I remember the days (as a kid) when I’d get excited about Scotland-England games. At the time the countries were neck-and-neck in the number of wins each had over the other, we knew we’d punched well above our weight for a century. Since then, the inevitable verdict of demographics has taken its toll.
Now we know we’re a small nation, inconsequential to the football world, and we’ve even starved of developmental resources compared to the riches that ploughs into the English FA from Premier League TV deals each season.
The historical rivalry remains but I don’t feel it anymore and surely English fans care even less. They will have to dig deep to muster anything more than an interest in the three points available tonight, having long since moved onto Argentina and Germany for their rivalry. And Iceland, of course (forgive me).
Great sporting rivalries can endure for generations but that doesn’t mean they’ll last forever. Circumstances can change causing both sides to lose interest and find others to do battle with. None of our 20th century rivalries will survive. If we could bloody the nose of Barcelona for a third time in the 21st century later this month, our hit rate would place the Catalans in the crosshairs. Bring it on.
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shoot………..
goal :) :o)
Podium?
Good Afternoon.
I can’t get excited at all about the England v Scotland game…
Here is something new and important about the continuing battle to get some sort of justice for years of apparent rule-breaking and poor administration in Scottish football…
https://theclumpany.wordpress.com/2016/11/11/pursuing-sporting-integrity/
And here is some urgent safety advice for all football fans…
https://theclumpany.wordpress.com/2016/11/10/evacuate-tsunami-imminent/
nope , East Coast wins………..
Well done Prestonpans Bhoys:-)
Paul67, are you also referring to domestic rivalry:-)
Maybe even more so?
I agree.
McJay
No, pal.
Not striking miners.
Punters drafted in attempting to prevent miners who wanted to work from working .
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
I have a workmate who was there that day, on a charity food drop off. He saw no non miners pretending they were miners, what he did see was a police charge that triggered a response from the miners and a cut and paste job on the national news that completely distorted the event. You get your information from where, Thatchers memoirs?
New article
McJay
No, pal.
Not striking miners.
Punters drafted in attempting to prevent miners who wanted to work from working .
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
I have a workmate who was there that day, on a charity food drop off. He saw no non miners pretending they were miners, what he did see was a police charge that triggered a response from the miners and a cut and paste job on the national news that completely distorted the event. You get your information from where, Thatchers memoirs?
Very interesting interview with John Pilger, I agree with him 100%.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1Ho8OrBzig
Couldn’t agree more Paul67.
As five of us walked back down to The Calton after the game last week it was apparent that none of us actually knew on what day or at what time the England V Scotland game was.
I can remember the build up to the 1986 game at Wembley that I was taking my son to (I was living just outside London at the time). The anticipation was enormous (even in Englandshire) and London was electric as we made our way up to the game. Beat again and ducked and dived to evade the English Casuals but enjoyed the day out.
Sadly, I don’t even know if I will have the interest to watch it tonight. Because Broony is playing, I might; if Griff starts I probably will. If Gordon or Forrest start alongside Brown and Griffiths I definitely will.
If Martin starts ahead of Griffiths I definitely won’t!
Then again, if Mrs VFR really wants to watch something else (another rerun of Midsummer Murders or some such), I will take a bottle of Amarone downstairs and listen to David Bowie and Leonard Cohen and most likely have a far more enjoyable night!
It doesn’t excite me anymore. To those of you who have a genuine interest, I hope you really enjoy it. I hope Scotland win (and so does Mrs VFR who is English born, but more Scottish blood than me).
Roll on next Friday!
KTF
KITALBA
Morgenthau.
Mmmm- read a lot of stuff by Professor .Anthony Kubek -mostly in the Journal of Historical Review . That led to the diaries of Harold L . Ickes . A bureaucrat for Roosevelt .. Jaw dropping .
So much to read , so little time -way down south
VFR800A8
Personally,I think our current antipathy to the national team is due to them being hopeless.
A few times in the last few years,we have had a great chance to qualify and blew it like only we can. Most such occasions,I watched in a busy pub somewhere,all of us roaring on our country.
Nowadays,we are so disheartened-esp after a shocking start-that we canny be bothered.
So,my point is?
Hopefully the same happens to the huns.
I am in England shire today. Way down south. Around the table were Chelsea. Reading. Palace and a Liverpool fan. Two knew there was a game against the jocks sometime at the weekend. Only Darren Fletcher and McArthur were known players.
Their verdict though was this is type of game that england don’t win because of apathy.
Two tartan army guys also met yesterday came down to head office as a cover to get to the match. Estimating 8000 Scots have tickets.
The Apathy is with International football in general.
Morgenthau Plan,from R4
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01jgj0p
BMCUWP, maybe antipathy because we are pish is part of it. The reality is (for me) that international football just isnae that good. The Euros in France were, IMHO, mediocre. I watched the first half of the opening game – France v Romania down at my sons place. We both decided it was a poor performance from both sides. The half-time pundits talked as if it was a great game.
