The Dundee Dilemma

There is perhaps some comfort to be had for Tony Mowbray as his Celtic side continues their at-first-glance pointless chase of runaway leaders Rangers.

Most pundits will have told him that trailing the Ibrox side by 10 points and with 10 more games till the end of the season, the chances of overhauling that lead is nigh-on impossible. But Mowbray - and indeed Walter Smith - need only look 90-odd miles east to see that sometimes even the largest leads have a habit of disappearing like snow before the sun.

Depending on results, we could have a new leader in the Scottish First Division as long time front runners Dundee have somehow managed to fritter away an 11 point lead. In a story laced with irony, the Dens Park outfit have led the table since the beginning of December, when a 1-0 win over Ross County in faraway Dingwall saw Jocky Scott's men overtake Queen of the South (ironic moment #1) to take up pole position. It's a lead they hung on to through an amazing 13-game unbeaten streak, and which saw many blogs declaring the First Division race well and truly over.

Dundee seemed unstoppable, both on and off the park. Supported by the millions of club director Calum Melville, Scott was able to bring some of the top talent to Tayside, talent such as Gary Harkins and Leigh Griffiths (between them good for some 21 goals between them this season), Richie Hart, Bob Malcolm and Maros Klimpl.

The club won the Challenge Cup in November (beating Inverness Caley in the Final) and managed to make it to the quarter final of the Scottish League Cup where they were knocked out by Rangers, but having beaten SPL side Aberdeen along the way (ironic moment #2, director Melville being an Aberdeen fan and ironic moment #3, Jocky Scott a former Aberdeen co-manager).

But by the time Dundee had been knocked out of the Scottish Cup by fellow First Division side Raith Rovers, the wheels had started to come off the wagon. Their blistering form deserted them from the beginning of the new year where they picked up only 8 points from a possible eighteen, beginning and ending with (irony #4) defeats against bottom side Airdrie United. Having only managed to lose 1 game in 19 and looking certain for promotion, it was suddenly losing three games in eight and the possibility of SPL football next season that led to the club stepping in and sacking of Jocky Scott.

The club wasted no time in appointing Scott's replacement. Having flirted with Partick Thistle manager Ian McCall, who demanded a £200,000 compensation deal, Dundee turned to Queen of the South manager Gordon Chisholm, who as a player won promotion with Dundee back in 1992 and will be the first man ever to manage both Dundee clubs during his career. He'll be assisted by Billy Dodds.

The challenge facing the dream-team of Chisholm and Dodds is turning around a bad run of form to secure promotion to the SPL. With a pretty tricky schedule and under fire from the Dundee support, the task will certainly not be easy. And what better way to start the final push than a home game against (ironic moment #5) Queen of the South! The Doonhamers, lying 10 points behind Dundee are probably out of the running for promotion, but given the fixture list to come and with all the possible permutations, every point can have a pivotal outcome on the league.

With the First Division being as tight as it is, who are the main challengers, and how do we see this going?

Dundee
The current league leaders are struggling of late. They're under new management which can have both good and bad effects, but you've got to question the timing. If nothing else, sacking Scott at this stage of the season may well be moment at which they secured First Division football next season. Chisholm is an experienced SFL manager. If he can get the team scoring again in the way they did earlier on in the season, they'll be fine. If not, the Dee are in trouble.
Key games: Tonight's game against Queen of the South. A must-win game to get the season back on track. Other than that, their next two games see them taking to the road as they face two of their main challengers in a short three day period: Ross County (27.03) and Dunfermline (30.03). Depending on results, the final game of the season sees them up in Inverness for what could well be the title decider.
Final Position: 2nd. I think the managerial change was a mistake, one which will cost them.

Inverness Caley Thistle
Caley are battling hard to get back into the SPL, hoping to overcome the disappointment of relegation on the final day of the season. Terry Butcher's men are unbeaten in the First Division since last December and in the Irish trio of Rooney, Jonny Hayes and Richie Foran they've one of the most exciting teams in the Division.
Key games: Dundee on the final day, obviously. Otherwise, another derby against Ross County at home at the end of this month could be a potential banana skin considering the last encounter between the two sides.
Final Position: League winners. I think they'll pip Dundee at the final post, probably (sorry, hopefully) on the final day, just to keep the interest going. Imagine if Celtic do what Caley did and bring the season down to the final game on the final day? Who says Scottish football is not exciting?

Dunfermline Athletic
Dunfermline have moved themselves back into promotion contention following their fifth victory in six games when they beat Scottish Cup quarter-finalist Raith Rovers at the weekend. Results elsewhere helped them get there (Thistle losing, and Caley and Ross County sharing the points), but nevertheless, they've as good a chance as any of the other teams at the top.
Key games: The Pars are well positioned to keep up the challenge, but having played more games than the other teams around them, there's not enough games, plus too much depends on the other teams around them.
Final Position: 3rd.

Ross County
Ross County might well be distracted by the Scottish Cup campaign. For Derek Adams, he's got a decision to make. They're in with a reasonable chance of getting past Hibs, but you can't see them getting past Celtic to reach the final. On the other hand, they're in with an outside chance of making promotion, so which competition to do you focus on. Over 6,000 attended Saturday's derby with Caley Thistle, suggesting interest in SPL football is in abundance, so perhaps that is where the short-term focus should lie.
Key games: The game against Hibernian tonight in the Scottish Cup replay. A victory there will set up another money-spinning but distracting fixture against Celtic. County will play all top-four sides in the next four weeks, but after that it's a reasonably doable run-in.
Final Position: 4th. Much as though I'd like to have Ross County in the SPL to fly the flag for the north of Scotland, I can't help but feel they'll struggle there. They've enough games to make up the difference, including two games in hand over Caley and Dundee and three over Dunfermline, so who knows.

Outside chances go to Queen of the South, who, like Ross County have quite a few games in hand, most of those against bottom half opposition. They're only 10 points behind Dundee, but I think the gap is too far to bridge. They're under new management also, a shocked Kenny Brannigan taking over. One point behind them is Partick Thistle - early challenges who fell away - are another side for whom the gap is too far. They've got eight games left this season, five of which are against the top-half of the table.

So, all in all plenty to keep us entertained. What do you lot think? Do let us know!

The SFA and the search for the next manager of Scotland

Now that the bunting has been torn down from between the tenements and the houses, and the last of the party revellers bundled into a taxi for the long ride home, the mandarins at the SFA find themselves in a situation that gets less unique with every tournament that passes Scottish football by.

Like many other blogs and newspapers, we published our own list of candidates yesterday over at Inside Left. Our list is fairly standard in that it contains the same names that appear on most other lists, and when we published it yesterday, we felt confident that whoever takes over at the helm will probably feature on our hit parade.

But the SFA should take a long, hard look in the mirror before they take a look at the CV’s.

In an ideal world, and in a recession when finding a job is not the easiest of challenges, the Scotland job should be one of those ‘once in a lifetime’ opportunities. It comes with a few perks. There’s a nice compensation package, travel to exotic locations and the opportunity to work with some of the brightest talents (sic) in the Scottish game.

In reality however, finding someone who is prepared to work with a limited talent pool and a governing body whose organisational skills couldn’t arrange a ride in a brothel is like the search for a piece of hay in a giant stack of needles.

Between Berti Vogts and now George Burley, the position of national manager has become, if you’ll excuse the oft-quoted cliche these last few days, a poisoned chalice. Constantly pilloried by the press and often left in the dark or the lurch by the SFA, who’d want to take this job on?

The job requires someone who can take on the suits at the SFA and who is willing to deal with the politics and Machiavellian machinations all the way up the greasy pole. Someone with a big gob and a tough skin. Unfortunately, the only candidate we can think of with the balls to pull that off, Graeme Souness, has put himself out of the running.

At a time when Scottish football is at a crossroads, the new manager needs to be an individual who has the vision and the clout to force the SFA to make changes needed to get the national team back on the road to respectability. And that is something that goes beyond picking the 22-man squad for every tournament – it’s about changing the youth setup, it’s about training and supporting a raft of new coaches to be deployed in schools and clubs around the country, it’s about getting the funds to improve the facilities at every club to foster a culture of ambition and success.

Does such a candidate exist? And would we be able to afford them?

The SFA is not a rich organisation, so the salary on offer to the lucky candidate is going to discount most of the names who currently ply their trade south of the border and who have appeared on some lists of successors: David Moyes, Roy Hodgson, Billie Davies, Alan Irvine and Steve Clarke, to name but a few.

Aside from the fact that none of these people would ever give up a relatively successful career in leagues that offer more challenge than the Scotland job would ever do, the amount of money we’d have to pay them to even join up would be prohibitive. The biscuit tin at the SFA is still very much in existence.

