POOR
old Charlie Nicholas – he could have been a contender. He burst
onto the football scene like a young Denis Law – scoring goals for
fun, seemingly set for a lengthy and prolific spell in the national
side.
Charlie Nicholas
He went on to win 20 caps, but, today, he is seen as yet another
example of a good kid who never realised his potential. Sure, he has
been inducted into the Scottish Football Hall of Fame, but, induction
into that august body is by means of a selection panel – it's the
opinion of the induction committee which counts. And, in my view,
that panel has long shown a pro-Celtic bias which has seen a few
Celtic players who were probably not worthy of inclusion getting in –
Nicholas being one.
Not
that my opinion will concern Charlie too much. He still has a nice wee
earner as a Sky pundit and occasional football columnist, although,
if you ask the ordinary fan, they tend today to see him as something
of a figure of fun, mangling the English language and talking and
writing pish. Still, that will not worry Charlie, as he checks his
bank balance.
His
latest cry for attention came this morning, with his much-publicised
criticism of Scott McTominay, for opting to play for Scotland rather
than his birth nation, England. Aye Charlie, in an ideal world we
would love to see enough Scots-born, home-grown talent in the
domestic Scottish league, but, in Scotland, in 2018, that aint gonna
happen.
Our
domestic game is a mess, and, anyway, since Scotland's biggest and
some say greatest export since about 1600, has been people – why
should we not tap into the great Caledonian Diaspora to recruit
talent?
We
have been doing this for about as long as we've been playing
international football. The Scotland shirt has been worn, with
distinction, by guys born in South Africa, North America, not to
mention the other countries of the British Isles – so, why pick on
McTominay?
My
advice to Charlie – stop trying to be Chris Sutton, you were a better striker anyway.
I
SEE the Trust which owns and runs Clydebank FC has decided, with 86%
of the members backing the proposal, to attempt to return the Bankies
to senior football.
Good
luck and I hope you make it work guys. Sadly, they will not be going
back to Kilbowie, but, I would love to see the Bankies back in the
top flight. After all, any club which could discover and hone the
talents of Davie Cooper has to be worth supporting.
Davie Cooper - Clydebank's greatest player
Speaking
of the late and much-lamented “Coop”, I remember, many years ago,
at Rugby Park, in a post-match press conference, hearing Bill Munro,
the manager who nurtured Cooper's talents, waxing lyrical about him.
“It
was a joy to go into training, or on match days, because you just
knew he would do something wonderful, and I couldn't wait to see what
he would pull out,” said Munro of Cooper.
For
the Bankies to get back to these brief high-summer days will not be
easy. They have done well in the junior ranks, but will need to
satisfy the entry requirements and be accepted into the Lowland
League, then repeat their junior football feat of rising through the
divisions to the top flight.
But,
I think they can do it, and look forward to watching their progress.
Good luck guys, but, you will need it.
I
REMEMBER, some 40-years ago, seeing, for the first time, the late
Bobby Knutt, doing his stand-up turn at Batley Variety Club. A proud
Sheffield man, wee Knutty's opening joke was: “Football in
Sheffield, yes, it could catch on.”
I
think I have used that gag before on here, and, probably in the same
context, but, I honestly believe football could catch-on in the
crisis-hit city of Dundee. Over the weekend, the Daily Record was
banned from Dens Park, for daring to suggest Dundee were on the brink
of closure – given the way their circulation has plummeted, and the
paucity of their writing, particularly in sport, I reckon Dundee just
might last longer than the Record.
Former Dundee United Chairman Stephen Thompson (image courtesy of SNS)
Dundee,
apparently, in their last financial year, made a £350,000 loss –
which in Scottish football terms is almost cause for a lap of honour.
And things are no better at the other end of Tannadice Street, where
the much-maligned Stephen Thompson has just stepped down as Chairman
of Dundee United, with the team struggling to find any rhythm in
their pursuit of St Mirren for the single automatic promotion sport
from Championship to Premiership.
Maybe
it is time for Dundee's footballing public to think the unthinkable –
merge the 'Dee and the Arabs into a new, single club, sell Dens and
Tannadice and relocate the new club to a new stadium and become a
genuine single-club city, better able to take on the rest of Scottish
football.
I
know, that's a radical notion, the die-hards would rather die than
support a single Dundee team, and, it goes against the central pillar
of Scottish football, indeed, much of Scottish sport, which is:
Naw
son, it's aye been din the weay it is the noo, and it aye wull be.
And
that, ladies and gentlemen is why, the true Golden Age of Scottish
football was in the 1870s and 1880s.
I
CANNOT help feeling, the continued overkill of Scottish football on
our newspaper sports pages (surely another example of: Naw son, it's
aye been din the weay it is the noo, and it aye wull be) is the
perfect example of selling rubbish cheaply.
Our
national side hasn't appeared on the biggest stages for 20-years, our
leading football clubs are similarly off the pace in Europe, yet, per
capita, we have the largest attendances in Europe. Do we Scots enjoy
watching shite?
Yet,
look elsewhere. Andy Murray has forced a reluctant nation to enjoy
tennis, while Chris Hoy did the same for track cycling.
Katie Archibald - a genuine world-class sporting Scot
But,
these are individual sports. OK, look at how well the Scottish rugby
team is doing, fifth in the world rankings – the football team is
ranked 31st. And, in that most-Scottish of world sports – Curling, we have two rinks (or teams), the Kyle Smith rink which
competed in the Winter Olympics and the youthful Team Mouat, who will
represent Scotland in next month's World Championships, ranked in the
world rankings Top 20.
Team Mouat could be the next big Scottish thing on the world sporting stage
In
the UEFA club rankings, Celtic are at number 46, with Aberdeen at
236, St Johnstone at 264, Rangers at 265, Hibs, Hearts, Inverness CT
and Motherwell at positions 267 to 270, the only Scottish clubs
ranked among 442 clubs.
We're
not very good at football, are we? Yet the papers continue to treat
our game as something special, to the detriment of other Scottish
sports and teams which really are special.
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