take a brand new green field or brown field site, somewhere central, able to be easily linked to the rail and motorway system, and there we would build a 90,000/100,000 state of the art stadium to replace both Hampden and Murrayfield. It would cost £ billions, but, it would be worth it.

Unfortunately for the SFA and the SRU, such a stadium will not happen until at least a decade after Independence – some time in the 2030s at the earliest.

Here in the Sports Philosophy department at the School of Hard Knocks in the University of Life, we have never shied away from, indeed, we actively-encourage out of the box thinking, so, assuming my 21^st century stadium dream is a non-starter, how about this.

Cathkin Park - Could Be Brought Back To Life

• The SFA and Glasgow Life get together and bring Cathkin Park back to life, to be the home of Queen's Park. They could even re-name it “Second Hampden”, and put on that site, a compact 10,000-capacity stadium with a 4G surface which Queen's could share with the Glasgow Warriors rugby team. This would free-up Scotstoun for athletics and make a huge difference to Glasgow's sporting infrastructure.
• Taking the Spiders away from Hampden would allow the ground, and Lesser Hampden to be properly developed, bringing the stands behind the goals in closer to the goals, improving the raking of the seating and therefore the sight lines and even putting-on a roof.
• This would still be an expensive undertaking, but, would probably be cheaper than a total new National Stadium build. It would also preserve the historic and emotional ties to the site.

Well, the above is a start, it may only be a rumour just now, but, it is never too-early to talk.

I HAVE a lot of time for Stewart Gilmour, or, “The Fat Controller” as we called him when I was working the Love Street beat for the Paisley Daily Express and he was turning around the fortunes of a club which was on its way out under the previous management group.

Former St Mirren Chairman Stewart Gilmour

 

Mind you, as Stewart would happily confirm, he and I didn't always see eye-to-eye, but, he did a fantastic job for the Buddies, and I respect him for that. I did, however have to laugh, when I read of his disquiet at how, as he sees it, the big clubs are showing more than a tad of self-interest, at the expense of the smaller clubs.

You see, when the Buddies won the Millennium First Division Championship, to end their long exile from the top flight, Stewart was gushingly generous in his praise of how the Premier Division clubs then handled things, in contrast to the blatant self-interest of the lower league teams.

As far as I am concerned, while they are currently languishing in the Championship, St Mirren is one of Scotland's major clubs. For me, our top clubs, in descending order, regardless of current form, are: Rangers, Celtic, Hearts, Aberdeen, Hibs, Kilmarnock, Dundee, Dundee United, Motherwell and St Mirren. These clubs, for me, have the largest fan bases, have been the most-regular competitors in the top division and set the standard for the rest.

Below them we have St Johnstone, Partick Thistle, Hamilton, Dunfermline Athletic, Falkirk, Raith Rovers, Ayr United, Airdrieonians, Inverness CT and Ross County. Add a further four clubs, say Queen of the South, Clyde, East Fife and Livingston, and you probably have the only 24 clubs worthy of “Senior” status.

The remaining 18 clubs, plus the Highland and Lowland League sides are, for my money, little better than glorified Junior clubs – part-time outfits with a part-time attitude.

Now Stewart, in his widely-reported piece today, has called for an amalgamation of the SFA and the SPFL into one unified governing body. Well, I hae ma doots about the merits of such a move. Better I feel to have the SFA as the overall umbrella body, looking after every aspect of Scottish football, from primary schools through to the national side, but, to leave the various levels of the game to run themselves.

The SRU is the single overall governing body for that code of football, and, right now, they are in deep doo-dah, because of the at times conflicting wants and needs between the two full-time professional teams, the ten Premiership teams, the National League sides from the next level down and the many amateur Regional League clubs which are the backbone of Scottish rugby.

I actually think the SFA system, where the Professional Game Board looks after “Senior” football and the Non-Professional Board controls the more community-based clubs is the right system. Any failings are probably down to the paucity of talent along the sixth floor corridor at Hampden.

And, the fact the SFA Congress meets during the season is considerably more democratic than rugby's system, which delegates such meetings to the Council, who only have to defend their actions, or inactions, at the annual meeting.

Good Luck Eck - You're Going To Need It

THE continuing ability of the SFA to get things wrong is astonishing, and few events better exemplify this than the arse-about-face decision to appoint the National Team Manager BEFORE appointing a new Chief Executive, at a time when both positions were vacant.

He's back - Alex McLeish

In any normal business, when two such-important roles were vacant at the same time common sense would dictate, the main leadership role, that of Chief Executive, was filled before the subsidiary role. But, as we are all too well aware, football is not “normal” business.

Of course, there are some within Scottish football, and two clubs in particular, who would rather the national association was not run well, did not have a dynamic, charismatic, out-going leader, determined to make football better. Such a leader just might ask uncomfortable questions, put in place processes which upset the long-established status quo and, perish the thought, made Scotland bigger than their own club brands.

Others, further down the food chain, fear a moderniser and improver just might ask them, what their club was all about, and what right it had to be as-influential.

No better we do something, fill what is, let's face it, a bit of a non-job, with someone we know, and worry about the more-important job later.

Nothing against Big Eck – if he can have the same wins record as he had first time round, but maybe with the bonus this time of actually qualifying for something, I will be happy, but, I am not confident.