So where does that leave us?

It leaves us with candidates who certainly carry a degree of gravitas, and who, more importantly wont ask for too much money. Jim Jefferies can’t be on a whole lot, John Collins, Darren Ferguson and Jimmy Calderwood are all on the dole, so could be brought in relatively cheaply. Walter Smith probably doesn’t need the money anyway.

You then have to ask the question “would I want these people managing my squad?“.

Jim Jefferies has operated for years at a club with little funds or talent yet he’s been able to keep Kilmarnock in the league (just, on some occasions). Like Walter Smith, he’s a safe pair of hands, someone to steady the ship without really setting the heather alight.

John Collins would certainly keep the team fit, but his management skills leave a lot to be desired. He survived a mutiny during his time at Easter Road (they where not too happy with his constant team and formation changes), suggesting perhaps that his tactical nous and man-management qualities are open to question.

Jimmy Calderwood is a man who is often derided for his appearance and questionable media skill, but underneath the orange exterior you’ll find a canny manager who, like Jefferies, has a long track record of getting the best out of a pool of players with limited ability.

Darren ’son of Alex’ Ferguson is, was, an up-and-coming manager who also has experience with crappy squads. He led Peterborough to the Championship before leaving earlier this month after a run of poor results. He clearly has talent, but given the amount of work needed to get the national squad into shape, is he really up to it, even if he has the auldyin on the end of the phone. And would he want to be tainted with the Scotland post at the risk of putting him out of contention for any future English club management jobs?

Mind you, that could also be said for a candidate we see that can fulfill our requirements – Craig Levein.

The Dundee United manager has expressed an interest in the job and is currently doing the sort of thing at Tannadice that, on a broader scale, the Scotland setup requires: investment in youth and an overhaul of the youth academy and total control over all football-related activities. He’s getting results on the pitch with a largely Scottish squad, but would he want to risk the massive kudos he’s built up at United? He’s the bookies favourite, but we see him staying at United for a few more years to finish what he started.

Having thought about the situation for a few days now, I’ve come to the conclusion that while the quality of manager is important, the other issue facing the country is the august body of people who ultimately make the final hire or fire decision.

The Scottish Football Association, an 11-man strong board of cronies and hangers-on are aware changes needs to be made, but are unwilling to give up the cosy lifestyle or to invest the time in changing the very structure that keeps them in power.

This means that whichever candidate we get will more than likely be another meek and mild character, like Burley, who won’t rock the establishment boat too much. This is why you’ll never see Craig Levein get the job, no matter how much he says he wants it, because he would simply demand too much, too soon.

The concept of ‘the buck stops here’ is not one that seems to apply to SFA. For them, the buck stops one level below them. The men responsible for Burley’s appointment, those responsible for keeping him in a job when clearly the man was failing and those responsible for so much of the challenges facing the Scottish game need to take a long, hard look in the mirror and question the value of their own contribution to the national game.

Neither Chairman of the SFA George Peat, whose outbursts about Chris Uwelumo’s miss against Norway where particularly sickening and uncalled for, nor Gordon Smith, our erstwhile Chief Executive whose only contribution has been to change the rules to give Islam Feruz a game for Scotland, have made any real difference to the game north of the border, and both have presided over a period when the national side has become an object of ridicule and embarrassment.

While Burley, his reputation forged at successful spells at Derby, Southampton and Hearts forever damaged by his sacking earlier this week, is busy signing on, the leading lights of the SFA return to work, looking for the next man to carry the can for the institutional failings of the people who run the game.

Good luck to him, whoever it is.

Norway v Scotland Preview (or 'The art of self-destruction')

Written by Seb Gevers

When George Burley took over at the helm of the Scottish national side, he knew the scale of the task ahead of him. He knew, because history tells its own story. Scotland, a team forever on the edge of qualification. Scotland, a team forever on the edge of the next round. Scotland, a team that somehow always contrives to mess it up at the final hurdle.

Last October at Hampden, against Norway coincedentally enough, we saw another example of Scotland in full self-destruct mode.

That game, you might remember, was memorable for several occasions. For one, there was Chris Iwelumo missing an absolute sitter from 5 yards out that your granny could have scored. The Wolves striker, making his debut, found himself in front of goal at the end of a Stephen Naysmith cross. Needing only the gentlest of tap-ins, he made contact with the ball but managed to put it wide of the post from close range.

The other notable event from that game is what followed after the events on the pitch. Or rather, what didn’t, according to Kris Boyd. The Rangers striker, at the time leading scorer in Scotland, frustrated at manager George Burley’s reluctance to play him ahead of Iwelumo, announced his resignation from the national side – while Burley was in charge at least anyway.

Whether or not Boyd would have played the next game against the Dutch is moot, for the end result, a 3-0 defeat, was never in doubt. Kenny Miller, looking lively in the opening exchanges and playing all alone up front in a 4-5-1 missed an early chance that perhaps a more in-form striker, like Boyd for example, might have put away.

But again, Scotland’s ability to push the self-destruct button needed only a few hours after the final whistle to make its appearance.

Following the side’s return to their Loch Lomond training base, several players, including Scott Brown, Alan Hutton, Gary Teale and Rangers trio Steven Whitttaker, Allan McGregor and Barry Ferguson indulged in an apparently sanctioned after-hours drinking session. When this drinking carried on into the early hours, and with guests arriving for breakfast and the players still at the bar, the Scotland management was informed: McGregor and Ferguson where caught propping up the bar, having run up a four-figure bar tab at the Cameron House leisure club, their drinking compatriots having made a dash for the exists when the raid came.

Although the pair eventually apologised for the drinking affair, matters took a turn for the worse when both players where seen to stick up two fingers – the classic ‘V’ sign – at photographers who had assembled around the pair during Scotland’s next game against Iceland. Both had been benched as part of their punishment following the Cameron house incident, but this act of sheer lunacy prompted the SFA to hand out life-bans to both players, meaning that they would not be eligible for selection again for future Scotland internationals, and their club, Rangers, to drop them for the rest of the season (and remember that at this stage, Rangers where still trailing Celtic by three points in the league). Worse for Ferguson was to follow when he was also stripped of the captaincy in favour of veteran defender David Weir.

Since the whole Iceland affair, thing have been quiet around the Scotland camp. There’s been no scandals, no gossip and no dressing room bust-ups. Barry Fergusson has left Scotland for other pastures blue at Birmingham, while Allan McGregor is still fighting to regain his Rangers and Scotland place – David Marshall will take his place between the sticks while Craig Gordon continues to recover from injury.

Tomorrow night, Burley and his merry men travel north to Oslo for another make-or-break tie against a side that, for once, we actually have a good record against. In the ten fixtures that have taken place against Norway – games stretching back to 1978 – Scotland have recorded more victories (4), or, to put it better, only 1 defeat, that coming via a Steffen Iversen’s penalty in 2004 that left Scotland with one point from two games.

With runaway group winners The Netherlands not playing until 9th September (against Scotland no less), it’s up to the remaining teams in the group to play catch-up and fight it out for that coveted second place, and a chance of qualifying for the World Cup as one of the eight best placed group runners-up.

While Scotland find themselves in pole position (for second place anyway), Norway currently lie bottom of the group on three points. They’ve not won a game so far, but have managed to draw 3 of their five games, suggesting perhaps that getting three points may well be a harder task than you might think. So far the Norwegians have lost both their games against The Netherlands and have drawn with Iceland, Macedonia and of course Scotland.

It’s a game that must be won by both sides. Scotland need a win to keep up the fight for that second place. A victory tomorrow would end Norway’s already fading hopes of qualification and set up the Scots for their next crucial game against Macedonia at Hampden, knowing that a win there would all but guarantee second-spot in the group, regardless of the outcome of their final group game against the Dutch at the end of September.

But this is Scotland we’re talking about of course.

A second place finish is all well and good, but our qualification then depends on the fortunes of others, like it did in 1974, when, despite not losing a single of our group games, we needed results elsewhere for us to progress. Back then it needed Zaire to hold off Brazil (they didn’t of course, the Brazilians going through on goal difference), while this year it’s down to Belarus, Kazakhstan and the Auld Enemy, England to give the Scots a chance.

Scotland are currently 8th in the ranking of second placed teams, 2 points ahead of nearest rivals, Group 6 chasers Croatia. The Croatians, who still have a fixture against England to come, and with England starting to blossom under Fabio Capello, it will be down to fellow Group sides Belarus and Kazakhstan to help us out. The omens don’t look good however – both Belarus and Kazakhstan are desperate sides, and should not provide much competition for the Croatians who also have the Ukraine, level on points, breathing down their necks.

