Maybe With Consistent Selection Might Come Consistent Qualification

WATCHING this 2018 World Cup, which is certainly becoming more-exciting with each passing game, one thing has struck me – in a Scottish context.

OK, I accept, World Cup Finals have had nothing to do with Scotland throughout this millennium, for the 18-year duration of which, thus far, we have been very much on the outside looking in, but, bear with me.

In each game thus far, I have been struck by how so-many of the competing teams boast squads with a number of players who have over a century of caps. Now, I accept, since we have got out of the habit of competing in the finals of either the World Cup or the European Championships, Scotland perhaps doesn't play as many internationals as other countries.

Big George Young - Scotland's only half-centurion in the first century of internaitonal football

However, just look at this small statistic. In the first century of international football – from 1872 to 1972, Scotland, who had started the whole international football thing off, had produced just ONE player who had amassed 50 caps – that was George Young, who then held the Scottish record of 54 caps.

England, the other nation involved in that first international, had, in the same century produced almost a full team. They lacked only a 50-times-capped right back to go alongside: Gordon Banks; Ray Wilson, Bobby Moore, Billy Wright, Martin Peters, Stanley Matthews, Jimmy Greaves, Bobby Charlton, Johnny Haynes and Tom Finney.

Fast forward to today, and England boasts nine centurions, one man – Brian Robson – with 90-100 caps; 6 with between 80-89 caps, 10 with 70-79 caps, 14 with 60-69 caps, 18 with 50-59 caps, a total of 58 players who have featured in more than 50 full internationals.

Kenny Dalglish - nearly 32 years since his last cap and he remains our only caps centurion

Scotland's most-capped players list reads:

• 1 caps centurion, Kenny Dalglish, who won the 100^th of his eventual 102 caps, back in 1986 – 32 years ago
  
  
• 1 player – Jim Leighton - with over 90 caps
  
  
• 1 player - Darren Fletcher - with 80-90 caps
  
  
• 3 players – Alex McLeish (77), Paul McStay (76) Tom Boyd (72) – with 70-79 caps
  
  
• 7 players – Kenny Miller and David Weir (69), Christian Dailly (67), Willie Miller (65), Danny McGrain (62), Richard Gough and Ally McCoist (61) – with 60-69 caps
  
  
• 18 players -John Collins (58), Roy Aitken, Gary McAllister (57), Scott Brown, Gary Galdwell, Denis Law and Maurice Malpas (55), Billy Bremner, Graeme Souness, George Young (54), Kevin Gallacher, Alan Rough (53), Craig Gordon, Joe Jordan (52), Colin Hendry (51) and Asa Hartford, Alan Hutton and Gordon Strachan (50) – with 50-59 caps.

That's a total of 31 players who have played in over 50 internationals, just 53% of England's total. Perhaps this is a reflection on our failure to put together a consistent policy on selection or tactics.

Maybe if we decided on a formation and way of playing, then picked the best guys we thought we had, able to make that formation and those tactics work, and stuck with them, we would have more players with the sort of caps total we see in so-many of the 2018 World Cup squads.

No fewer than 21 of the 32 squads at the World Cup contained at least 1 player with a century of caps. Indeed, 52 of the 736 players on-duty, 7% of the total, had played at least 100 internationals. Panama with 7 centurions, Uruguay, with 6, Spain with 5 and Japan with being the nations with the most centurions in their squads.

Last season nicely summed-up the problem of inconsistency of selection as it affects the Scotland team. We played nine games, winning four, losing four and drawing the ninth game. For the first four of these games, Gordon Strachan was the team manager. We won three of these games and drew the other – yet, Strachan was more or less shown the door, because we had failed to qualify for the World Cup Finals.

 Berti Vogts - capped 37 newcomers during his 31-match reign

In those four games, Strachan used 15 starters and a further 6 subs. After he left, Malky Mackay had one game as caretaker boss, in which he used five new starters and two subs who had not previously been in Scotland squads.

Mackay then gave way to Alex McLeish, who, in his four games as manager used a total of 20 new players, plus four new subs. That level of inconsistency of selection is no way to secure consistency of winning.

Mind you, selection has been a lot more consistent in the past 46 years than in the previous 100. During that first century of international football, selection was in the hands of amateur selectors for 95 years, and Scotland averaged 2. new caps per game. Since the manager was given selectorial responsibilities, this figure has fallen to 1.2 new caps per game.

We still have spikes, such as over the last four games, but, while things generally settle down, some how, we don't seem to give players the international longevity you see elsewhere, and particularly from smaller footballing nations like us.

While Wee Gordon Strachan only capped 26 newcomers over his 40 games as Scotland boss

Since we last qualified for a major finals tournament in 1998, we have played 180 full internationals, under 11 different managers, in which we have given international debuts to 168 players; an average of a new cap every 1.1 games.

Craig Brown was in charge for 25 games, awarding 26 new caps in that time. Then came Bertie Vogts – 31 games, 37 newcomers; Tommy Burns – 1 game, 1 new cap. Tam was followed by Walter Smith – 16 games, 10 new caps; Alex McLeish – 10 games, 11 new caps then George Burley – 14 games, 14 new caps.

Craig Levein then came along and awarded 23 new caps over his 26-match reign. Billy Stark then took temporary charge, but, didn't award any new caps in his solitary game in charge. Gordon Strachan then got the gig, and in 40 matches, he only awarded 26 new caps. This season, since WGS departed, Malky Mackay awarded four new caps in his solitary game as caretaker, and, since getting the job full-time, for his second spell, Big Eck has handed-out 16 new caps in his four games to date.

Gemma Fay won over 200 caps, while a further 11 girls have won 100 caps

Our Women's team has been going for a lot less time than our Men's team, but, already they have one double centurion in Gemma Fay, plus another entire team of caps centurions - and they do have a better record than the men when it comes to qualifying for recent championship finals - which demonstrates the benefits of consistency of selection. 

Maybe it's a case of our managers having a particularly Scottish sickness. Like weans in a sweetie shop, given free rein, they select indiscriminately and make themselves sick. Or, should we maybe put a woman in charge to keep the boys in order?

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