He has done nothing in management since quitting Scotland last time round, indeed, I would say, he needed to be Scotland manager a lot more than Scotland needed him. He is, to be fair, I feel now the ideal age to be a national boss. He has served his time in the club game, this would be a good job from which to hang-up the bench jacket and retire to a life of punditry, having seen us back to one or other of the big shows.

So, it is a risk, but, I fear, as ever with Scotland, the in-built and continuing failings of the Scottish football system will stymie him. But, good luck Eck – you will need it.

AND, when it comes to the new CEO, the man the SFA is looking for is sitting slightly to their left, at the other end of the M8.

Mark Dodson - the man for Hampden

Given the way he has ridden rough-shod over the feelings of his member clubs, totally-ignored their protests and done his own thing, emasculated the elected officers, virtually blown asunder years of: “Ye canna dae that son, it's aye been done this way and aye will be”, SRU CEO Mark Dodson is surely the right man for Hampden.

Along the way, he has turned around the SRU's finances and been key in recruiting two world-class coaches in succession to the SRU's top job. He's the man for Hampden. Why, a lot of SRU club guys will happily vouch for him, and even help him to make the move.

Don't Kick The Messenger - Kick The Guys Causing The Problem

I YESTERDAY received the printed equivalent of a Tam Forsyth tackle, from an esteemed member of the Lap Top Loyal. This Real Rainjurrz Man, who is incidentally a bloody-good journalist, took umbrage at my latest sally against the “churnalists and stenographers” of the msm.

The Tam Forsyth tackle, but, like Mic Channon, I'm still standing

We will not irredeemably fall-out over the matter, but, I still feel - there is no way Rangers, in their current financial condition, could turn-down a £7 million bid for any player. The whole story stunk.

That's the trouble with covering Rangers at the moment, sure, “the Donegal Blogger” and the other forces of the Celtic apologists have an agenda, but, that does not mean old Phil, who has been more-often right than wrong, was wrong in this one. Also, for as long as the Chairman at Ibrox is: “A glib and shameless liar”, every public pronouncement from that club will be questioned.

The GASL has enough problems of his own right now, having all but booked a season ticket at the Court of Session for the rest of this season, and, I fear, until he is ousted, Rangers will continue to be a tainted brand.

You know, it would all have been so-much simpler if old Chuck Green had just had a bit of vision about him. I suggested back at the time he took over, Portsmouth were up for sale, cheaply, if he had bought them as well as Rangers, and created a new team: playing out of Ibrox in the English League, Rangers might by now be a Premiership club.

And don't think it could not have been done. Restraint of trade legislation would have seen them through and clear. I am sure of that.

Let Walter enjoy his retirement in peach

And, I do wish the msm would drop this Walter Smith for Scotland nonsense. Sure, being an international team manager is really an old man's job. You need lots of experience to do it, but, Wattie will be 70 later this month, and, take it from this already 70-year-old, sure, you still miss the daily cut and thrust; of course, you still think you could do the old day job; but, it's nice to wake-up some mornings and think: “Ach! I'll just lie here a wee bit longer.” It's great to not be tied to someone else's agenda.

Walter has done his time on the grass, let him enjoy his retirement and give the job to someone younger. In any case, going back rarely works as well as first time around.

The other thing wrong with the msm's obsession with filling the manager's job first is good management of any business tends to depend on the right guy at the top. OK, I accept, the SFA is not a normal business, but, get the CEO in-situ first, then have the new guy involved in getting the new manager.

As I have said before the system in Scotland is so wrong, it would not matter who we got as national manager, we would still be hovering around the 40% wins mark and be also-rans in Europe. Scotland has NEVER, since the 1920s and 1930s been as good as we thought we were. If we ever get to where we think we should be, it will be a long haul.

At the moment Scotland is ranked 32^nd in the FIFA International Rankings, which is 20^th in Europe. So, equating world terms to the Scottish League – we are Albion Rovers. In European terms – we are Falkirk. Either way, it's a good comparison.

If we look on ourselves as Albion Rovers – we are in the shadow of more-successful neighbours, our infrastructure is a bit run-down, we've been around for a while, but, have never won much, but, we keep plugging away.

The story is much the same if we look at the Falkirk comparison. We have a flashy stadium, which we struggle to fill. We have a long history of finding good youngsters, and selling them on to our richer neighbours, and, while we can cause the occasional upset, we've been fairly mediocre for years.

Great expectations - or delusions of adequacy

Now, since we all know neither Albion Rovers nor Falkirk is going to win the Scottish League or Scottish Cup, far less make an impact in the Champions League or the Europa League any time soon – why should we have great expectations about Scotland?

Further more, we are dominated by two clubs (or maybe at the moment one and a bit), who, if given a free choice, would move to the next-door league; our national team is something of an after-thought and we have too-many “senior professional” clubs whose whole outlook and manner of working is amateurish.

But it has aye been this way, and if football has its way, probably aye will be. Slowly, the word is getting through, in the wider political arena, Scotland being tied to England is past its sell-by date – well, Scottish Football as it is presently run, is longer past its sell-by date.

The current situation, whereby the SFA needs a new CEO and a new national team manager would appear to be the ideal opportunity to stop, think, and try a new tack. But, this is Scottish football, the chances of that happening are virtually nil.

I say again, what I have said before – often: Scottish Football – we are all doomed, doomed Ah tell ye.