For Burley and the boys, the most important result tomorrow is the one that sees them pick up possibly three of the most important points of their campaign, and for Burley only the second time in his 19 month stay as Scotland manager. It’ll be a tough game, but in terms of history in this particular fixture, Scotland have the upper hand. It’s just a shame that once again we’ll need a bit of luck from elsewhere to push us over the finishing line.

And when it comes down to luck, that’s where Scotland always seem to fail.

Scotland, from: Marshall; Hutton, G Caldwell, S Caldwell, Whittaker; Brown, Hartley, D Fletcher; McFadden, Miller, McCormack. Subs Marshall, Langfield, Barr, Berra, Davidson, Maloney, McAllister, G Alexander, Commons, Clarkson, S Fletcher, Naismith.

Venue: Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo Date: Wed, 12 August Kick-off: 1800 BST
Coverage: Live on BBC Two, BBC Radio Scotland, Radio 5 live and BBC Sport website.

For more great writing from Seb, visit insideleft.net...

ArenA Diary (Notes from Holland v Scotland)

It all started out so positively.

A lively start to the game saw our midfield dominate completely, with our two holding midfielders able to close down the opposition and steal the ball from under their feet. Given time on the ball to pause and look for our wingers getting into forward attacking positions, their defence-splitting passes found their target with consummate ease, like a hot knife through butter. With no answer to our incisive, relentless attacking play, it was no wonder that we were 5-0 up at half-time, cruising to a victory our stylish play deserved.

The second half promised more goals, but with another important 'must win' game next week, the manager decided to put the foot on the brake: the defence sat further back allowing the opposition to come forward more, hoping to catch our opponents on the break. But the trust that the manager placed in our two center-backs proved well founded. Apart from two scary moments at the end - a ball through the middle of the park was allowed to get through was followed shortly afterwards by a teasing cross that found its target, both expertly saved by the keeper who, despite the one-sidedness of the game, kept the concentration levels high - we deserved the win.

So that took care of my daughters hockey game. Later on that evening, I had the pleasure of sitting amongst 52,000 Dutch fans in a packed Amsterdam ArenA to watch Scotland get pumped 3-0 by Holland.

I'll not bore you with an intricate breakdown of the game because quite frankly, from my seat - section 117, row E, seat 36, roughly level with the corner flag - I was not up high enough to see the formation throughout the game. Instead, I'll share with you my thoughts as the game progressed.

• Scotland fans are the best in the world. Holland fans are pretty good too. The atmosphere outside the ground before the game was cracking. Lots of booze, lots of men in kilts, lots of men (and women) in orange. No hassle, no fighting, no segregation.
• I nearly cried three times during this game. The first time was when 'Flower of Scotland', the national anthem was played. If I hadn't torn my vocal chords to shreds singing along to '500 Miles' by The Proclaimers just 5 minutes before the anthem was played, you'd have heard me above everyone else.
• The second time I nearly cried was when I heard the Dutch starting eleven.
• Ross McCormack and Nigel de Jong are two of the 'chunkiest' players I've ever seen.
• Jings. That's Arjen Robben. And there's Dirk Kuyt. Klaas-Jan Huntelaar. Oh, and there's Wesley Sneijder and Mark van Bommel. And that's Robin van Persie walking 50 meters from where I'm sitting. I wonder if he can hear me. Robin! Robin! Robin! Roooobiinnn. You're a fanny! Naw, he didn't hear me. Most of row E to A did though. Flying the flag lads, flying the flag.
• Reading the papers after the game, every British paper said that Caldwell's goal should have stood, while every Dutch paper said the goal was rightly disallowed. So much for unbiased reporting.
• It was a poor game for the Dutch also. The result flattered them, the 2-0 coming through poor defending, not classy Dutch play. Aside from those goals, Holland had very few chances.
• I understand now when football pundits describe Dirk Kuyt as some kind of deranged labrador. The man runs around from left to right, up and down and back again chasing, and never quite getting, an imaginary stick.

You can forgive George Burley this game. A squad decimated by injury, patched together at short notice. Injuries to Stephen McManus left Gary Caldwell without his Celtic team-mate in the heart of the defence. Cristophe Berra, formerly of Hearts and now of the Wolves was brought in to replace him, a move fraught with danger as Berra had yet to start a competitive international for Scotland.

On the right, Graham Alexander had a torrid time against Robben and failed to act when Huntelaar got free to score, while Naymsith took over from where Alexander left off when Robben switched wings in the second half. Alan McGregor should have done better with the two goals conceded from open play. There are some that argue that McGregor was impeded for the second goal (I couldn't see from where I was sitting), but one wonders how well Craig Gordon would have dealt with the crosses that McGregor wouldn't come for.

Of the midfield (McCormack, Fletcher, Brown, Ferguson, Teale), only McCormack got time and space, managing to make some progress going forward but the final ball - as always - too poor to be of any use. Teale, I'm ashamed to say, I've never heard of, Fletcher (the only 'top level' player in the squad, shown left) and Brown where both poor, and Kenny Miller should have done better with that chance he had in the opening minutes of the first half.

No-one expected Scotland to win this game. A 3-0 defeat is progress of sorts (it was 6-0 last time out), and the pressure is now on Burley and his men to get a win against Iceland on Wednesday night. Nothing short of victory will do now for Scotland and the hope is that Burley will at least put out an attacking 4-4-2 if he wants to get out of Hampden, let alone the qualifiers alive. The hope is that our defensive options are more plentiful, though you'd have hoped that the back four that lined up against Holland will have less trouble with Iceland.

The only question then is who to bring up front with Miller. McFadden is out, Kris Boyd is still sulking, leaving only Garry O'Connor (himself only just back from injury) or Chris Iwelumo (whose height we could have used on Saturday and whose shameful miss against Norway could mean the difference between getting out of this group or not ).

All is not lost, but we've got to pick up points from the remaining games. Iceland and Macedonia have still come to Hampden, as do Holland in the last game of the qualifiers. By that time we can only hope that there's enough distance between us and the team in third to make the final game against the Dutch a formality. We certainly would not want a repeat of Saturday night at Hampden, otherwise expect the tar and feathers to be out.

Oh, and the third time I nearly cried? That would be towards the end of the game, with 5 minutes to go, 3-0 down, and the stadium starting to empty. From high above me to the right, in amongst the Scotland support, a lone bagpipe could be heard playing 'Flower of Scotland'. It brought a lump to my throat, so it did.

And I make no apologies for that - football does that to you.

Who Are Ya? - The Scotland National Team

There's not many managers who enjoy an international break. Rafa Benitez for example, would be fuming at the temporary halt in league procedings that may at best disrupt Liverpool's cracking run of form or, at worst, give him an injury crisis to deal with. Sir Alex might have different views on this, perhaps using the time to restore calm and, above all, discipline back to Old Trafford. Either way, international breaks are like taxes: a necessary evil, best dealt with quickly and without fuss.

With Scotland due to play Holland in the latest round of 2010 World Cup qualifiers, we take a look at one of the sides in action in the Amsterdam Arena on Saturday as tonight, Matthew, we’re going to be: the Scotland national team.

So, who are ya?
Well, we’re Scotland and we are the oldest national football team in the world. We made our first appearance in a game against England in 1872, a game that ended in a 0-0 draw. Since then we’ve made eight World Cup appearances, qualifying for the first time in 1954 and again in 1958. After a wee absence, we managed to qualify for five World Cup Finals in a row, namely in 1974, 1978, 1982, 1986 and 1990. Although we didn’t qualify in 1994, we did make it to France in ‘98. We’ve also been at the European Championships in 1992 and 1996.

Just don’t ask how we did in all these competitions; Scotland have never qualified for the second round in any tournament they’ve entered.

Any past glories?
The 5-1 win in 1928 by a team later called the 'Wembley Wizards' is as good a place as any to start. There’s Scotland beating newly-crowned world champions England 2-3 at Wembley in 1967. Or how about being undefeated in the ‘74 World Cup, where we lost out on goal difference to Zaire? And beating World Cup winners France twice in last years unsuccessful Euro 2008 qualification rounds wasn’t exactly shabby either. Shame about those defeats to Georgia and Italy though...

Plenty of low points, surely?
Though some say the ‘78 campaign was bad (and it was), two words will sum up Scotland’s international misfortunes better than anything else: “Berti” and “Vogts”. With other national sides getting a foreign manager, Scotland got on the bandwagon and appointed former Germany World Cup-winning captain Berti Vogts as manager in 2002. He started off badly, a trend he continued during his tenure at the helm. Home defeats to Norway and Hungary are forgivable; coming from behind to draw 2-2 away to the Faroe Islands isn’t. Two years, a 1-1 draw to Moldova and a 27-point slide down the FIFA rankings after he became manager, he resigned; Walter Smith took over, results improved and all of Scotland held a party.

