SCO vs BRA

My first memories of World Cup football are Mexico ’86. After Jock Stein died at the end of the qualifying match against Wales the previous year, some bloke called Alex Ferguson took over as manager. Not sure what happened to him after that though.

Scotland, as usual, didn’t make it out of the group stage back then, in fact the closest we’ve managed was in 1974, the year after I was born, where we lost out on goal difference by one goal. We were unbeaten in the group stage though, one win, two draws.

I write all this with the usual Scottish head over heart battle. My head, and the form guide, says Brazil will beat us. Which suggests then that I am hoping they don’t beat us by more than a goal and that’s not far from the truth.

My heart thinks but wait, we’ve shown tiny glimpses of promise, a couple of different bounces of the ball and we’d have equalised with Morocco after all, right?

Ahhh to be a Scotland fan, the hope, the build up, the maybe maybe maybe ness of it all.

So I will stay up late tonight —thankfully only for an 11pm kickoff— and hope and pray we get a little bit of Narey, a lot of Gemmill, and yet somehow I already know I will end up pinning my Scottish dreams on Hanley and Gunn. The script is there waiting to be written, but can we pick up the pen? Will the real McTominay step forward, will Meatball McGinn smash in another deflected shot? Will Ben Gannon-Doak finally provide a PlayStation-esque solo dribble and scorching top corner goal in the dying seconds to win us the game?

We are poised. We have a chance. We’ve only been this close once before —52 years ago!— so this is possibly, literally, actually, a once in a lifetime opportunity (at the very least a once in MY lifetime so far…).

But it’s Brazil. Not firing on all cylinders they may be, but they are still better than us on paper, still capable of waltzing through our defence like it doesn’t exist, always able to provide moments of magic, rabbits from hats. But the game isn’t played on paper…

I will watch the game. I don’t want to watch the game. I will watch the game.

Ohhh and fellow Scots, with a likely 3rd place a strong possibility, I’d bookmark this link: Scroll down for the 3rd place table, which might be the one to watch. The permutations of a 3rd place finish are outlined here, and will likely take until early Sunday morning to play out.

Come on Scotland! Remember, yer made of girders!!