THE JOCKS are on pre-embarkation leave, when they report back to barracks tomorrow, General Sir Stephen Clarke and his staff will begin the process of readying the troops for the real thing and the start of Euro 2020.
Like generations of Scots before them, both the Jocks who will actually go over the top to take on the enemy and the Tartan Army who will, even in numbers depleted by the Covid restrictions, are looking nervously ahead and wondering if, for once, it will be alright on the night for Scotland.
Let's face it, to quote the old book title – when it comes to Scotland and international football: 'It's the hope that kills.' 'Twas ever thus, look at our first foray into international football tournaments, the 1950 World Cup. On the back of a run of six straight wins, the SFA Council, in their wisdom, declared Scotland would only go to the finals as British Champions. Game Seven pitted them against England at Hampden; both teams had already qualified for Brazil, but, England won 1-0 and, despite last-minute: “Please, come and play,” requests from FIFA, the Scots stayed at home.
Since then, we have managed – even when we can be bothered turning-up – to repeatedly find new ways of blowing it on the biggest stage, to the extent, veteran Tartan Army foot soldiers while away the pre-match boredom at “must-win” qualifying games, conjuring-up different scenarios as to how Scotland might mess it up this time.
Maybe that's why David Marshall's penalty save has been so-lauded, the sheer unexpectedness. Surely Scotland should lose a penalty shoot-out, with qualification on the line? [As an aside – how did that moment, or the Ryan Christie interview, not make it onto the BAFTA 'Unmissable TV Moments” list?]
Any way, the 23-year wait is over, we're back in the big time: set hopes to maximum.
These Championships are not the Olympic Games, but, surely, when it comes to the Euros or World Cups, Scotland's approach is Olympian. For us: “the glory is not in winning but in having taken part.”
Could we perhaps, this time, get out of the group and through to the knock-out rounds, something we have yet to accomplish in ten previous tilts at final tournaments?
We can take some encouragement from the last time we ended a period of isolation from the big show – the 16 years and 6 final Euros or World Cup tournaments we sat out between Sweden 1958 and West Germany 1974?
Back then, Willie Ormond's squad: Jardine and McGrain, Bremner, Lorimer and Jordan, Dalglish and Law etc went through the group stage unbeaten, but still failed to reach the sharp end of the tournament. They travelled in hope, exceeded expectations, but still found a way to fail – might the same thing happen again this year?
This being Scotland, I half-expect us to draw the other two games, beat England at Wembley and still, somehow, not qualify for the knock-out stages. That would be typically Scottish.
We've got a half-decent squad, a good manager, the squad dynamic in terms of getting along are good – why shouldn't we surprise ourselves and the world with a run deep into the tournament?
As I said, with Scotland: 'It's the hope that kills.'
SPEAKING OF hope, The Celtic Family will surely be hoping Dom McKay (pictured above) and the high heid yins inside Celtic Park can get the job done quickly, and have the new manager – with Australian-Greek Ange Posteceglou the apparent anointed one to put back together the broken chalice dropped by Neil Lennon, and get the Hoops back to where they (the fans) think the club should be, at least in Scotland.
You have to respect Ange's record. However, winning in Australia and Japan is not the same as winning a two-horse race. Second place might be acceptable where he has coached before, in Glasgow, second is failure – if the other lot are first – anything lower is a disaster.
Can he hope with that level of expectation? How will he handle the intense media scrutiny, which will be unlike anything he has experienced before? How will he cope with living legends such as surviving Lisbon Lions Craig, Clark, Auld and Lennox watching at every home game – or having the rentaquote mob such as Sutton, Hartson, Commons, Walker and Provan ever ready to throw-in their twopenceworth.
Then there is the scrutiny of the “Celtic-minded” hacks, from Cardinal Keevins down, far-less the snide remarks from the Lap Top Loyal.
No matter how good a coach Ange is supposed to be – if he does get UEFA clearance to take the Celtic job, he will immediately discover a level of off the training ground troubles which he could perhaps barely even envisage in his football life to this point.
Time is not on Celtic's side. They are due to enter the UEFA Champions League in the second qualifying round – the draw for which takes place next week, with the matches due to be played in six weeks' time. Before then, pre-season training is due to start on 17 June.
The Rollins Stones might have had time on their side – Celtic and their new boss, whoever he is, don't.
CELTIC'S managerial travails have given Ra Peepul across the city some additional light relief as they carry-on their restrained and good-natured celebrations of Title 55 (or Title 1 if you're a Celtic fan).
However, it is a weel-kent, if not always acknowledged fact, winning a title is the easy bit, the hard trick is to defend it – and, if nobody else has noted this, I am sure Steven Gerrard has.
A wee bit more pressure for Stevie G to tackle, but, I am sure he will cope.
Mind you, if winning two-in-a-row is a challenge, spare a thought for Scott Booth, (pictured below)who will, next season, have to embark on a quest for 15-in-a-row with Glasgow City. This is a phenomenal run, made all the more-credible since both halves of the Old Firm are now taking their Women's sides a bit more seriously.
Some thought, when this happened, City would fade away, clearly, this is not happening any time soon.
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