Obviously, disappointment at not making the Euro 2008 finals was massive. Good performances against France were offset against struggles with the Faroes, Ukraine and Georgia. No-one expected Scotland to beat Italy, but in the 2-1 defeat in the final game, Scotland showed that they can compete with the very best teams in the world.

However, Jock Stein's fatal heart attack at the end of the 1-1 draw against Wales on the 10th September 1985, a result that guaranteed qualification for the 1986 World Cup, is probably the lowest point in the Tartan Army’s history.

Have you heard of...
Henry Waugh Renny-Tailyour? No? Well, The Royal Engineers player scored Scotland’s first international goal (and also our first away goal) back on the 8th March 1872 in a friendly game against England. It wasn’t all good news though - Scotland lost 4-2.

Or how about Ally McLeod? He took Scotland to Argentina in 1978, whipping up enormous excitement by asserting that Scotland would come back with at least a medal. He started a wave of enthusiasm and pride for the Scottish team that included a UK Top 6 song, 'Ally’s Tartan Army'. Despite going with a strong team that included Kenny Dalglish, Archie Gemmill, Joe Jordan and a young player making his debut in the dark blue shirt, Graeme Souness, upon arriving in Argentina things went from bad to worse.

A 3-1 defeat to Peru in the opening game, followed by a 1-1 draw against Iran meant Scotland had to beat group leaders and 1974 finalists Holland by three clear goals to qualify. They scored three alright, including 'that' cracking solo goal by Archie Gemmill, but the Dutch scored twice, meaning Ally’s Tartan Army were on the first plane home to Prestwick. McLeod only lasted one more game, eventually being replaced by one John ‘Jock’ Stein.

Stand up if you hate...
England have always been our traditional enemies - the 'auld enemy', in fact. Over the years there's been some exciting and hard-fought encounters, but since the British Home Championship (and the annual Scotland versus England game) stopped in 1984, meetings between the two sides have been sporadic, with the last game back in 1999 when Scotland beat England 1-0 at Wembley through a Don Hutchinson goal.

So, what's happening now?
George Burley is Scotland’s 21st manager, taking over from Alex McLeish who left to become manager of then (and soon-to-be again) Premiership side Birmingham. His term as manager got off to a slow start with a 1-1 draw against a strong Croatia team, followed by a 3-1 loss to the Czech Republic. Two friendlies didn't exactly set the heather alight either: a dire 0-0 draw against Northern Ireland and a narrow 1-0 defeat to Argentina showed there was still much work to do.

Burley's focus is now on getting Scotland to qualify for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa - assuming it’s still held there by the time qualification is assured.

With three games played so far in the World Cup qualifying games, Scotland find themselves second in the qualifying group with one win (Iceland 2-1), one draw (Norway 0-0, a game more famous for the incredible miss by Wolves striker Chris Iwelumo from 20cm out) and one defeat (Macedonia 1-0). They take on Holland on Saturday - a team undefeated so far in the group.

What does the future hold?
Even if World Cup qualification is not achieved, Burely has a good squad on which to build. In Craig Gordon and Alan McGregor he’s got two great (and potentially the UK’s most expensive) keepers. If you’re looking for experience, Christian Dailly, Gary Naysmith, Darren Fletcher and Kenny Miller can provide you a backbone from defence to attack. If you’re looking to build on the younger players, Heart of Midlothian’s Christope Berra recently made his debut, as did Cardiff City's Ross McCormack. Birmingham’s James McFadden scored 13 times in his 37 appearances so far. Rangers FC Hall of Fame inductee Barry Ferguson MBE captains the side.

A hot prospect for the future is Hibernian's 21-year old Steven Fletcher, Scottish Football Writers’ Young Player of the Year and top scorer in the Scotland under-19 side which reached the 2006 UEFA Under-19 Football Championship. He’s been tracked by Real Madrid, but it's looking more likely that a move to England is on the cards.

Encouraging to note also is that of the 20 players currently in the U-21 or U-19 sides, only four play for either Celtic or Rangers, suggesting that perhaps the youth system is working at clubs outside of the Old Firm.

The only disappointment so far has been Kris Boyd, currently top scorer in the Scottish Premier League who has vowed never to play again for Scotland while George Burley is in charge.

Anything you'd like to add?
Some interesting trivia for you. Did you know that:

• All the players in that first game against England back in 1872 came from one team, Queens Park?
• Or that up to 1909, Scotland used to play in pink, the colours of the honorary President of the Scottish Football Association, Lord Rosebery?
• Or that Kenny Dalglish is Scotland’s most capped player and is, together with Aberdeen-born Dennis Law, joint top scorer with 30 goals?
• 149,415 people crammed in to Hampden Park to watch Scotland take on England in 1937, an attendance which remains a British record to this date?
• Or that 147,365 people turned up the week before that to see Celtic beat Aberdeen in the Scottish Cup Final and that this is the record attendance for a club match in European and British football?

Lastly, George Burley is the third former Ipswich manager to manage his own country. Your trivia question - who are the other two?

Scottish Football Roundup

With only a few more rounds of games to go before the frankly absurd league split in April, Celtic and Rangers took some time off from putting even more points between them and the rest of the league by competing in this years Scottish League Cup final, also knowns as the 'Co-operative Insurance Cup'.

As always between these sides, it was a mighty stramash with the two goals that won it for Celtic coming late into extra-time. Darren O'Dea got proceedings off to a start when he looped a header over Alan McGregor in the 94th minute, and Aiden McGeady settled the matters from the penalty spot after he was brought down by Rangers' Kirk Broadfoot, who was also sent off for his troubles. The win earns Celtic their 14th League Cup (only 11 wins behind Rangers now in this competition) and some much needed good news for manager Gordon Strachan who had been on the receiving end of criticism from his own fans.

And while the cats are away, the mice do play. With neither of the Old Firm in league action, the teams chasing those all-important third and fourth places where having their day out. Of the teams that make up the top-half of the table, only Aberdeen won this weekend. They eased their way past Hamilton Accies, Chris Maguire getting on the scoresheet on the half-hour mark in a game played in blustery north-east conditions. Aberdeen remain undefeated at home since October of last year, while for the Accies their terrible away form continues - they've recorded only two wins on the road so far this season. They'll be wanting to get themselves into the top half of the table to assure themselves of survival in their first season back in the top flight, but their performances in the league so far have surprised many.

Third-placed Hearts lost out in the Edinburgh derby, going down 1-0 to a Hibernian side desperate to regain some form and remain in the running for that sixth spot come the league split. It was an exciting encounter, with both teams reduced to 10-men before the break. Hearts keeper Janos Balogh was first to the dressing room, if not the ball, as he slid in on Stephen Fletcher - missing him by as much as 30 feet if the Hibs forums are to be believed.

Not long afterwards the red card made its second appearance of the day as Hibs defender Souleymane Bamba was dismissed for bringing down Christian Nadé on the edge of the box. The winning goal for Hibs came courtesy of Stephen Fletcher; the Scotland international attempted a header but he only managed to get his shoulder to it, looping the ball over Balogh's head and into the net. Hearts remain in third place, while Mixu Paateleinen can enjoy his first ever Edinburgh-derby win since becoming manager of Hibs.

Elsewhere, Dundee United's slump continues as they lost 2-1 away to Motherwell. United's season had been going well, the Terrors recovering from a woefull start to the season to fight their way into third spot. But with only three wins from their last ten matches (and all of those coming against teams from the bottom half of the table), United have slipped back to fifth spot, level on poins with New Firm rivals Aberdeen.

For Motherwell, the season is finally beginning to pick up after a poor start and early elimination from European competition. John Sutton fired the Steelmen into the lead on the half-hour, Francisco Sandaza equalized for United after the restart, but the points where secured when Dave Clarkson, Motherwell's top scorer this season scored with a header from close range.

Terry Butcher continues to do what he does best, namely saving teams from impending relegation. Since taking over at Inverness Caley Thistle, he's steered the club out of the relegation spot with wins over Hibs, Rangers and, now for the second time, Kilmarnock. All the goals where scored in the first half; Foran and Black put Caley 2-0 up with only 20 minutes played. Simon Ford got a goal for Killie just before the break.

That's it for now, results and table are here.

If there's a topic about Scottish football you would like us to cover, whether it's a team or player profile, a season in review or just anything to do with the game north of the border, drop us a comment and we'll get right on it!

Cigarette Cards

In the days before the Internet, Sky TV, cinemas, newspapers and Panini stickers, getting information and even pictures of your favourite players was hard to do. Up until the Second World War, cigarette cards where the only source of information.

Before the turn of the 19th century, a time when cigarettes were wrapped in paper packets, cigarette manufacturers began inserting pieces of card to protect the contents, quickly realising that these would be useful for advertising their products. The early part of the last century, roughly between 1920 and 1930, was the heyday of cigarette card issues, when virtually every packet contained a little picture. Major companies like Wills and Players had their own studios and artists devoted entirely to the production of cigarette cards. It was big business, and massive print-runs often ran into hundreds of millions for each series. Soon these were followed by pictorial sequences which would build up in to sets. The object was to encourage repeat purchases and establish brand loyalty, and the subjects chosen were those most likely to appeal to the predominantly male customer base. Beautiful young women, sportsmen and soldiers dominated the earliest series, followed by ever more diverse topics in the early 20th century as companies competed for trade by offering something new.

Between 1910 and 1940 tobacco importers W.D. & H.O. Wills and cigarette manufactures such as W.A. & A.C. Churchman and John Player and Sons (known simply as “Players”) launched a series of cards in the UK featuring many of the great names in football including several notable Scottish players of that era, players such as Newcastle´s Tom McDonald and Bob McKay, Chelsea´s Andy Wilson, John McClelland of Middlesbrough, Coventry´s William McDonald and Alex James and George Mutch of Preston North End to name but a few.

In the first of an occasional series looking at some of the Scottish players lucky enough to get their own cigarette card, we put the spotlight on two of Scotland’s finest players from days gone by.

Alex Jackson

Alex Skinner Jackson was born in 1905 in Renton, a town in an area with considerable football pedigree. He signed for Dumbarton in 1922 at the age of sixteen but emigrated to America soon afterwards to join his brother at works team Bethlehem Steel in Pennsylvania. Aberdeen manager Pat Travers managed to convince Alex and his brother Walter to return to Scotland, paying £100 for the pair and in the summer of 1924 the Jackson brothers took the field for Aberdeen. Alex Jackson only stayed with Aberdeen for one season when Herbert Chapman paid the Dons £5000 to entice Jackson to Huddersfield.

He was a big hit with the Terriers, helping them to retain the league title in his first season, as well as two losing FA Cup Finals. In the 180 appearances Jackson made for Huddersfield between 1925 and 1930 he scored 70 goals. He was sold to Chelsea in 1930 for £8500 and stayed there for two years, scoring twenty-nine goals in seventy-seven appearances. A self described freelance footballer available for hire to the highest bidder, Jackson was approached by French side Nîmes with an offer to play for them. Jackson preferred to stay with Chelsea but with the club unwilling to match the wages offered Jackson for fear of breaking their own wage structure, Jackson became disillusioned with league football and gradually drifted out of football, first concentrating on his pub in St Martin’s Lane and playing for Ashton National in Manchester before finishing his football career with Margate and Nice in the south of France.

An outside-left in old terminology (we’d call him a ‘winger’ today) his devastating pace earned him the nickname ‘The Flying Scotsman’ and his immortality was assured when he scored a hat-trick at Wembley in the famous “Wembley Wizards” international of 1928 when Scotland beat England 5-1. By the time he was thirty-one (young for players of that era), he had effectively retired from football. Jackson joined the Army, rising to the rank of Major and was killed in 1946 when the truck he was driving skidded and overturned. He was forty-one.

Hugh Gallagher

When Alex Jackson arrived at Chelsea in 1930 he was met by fellow ‘Wembley Wizard’ Hugh Kilpatrick Gallagher, at that stage at the top of his career. Gallagher, a son of Ulster working-class brought up in the tradition of the Orange Order, was born two years before Jackson in Bellshill, North Lanarkshire. He joined Queen of the South in 1921 and stayed with them for only one season having scored nineteen goals in the nine games he played, cementing a reputation as a deadly centre-forward with a “first time shot of a deadly nature”. A move to Airdrieonians saw Gallagher win the first of his twenty caps for Scotland against Northern Ireland. In 1925 Newcastle bought Gallagher for £8500 hoping that the 100 goals he scored in his time at Airdrie would help them retain their dominance in the league.

He scored on his debut against Everton and continued scoring eventually becoming that seasons top scorer despite having joined more than halfway through the season. Gallagher was part of a growing Scottish contingent at Newcastle; the side that won the league in 1927 contained a fair share of Scots, players such as Willie Wilson, Alf Maitland, Roddie McKenzie, Willie Gibson, Bob McKay, Tom McDonald and Jim Park and Jim Boyd. Gallagher himself scored five hat-tricks in that league-winning season and was well on the way to become a legend on Tyneside, as children in the streets could be heard singing

dýa ken Hughie Gallagher, the wee Scotch lad?
The finest centre-forward Newcastle ever had.

When Newcastle sold him to Chelsea in 1930 for £25,000 at the behest of the directors and manager Andy Cunningham (and behind Gallagher’s back) he joined up with fellow Scots and former Aberdeen players, Alex Jackson and Alex Cheyne. Despite Gallagher being top scorer in each of his seasons at the London club, Chelsea failed to win silverware.

A short man with an even shorter fuse, Gallagher could have had a career in the ring as a light-welterweight, but choose football over boxing. Not always liked by his fellow professionals (many under instruction, by any means, to stop Gallagher from scoring) he was nevertheless adored by the crowds. While playing for Chelsea, Gallagher’s drink problems got worse, as did his police record. Declared bankrupt in 1934, he was sold to Derby where he played for two years.

His scoring touch did not desert him, racking up over fifty goals in forty appearances for the Rams. Controversy followed him to Derby also when the club was investigated for illegal signing on fees paid to Gallagher. Although Hughie was never implicated, manager George Jobey received a lengthy ban. Spells at Notts County and Grimbsy followed before he returned to the north-east and Gateshead where his appearances still drew massive crowds. “Wee Hughie of the Magic Feet” played his last game as a professional footballer the day before the Second World War broke out.

Following his retirement from the game, Gallagher occasionally played charity games into his fifties with old pal Alex James. When his wife died in 1950, Gallagher was left with a family to look after. Following a domestic incident which resulted in his children being taken into care, Gallagher, unable or unwilling to face the embarrassing legal proceedings for the maltreatment of his sons, he threw himself in front of the York-Edinburgh express train in June 1957. His decapitated body was found later at Dead Men’s Crossing at Low Fell. He was fifty-four years old.

Hughie Gallagher was truly one of the greats of the game. In his 20 caps for Scotland, Gallagher averaged a goal per game. His twenty-three goals is only bettered by two other legends of the Scottish game, Kenny Dalglish and Denis Law.

The Scottish Football Weekend Gala Roundup

When I was first asked to write about the Scottish game for SPAOTP, I made it quite clear that predictions where not my thing. I mean, just look at my desperate attempts in this weeks 'Four to Follow'. The only game I got right was the Inter v AC game, and that based on no other insightful punditry other than that - in my opinion - Inter have a nicer shirt than AC.

In another case of over-hyping a fixture, this Sunday's Old Firm derby - about which I waxed lyrical earlier on in the week and predicted a home win - turned out to be a massive disappointment. Sure, there where all the things you'd expect to see in one of these games (controversial decisions by a referee making his Old Firm début, a goal-line stooshie and plenty of bookings) yet the game never really became the end-to-end affairs that meetings between these two teams generally serve up.

Celtic maintain their lead - however slender - while Rangers should feel aggrieved at the penalty not awarded in the second half. Aside from the referee, two others made their first appearance in an Old Firm game: John Fleck made Walter Smith's starting line-up, as did Willo Flood for Celtic. Both played a decent game, but neither remained on the pitch for the entire game, with Fleck substituted for Kenny Miller, while Flood made way for Aiden McGeady. There's one more Old Firm fixture to come this season; we can only hope that there's still the two points between them when they meet again - it should make for a more exciting game than the one yesterday.

By far and away the best goal at the weekend (and possibly the season) was Aberdeen's goal scored at Tynecastle in their 2-1 defeat against Hearts. Darren Mackie, who recently signed a new contract with the Dons got onto the end of a defence-splitting pass delivered by Charlie Mulgrew from the half-way line to volley the ball past Hearts keeper Balogh from the edge of the area. As Mottie would have said: oooh, I say! Aberdeen went on to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, conceding two sloppy goals including one that took me back to a funny incident during my years in goal for my school football team, and which involved a particularly large seagull, a right-back who was not looking where he was going and the old football cliché of 'playing to the whistle'.

Elsewhere, leading Falkirk 2-1 with six minutes to go, it looked as if St. Mirren could finally hang out the bunting to celebrate the first win at their new stadium. It was not to be though, as a handball in the area by Jack Ross had Falkirk's Scott Arfield scoring from the penalty spot to level the scores and a share of the points.

Former Wolves and Reading manager Mark McGhee' has been suffering second season blues with his side, Motherwell. The Steelmen finished third in the SPL last season to round of a great campaign. Their subsequent adventures in European football are best forgotten (a first round exit to French mid-tablers Nancy) and they've been finding this season tough going. A poor run of form at the beginning of the season saw Motherwell struggling near the bottom of the table for long spells, but lately they've been finding their form again. That good form continued on Saturday with a win against Hamilton Accies in the Lanarkshire Derby. A single goal by David Clarkson. was enough to secure the three points.

Derek Riordan continues to do for Hibernian what he failed to do for Celtic, namely score goals. His first-half strike against Kilmanock on Saturday was deflected off Manuel Pascali into the net past Alan Combe. Riordan's effort would eventually be cancelled out by a Jamie Hamill goal with fifteen minutes left to go. Kilmarnock might have won the game had Connor Sammon, deployed alone up front in a Killie side ravaged by injury and suspension not missed from six yards out. The game ended one goal apiece,and Kilmarnock's elusive search for their first win in the league since the end of December (ironically a 4-2 win against Hibernian) continues.

Terry Butcher nearly won his first away game with his new side, Inverness Caley. Thistle got off to a good start, taking the lead through former United player Eric Odhiambo with fifteen minutes on the clock. Things looked to be getting even better for Butcher as United where reduced to 10-men, but substitute Andis Shala, with pretty much his first touch of the ball provided a cross for Lee Wilkie to squeeze the ball over the Inverness goal-line for a share of the points.

A special mention goes out this week to troubled Second division side Stranraer. Effectively living on a week-to-week basis, it is uncertain whether the club will survive to the end of the season when the club hopes to launch a share issue to raise much needed funds. However, judging by the shockingly low attendance at Saturdays game, the Stranraer board may want to consider alternative means to raise money - a crowd of only 277 turned up to watch The Clayholers get pumped 5-1 by Arbroath.

With a monthly wage bill of around £20,000 per month, Stranraer's survival chances where rated at being no more than 50%. But a group of the clubs supporters have come together to help secure the future of the club. The "Save Stranraer FC" campaign, whose focus is to pay the outstanding creditors as a first step towards securing the long-term future of the club, raised over £1,500 in the first week of campaigning; the group now estimate the club's chances of survival to be around the 90% mark, but a lot of work still needs to be done. Despite the overall future of the club looking a little more secure, the future of Stanraer as a Second division side looks anything but: Saturday's heavy defeat leaves them 11 points adrift at the bottom of the table.

Right, that's it for now. If there's any aspect of the game from 'the ither part o' Britain' you'd like us to cover, leave a comment and we'll get right on it!

The Old Firm Derby, #382

There are many great derby games in the world of football.

In Portugal, there's the Lisbon derby between Benfica and Sporting. In Italy, you have AS Roma and Lazio. Argentina's Boca Juniors against River Plate is always a fiery encounter, and there's no love lost between Rio's Flamengo and Fluminense, or for that matter, between the two giants of Turkish football, Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe.

But it is in Glasgow that you'll find one of the oldest, and most fiercely contested derby games in world football today. The two teams involved are no longer the power they once where in world football, when, in the sixties and seventies, Glasgow Celtic and Glasgow Rangers won European silverware to add to their already impressive collection of domestic honours. That's not to say that the rivalry that was created in the earlier part of the century has in any way waned over the years - there's no such thing as a meaningless fixture between these two sides.

What makes the Glasgow derby stand out from the others is that the rivalry is based not just on economics (such as the Flamengo and Fluminense derby), or politics (right-wing Lazio against left-wing Roma) or culture (CSKA Sofia, the team of the intellectuals against Levski, the team representing the working man), but a combination of some of those, with a dash of religion thrown in. Celtic, the team with the poor Irish Catholic background, against the staunchly Protestant, unionist, prosperous Rangers.

Its hard to believe that from the very first fixture, played in 1888 in such good spirit that one commentator at the time was inspired to write that the teams "got on so well that you would believe that they were old firm friends", the game has somehow mutated into the tense affair it is now. The teams certainly started out with quite a close relationship, playing many friendlies in front of huge gates. But like all good things, this relationship came to an end as the games became bitter, hard-fought encounters with pitch invasions, mass brawls, arrests - even deaths. An activist group that monitors sectarian activity in Glasgow has reported that on Old Firm weekends, admissions to hospital emergency rooms increase nine-fold over normal levels, and journalist Franklin Foer noted in his book, "How Soccer Explains the World", in the period from 1996 to 2003, eight deaths in Glasgow were directly linked to Old Firm matches.

Season 2008/09
In the first encounter between the two sides earlier on in the current season, it was two goals from Kenny Miller, a former Celtic and Rangers player back in his second spell at the Ibrox side that helped Rangers win 4-2 at Parkhead. Celtic got their revenge in the return fixture just after Christmas - a single goal by Scott McDonald proved enough in a game played in treacherous conditions.

There's a lot to play for - as always - in tomorrow's fixture: whoever wins, goes top of the Scottish Premier League. Celtic and Rangers lead the table by 15 points from the team in third, Dundee United, so let there be no doubt that one of these two teams will win the league.

Players to watch
Normally it is the league's top scorer Kris Boyd who gets all the focus, but should he play on Sunday, it's 17 year-old John Fleck who may well be the one to make the headlines. He's only played a few games since breaking through to the first team last year, but already he's been widely tipped for a glittering career. There's even talk of a Scotland call-up against Holland next month. An attacking midfielder, he follows in the footsteps of his uncle Robert Fleck, who also played for Rangers before moving south to Norwich. Manager Walter Smith reckons Fleck is ready to make his Old Firm debut, but it's a lot of pressure to heap on a player this young - this is no ordinary game.

Prediction
Predicting the outcome of any Old Firm Derby is tricky; the first thing to do when trying to work out who will win is to throw the form guide of out the window and hope you've got a decent referee who can handle the pressure. We predicted a Celtic win in our 'Four To Follow' competition if only for the fact that Celtic are at home and that Kris Boyd, for all his 20 goals cannot seem to score in the big games. So, a Celtic win - but only just.

Celtic v Rangers
Sunday 15 January 2009
Venue: Celtic Park
Kick-off: 12.30 GMT

Shirt Legend: Scotland (home)

Way back in February this year, Some People Are On The Pitch launched its first ever Shirt Legend poll. In it, we asked you to vote for what you thought was the best England home shirt ever worn since 1964, and the response we got was fantastic. To date, we've received 164 votes and the poll remains open so if you haven't voted yet, make sure you do soon!

As you may have guessed by now, we love anything to do with football kits and football shirts here at SPAOTP, so you can imagine how pleased we are to finally bring you our second Shirt Legend poll. This time, we want you to vote for the greatest ever Scotland home shirt worn since 1964.

It's exactly the same as our England poll - we show you all the home shirts Scotland have worn over the last 44 years, we tell you a little bit about them and then you choose the one you like best. Simple.

So here are the all-important 16 shirts as worn by the Scottish national team since 1964. Click on the image below to see a larger version...

[Image removed pending replacement]

It all begins with Shirt A, which, for many, will be an all-time favourite due to its simplicity and no-nonsense styling. We think it was made by Umbro (as they were the kit suppliers of choice for most of the British countries back then) and it has a simple white round neck and white cuffs to compliment that famous dark blue.

It was replaced in 1973 by Shirt B which featured a proper white pointy collar and a white triangle below the neck. The look was pretty typical of many countries' shirts at the time and looked a little more up-to-date than its predecessor.

Then in 1976 came a bold move into the world of commercialism as Umbro rolled out a design feature which was to become ubiquitous in British football until the start of the 1980's. As you can see from Shirt C, it consisted of twin white lines running from the shoulders down the sleeves to the cuffs, between which was a repeated Umbro 'diamond' logo, also in white. The pointy collar remained, but that sleeve design was one you either loved or hated...

To see the difference between the Scotland home shirt of 1980 and the one before it, you need to look quite carefully. There was hardly any change at all in reality, but Shirt D found itself without the white triangle below the neck while all around it remained the same.

A more dramatic change occurred in 1982 when Scotland again qualified for the World Cup and a new Umbro shirt was unveiled (Shirt E). The slinky silk-like material which was already in use by companies such as Adidas had had finally arrived, and with it came a double white v-neck and some white piping below the shoulders too. The modern era had finally arrived.

A year before the next World Cup, Umbro changed things around again as a round neck was preferred for the first time since 1973 (albeit a stylised one) and the white piping was altered too (see Shirt F). On its own it looked simply effective, but with the accompanying white shorts (featuring a broad navy blue band just below the waist), it looked altogether more startling.

Three years later and Umbro went for a very modern, sleek look (Shirt G). A modern, traditional white collar with a red insert topped it off and the shade of navy blue used was ever-so-slightly different as well (from what we can make out). There was also a new badge to replace the circular ones of old and the Umbro badge changed from white to yellow. Yet again, the accompanying shorts added to the overall effect of the shirt, but we won't concern ourselves with them as you're voting on the shirt alone, of course!

Shirt H looks more like a continuation of the styling seen up to the arrival of Shirt G. The old navy blue colour was back and there was some funny white flashes on the sleeves which were typical of the early-90's which this one comes from. Not sure about that collar and the white thing below it, though...

If you're talking about radical redesigns, Shirt I from 1994 is probably the most radical of the lot. Forget fancy lines or modern collars - forget white shorts, even. This was an all blue strip and one which had a single overriding design feature that really caught the eye: tartan. It was another of those stark 'love it or hate it' shirts which really shocked a lot of people when it was launched, but if the players needed reminding who they were playing for, that subtle tartan pattern should have done the job easily.

Its replacement in 1996 had its feet firmly planted in the old design school (Shirt J). No eye-catching patterns this time, but there was now a noticeable use of red around the collar and in the piping running the length of the shirt. There were also some bold white bands on the sleeves to accompany that bold white collar. A little messy, some might say, but at least it was a real contrast from the one before.

In 1998, Umbro released its last Scotland home strip, seen at the World Cup that year (see Shirt K). Out went the red colouring and back came the simple navy blue and white. There was an understated v-neck collar as the main focal point of what was a generally understated shirt anyway, and that was about it.

The new millennium saw a change of manufacturer as Fila took over from Umbro as Scotland's kit supplier. The company, founded in Italy, began with a simple design (Shirt L) that had a v-neck, white trim and white under-arm panels. It bore a passing resemblance to the World Cup '82 shirt, only it pushed the levels of simplicity even further to the extreme.

For the 2002 update, Fila created a new shirt (Shirt M) that was a combination of two different eras. Around the neck was the 'white-wings-and-triangle' collar that came straight from the 1970's, and on the navy blue body was a series of white pinstripes that were redolent of the early 80's. The mix of devices was a curious one and came on the back of a retro revival not long before its launch.

In retrospect, Scotland fans didn't get much of a chance to admire this design as it was replaced only a year later with something from a different Italian company, Diadora. As you can see, Shirt N shows a return to a plain navy blue body but with two white panels widening from the top of the shoulders towards the area under the arms. There was also a small white triangle below the round neck, all of which made for a smart, dare we say 'popular' bit of styling.

If Diadora had found the right balance between modernity and tradition, their second offering in 2005 lurched full-tilt towards the former (see Shirt O). A strange white band had suddenly appeared along the left shoulder and that, apart from some subtle white piping down the sides, was all there was. It made up part of a quirky asymmetrical design which continued on the shorts and socks. One sided games, maybe, but one-sided kits?

Finally, we come fully up-to-date with Shirt P. Last year, Diadora did that rarest of things - make the whole Scotland strip navy blue, but that wasn't the only thing to note about it. To contrast with the blue, they used not white, not red, but gold. The colour was used sparingly yet noticeably in the piping along the shoulders and on the cuffs as well as on the numbering to give their most recent offering a curious appearance.

So which of those shirts really lights your candle? Is there a simple, classic design from way back that puts a tick in your box, or do you prefer one of the strange, left-field offerings from more recent times? We'd really like to know, so make your selection using the facility below, and if you've got time tell us which ones you particular like or dislike by leaving a comment. We look forward to hearing from you!

Which Scotland home shirt worn since 1964 do you like best?
	Shirt A
	Shirt B
	Shirt C
	Shirt D
	Shirt E
	Shirt F
	Shirt G
	Shirt H
	Shirt I
	Shirt J
	Shirt K
	Shirt L
	Shirt M
	Shirt N
	Shirt O
	Shirt P
Free polls from Pollhost.com

It's a sad, sad situation

It doesn't get any better for Scottish football fans. As if failing to qualify for Euro 2008 at the latest possible moment wasn't bad enough, now they find that their inspirational leader Alex McLeish has resigned and won't be there to begin the 2010 World Cup qualifying campaign.

It's a shame as the Scottish FA must have considered itself lucky to have appointed McLeish the last time they were in this situation on January 10th of this year when Walter Smith resigned. Under Smith's guidance, Scotland seemed to be pointing in the right direction once again, despite failing to qualify for the 2006 World Cup. After an excellent start to the Euro 2008 campaign which included a 1-0 home win against France, Scotland soon found themselves seventy places higher up the FIFA rankings than when Smith arrived.

When Smith left, however, it seemed as though the momentum Smith he'd brought to the team needed to be maintained at a time when it was needed most. Many fans could have been excused for thinking that their luck wouldn't stretch to seeing the appointment of an equally capable successor, but Alex McLeish soon arrived and before long it was 'business as usual'. Scotland seemed to go from strength to strength, maintaining their place near or at the top of Euro 2008 qualifying Group B and a win over France at the Parc des Princes gave hope of a place in the Finals.

Sadly once again the hopes of the nation were dashed as Scotland missed out on qualification by a single point, but many fans knew that hope remained of future success as long as that hard-fought-for momentum could be maintained. How depressed they must feel now McLeish has been lured back to club football just like his predecessor.

All of which leaves me feeling a little perplexed. Fundamentally one side of my brain is crying out for a Scottish coach that wants to get his team to the finals of a major competition, while the other is savvy enough to realise that a pay cheque four times the size of the one the SFA were offering is just what you need to pay off all those nasty household bills.

I've got to admit to being more than a little disappointed in McLeish though. His spell as coach of Scotland's football team lasted just ten matches which didn't even cover an entire qualification campaign. Being a Scotsman, you'd think it would be your ultimate dream to try and steer the football team of your homeland to glory and success, and yet the lure of the Premier League - and not even a top Premier League club in Birmingham City (no offence intended) - has proven a higher priority for him.

So how do the SFA avoid this happening for a third successive time in future? Well they should start looking for some wealthy private investors for a start. Any generous donations from people like Billy Connolly, Sean Connery or Jackie Stewart might be warmly welcomed as that could be the only way to tempt McLeish's successor to stay in the position.

Secondly, appointing someone who has no desire to manage in the Premier League or SPL would be useful. What about someone who already has done? Suitable names that spring to mind are Jim Jeffries, the 57-year-old Kilmarnock manager who has done wonders on a shoestring budget and would consider this a fitting end to his career, Sir Alex Ferguson, who, let's face it, has done all he can at Man United and might be tempted by a less intense way to ease into retirement, or even Kenny Dalglish who's been there, tried it and didn't like it much.

Paul Sturrock and Craig Levein have had some success at club level but could be considered an unknown quantity in an international context. Graeme Souness? Hardly a bankable success, I'd have thought.

Wait a minute… it says here that the SFA will look into potential candidates regardless of whether they currently hold a managerial position or not. That means it could be someone who's currently managing elsewhere. Well there you are, then - problem solved… go for Gordon Strachan. They'll be able to tempt him with the money gained from the £1 million in compensation Birmingham City may cough up, so what are you waiting for Scotland? Get on the phone to Gordon and tell him 'we sent for you.' He'll understand...

Not the end, just the beginning...

If you were in any doubt, it seems there is no justice in this world. On the one hand you have Scotland, a team who have proven to be formidable opposition to the likes of France, Italy and Ukraine and on the other you have England, a team that have regularly failed to convince its supporters that it can beat anyone, regardless of stature.

For Scotland, sadly, qualification to Euro 2008 is now no longer possible. The 2-1 defeat to Italy on Saturday was enough to give their opponents enough points to edge out the Scots, and yet in that game, as with so many others during this competition, the Scottish players have shown enough creativity, fighting spirit and a will to win to almost earn a place in the Finals on merit alone.

For England, however, things no longer look quite as gloomy thanks to Israel's 2-1 win over Russia. Where previously the nation braced itself for the imminent elimination that a win for the Russians would have brought, now, rather surprisingly, a chance to qualify has reappeared. All England need to do is secure at the very least a draw at home to Croatia on Wednesday night and they can book their flight to Austria and Switzerland next year.

Frankly, the whole situation leaves me feeling a bit frustrated. If England had played as well as Scotland have done and were denied qualification to the Finals, I'd be feeling pretty bereft right now, and yet here I am supporting an England team lacking in sufficient levels of skill and desire that could well be taking their place.

My only hope is that McLaren's men call on their deepest reserves to play in the manner which we all want to see - that of a team which is strong in ability and ambition, one that wants to show the world that it can be the best in Europe.

Aside from the commiserations I pass onto the Scotland team and all its supporters, I have a message of hope for you. This Sunday, FIFA makes its Preliminary Round Draw for the 2010 World Cup and it's there that Scotland will find out which opponents they'll face as they attempt to qualify for the Finals in three years time. Regardless of who ends up in their group, I feel that Alex McLeish can get his team through to the 2010 World Cup, as long as he can continue the momentum that has carried his team thus far over the last couple of years.

I've no doubt that what we saw on Saturday wasn't the end of a sorry tale, merely the end of the beginning. If Scotland's trend of gradual improvement continues as it has every chance of doing, the end of the story will be a glorious one, not the rain-soaked affair we witnessed last weekend.

The Friday List of Little or No Consequence #38

The Tartan Standard
25 Players That Made 50 Or More Appearances For Scotland

1. Kenny Dalglish : 102 (1971-1986)
2. Jim Leighton : 91 (1982-1998)
3. Alex McLeish : 77 (1980-1993)
4. Paul McStay : 76 (1983-1997)
5. Tom Boyd : 72 (1990-2001)
6. Willie Miller : 65 (1975-1989)
7. Christian Dailly : 66 (1997-)
8. Danny McGrain : 62 (1973-1982)
9. Richard Gough : 61 (1983-1993)
10. Ally McCoist : 61 (1985-1998)
11. David Weir : 60 (1997-)
12. John Collins : 58 (1988-1999)
13. Roy Aitken : 57 (1979-1991)
14. Gary McAllister : 57 (1990-1999)
15. Denis Law : 55 (1958-1974)
16. Maurice Malpas : 55 (1984-1992)
17. Billy Bremner : 54 (1965-1975)
18. Graeme Souness : 54 (1974-1986)
19. George Young : 53 (1946-1957)
20. Alan Rough : 53 (1976-1986)
21. Kevin Gallacher : 53 (1988-2001)
22. Joe Jordan : 52 (1973-1982)
23. Colin Hendry : 51 (1993-2001)
24. Asa Hartford : 50 (1972-1982)
25. Gordon Strachan : 50 (1980-1992)

GB or not GB?

Whether you knew it or not, yesterday was a notable date in the sporting calendar. Why? Because exactly five years on from July 27th 2007, the 2012 Olympic Games will begin in London.

Those of us living in London are by now aware of the plans which are well underway to build or upgrade the venues for each event, to say nothing of encouraging ordinary people to take up a sport which, five years down the line, they might even represent Great Britain in.

One event which should be of interest to the British is the Men's Soccer tournament. The trouble is that Great Britain haven't had a team of its own taking part since 1960. This is because the constituent parts of Great Britain, i.e. England, Scotland, Wales along with Northern Ireland, are all represented individually within FIFA. If they played together as a combined Great Britain team in the Olympics, FIFA would suggest they do so for all competitions.

This is something the four British nations would be reluctant to do. As things currently stand, they each have a guaranteed position as Vice President of the FIFA Management Committee and make up half of the International Football Association Board - the body that annually reviews the laws of the game.

The thing is, Great Britain, as hosts of the 2012 Olympics, would be expected to field a team in as many of the events it would be staging - including the Soccer tournament. What's the solution then?

Well some say there should be a tournament before the Olympics begin where the winning team from England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland should represent Great Britain as a unit in the Games. It seems not entirely satisfactory, but with the approval of all four parties, it might just work.

Certainly Scotland have pulled out of any plan that would see a Great Britain team made up of players from all four countries, so something needs to be done. If you have any ideas, send them to us at ivecomeupwithasolution@spaotp.com and we'll feed them back to you before forwarding them on to FIFA and the IOC. Possibly.

Meantime, it's good fun to think about which players would feature in a 'perfect' Great Britain team. So many great players and so much talent - it could easily be a side that would give the Brazils and Italys a run for their money in this day and age.

Overlooking the real-world technicalities for putting together an Olympic football team (i.e. all except three of the players must be under the age of 23), let's consider who would be in your Great Britain line-up if you had the chance to pick it.

We've put together a list* of all the squad players from the last three international matches played by England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, and what you must do is pick those that you'd have in your Great Britain XI. To make the exercise a little more interesting, we impose one rule: that you must represent each of the four countries with at least two players.

Download the list and have a go. Once you've picked your team, leave us a comment detailing who's in it with perhaps a brief description of why you've picked them. (Oh and before any of you say so, Ryan Giggs isn't included on account of the fact that he's now retired from international football. Sorry about that...)

Well don't just sit there - what are you waiting for?!? :-)

* In Adobe PDF format. To download the Adobe PDF Reader, click here.

Beating Georgia Makes Scotland World Champions

Guest writer: Flicktokick

Now I know what you are thinking; Italy are the Official World Champions and you could perhaps claim some spurious right to proclaim yourselves unofficial World Champions by beating them, but simply being top of their qualifying group doesn’t cut the mustard and neither does saying ‘France beat Italy and we beat France’. Of course you're right, but that isn’t the root of Scotland’s claim to the title.

No, Scotland can claim the title based on a system dating back to the very first international match played out between Scotland and England at the West of Scotland Cricket Ground in November 1872. That game ended in a draw, but at Kennington Oval in March of the following year England beat Scotland 4-2 and as the only two international teams of the time, England could naturally be seen as the first Unofficial World Champions.

From that date, following a system akin to boxing, where every game the holder of the title plays is seen as a defence of the crown, the path of the unofficial championship can be charted.

At the conclusion of qualifying for Germany 2006 Uruguay were the incumbents and having failed to qualify, the unofficial title was not up for grabs.

Instead, the title changed hands when Georgia beat Uruguay in a friendly in November 2006, and as a subsequent draw kept the championship in Georgian hands, Craig Beattie’s last gasp winner on Saturday gave Scotland their first claim on the throne since the Law and Baxter inspired triumph forty years ago.

So onto tonight and a chance for Italy to unify the unofficial and official titles for the first time since France managed the feat in 1998. Of course there is the chance that Scotland will retain the crown, we certainly have the track record. The records show that although we are second in number of times we have won the crown (England are one up on that score), Scotland has defended it more successfully than any other.


And you can keep track of who the Unofficial Football World Champions are at any time by visiting http://www.ufwc.co.uk/.

The Walter Smith Effect

Hearty congratulations to Scotland who, it was announced today, have risen four places to 16th in this month's FIFA World Rankings.

Nothing particularly grand to note there, you may think, but when former manager Walter Smith was in charge two years ago, Scotland were languishing in 88th position. In just two years, Scotland have improved to the tune of 72 positions, and that, we think, is pretty incredible.

The big question mark for Scotland fans is that since their side last played in October 2006, Walter Smith has left his post to return to the manager's role at Rangers. He's since been replaced by Alex McLeish who, like Smith, has enjoyed some success at Rangers but must now prove he can be just as big a hit in charge of the national side too.

McLeish's first big test will be the double-header of Euro 2008 qualifiers coming up at the end of March 2007 when Scotland play hosts to Georgia and travel away to Italy. The Scots lead qualifying group B on goal difference ahead of France after three games so a good start has been made, but can the former Aberdeen defender keep up the good work put in by his predecessor?

Keep checking the FIFA World Rankings list to find out...

The 'Scotland / Not England' Thread

As regular visitors will know, we've recently been looking into the fortunes of the England football team during the 1970's and some of you I hope will be pleased to know that the fourth and final part of that series will be appearing on SPAOTP in the next few days.

In the course of reading the feedback to part 2 of England In The 70's, however, an interesting discussion transpired. It turns out that one of our loyal visitors, Flicktokick, is a Scotland supporter and as such gave us an insight into his regard for the Scotland sides that participated in the 1974 and 1978 World Cups as well as pondering on what the future holds for his team.

As someone who's only ever supported England and only ever known other people that also supported England, I found it fascinating to hear what a non-English person thought of their national side.

Because the conversation has been developing at a great pace, I thought it was about time we started up a thread specifically to talk about Scotland and other international teams beyond the English frontier. If you're a visitor to SPAOTP and you follow a footballing country that isn't England, why not leave us a comment and tell us your story? We'll be glad to hear your feedback!

To start the comments bit of this thread, then, I've published Flicktokick's last comment from part 2 of England In The 70's, in which he talks about Scotland's qualification for the 2006 World Cup. My comments will be added after... feel free to add yours too!