The rest of the tournament didn’t get much better.
Mexico 1970, Germany 1974, Italia 90 – fantastic tournaments. Russia 2018? I don’t hold out much hope!
auld’n’cynical CSC
KTF
Get on this please
https://www.change.org/p/the-scottish-football-association-the-sfa-has-to-respond-to-allegations-of-impropriety-concerning-the-issue-of-uefa-licences
Euro 96, and to a lesser degree the Don Hutchison game at Wembley, were serious social events, planned and enjoyed.
Tonight I’ll be in the car with the weans during the Scotland game. The miracle of bluetooth will mean they can hook their music playing thingy to the tranny and I’ll not be able to listen to the radio and I’m not all that bothered. Now if it was Celtic on the radio I’d already have looked them out their headphones.
There’s yer contemporary shift in status.
My friends in Celtic,
Keeping to only football reasoning, there are many that have eroded interest in the Scottish nation team and international football in general.
High up on the list is, that arguably all our best and most exciting players have not been Scottish for ages now. It is also very often boring and predictable.
Non footie reasoning include, National teams do not really represent nations anymore.
Thank God Trump and Pence do not play footie, it is a frightening thought that they would be eligible to play for Scotland and Ireland respectively.
Additionally and Maybe top of my list is that it turns CQN into a bunfight over any topic of the day.
HH.
My wife asked (told) me if we could go to IKEA after work today forgetting that the game was on. Later when she remembered that the game was on tonight she said we could go another time. I had forgot all about the game tonight, actually thought it was tomorrow. Really not bothered about it, so it’s IKEA for me….
I’d like to see Scotland doing well but gave up on International football years ago when Danny had to move position for Jardine to get a game, then had to listen to huns telling us that we had the best full backs in world football, although only one of them could play both positions…
GREENPINATA
Eligible,and probably capable too…
BMCUW @ 13.13 hrs.
Ha, that was funny.:-)))))))
BMCUWP:
Morgenthau Plan + Genocide.
It did not happen.
KITALBA
I had never heard of it till that R4 programme about five years ago. Designed to neuter Germany’s economy,and to hell wi killing 50% of the population?
Wow,no wonder they kept that quiet…
Well personally I’m looking forward to the football tonight…
Would have to agree with the concensus that this tie has lost a lot of it’s former status as an event.
I would not longer walk a million miles for one of your goals:(
As it’s my big pal’s Birthday tonight will have to multi-task – Football and Beer.
England 1 – 2 Scotland
Hail Hail
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS:
Keep your life simple mate, don’t fret, look after yourself and maybe one more time in Reading. Maybe.
The ‘ riots’ in the USA, the miners ‘rioting’ back in the mid eighties, and most of the other instances of discontent are all down to greed. Greed of the rich. I don’t recall which article it was I read some time ago but it spoke of how it was the greed of the rich rather than the actions of the poor which destroyed generations.
The meek shall inherit the earth, yeah, when it’s not worth having.
Greed.
TWISTS N TURNS:
Simmer mate, simmer. Keep it simple, you only have the one heart.
read ‘the Sun.. no mention of Barttonn leaving, strange as they were kean to say he was only getting 10 weeks pay a few days ago………..
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS:
I never made it to the border with Iran and those refugees. I was not welcome, on my life.
Re Miners’ Strike and Mrs Thatcher: I was in Australia,Brisbane not Macjay city, in 1999 or thereabouts and I bought Mrs Thatcher’s second volume of her ‘memoirs’ for 2 aus dollars when it was 2.45 to the pound. Macjay must have missed a real bargain!
Anyway she made no bones of her motives re miners in the book
BTW ,as I have said before Labour did nothing at all to ‘look into ‘ Orgreave’ despite 18 years in office in succession! Where were you then Mr. Burnham?
KITALBA
We can but try. It must be hellish for them to have their hopes dashed,but they know that others care,avenues will be explored
Failure is no disgrace,mate. Shrugging your shoulders would have been a disgrace.
And Reading? You got it.
Take your blood pressure tablets before reading………
I am off to the beach before the crap hits the fan on here……..
https://assets.donaldjtrump.com/_landings/contract/O-TRU-102316-Contractv02.pdf
Hunderbirds and Iki (from previous article)
Cheers, Bhoys!
Free-kick jokes aside, I just hope the match can go some way towards cementing relationships between the countries.
WEEMAN67
Don’t forget your blow up Donald Trump Doll…
COSYCORNERBHOY
Canny blame Burnham,he only got elected in 2001.
What he did in his time in The Home Office as PPS to The Home Secretary is still a mystery. It sure didn’t involve Orgreave.
Would it be democratic if Washington State, Oregon, Nevada and California, voted for independence from the USA?
Maybe New Mexico, Colorado and Arizona too?
Just wondering….
Is it in the American Constitution a breakaway would be legal????
Democracy and the will of the people and all that.
Kit
Hope your healthy bud.
I see yer still batting away for the good guys .
Tough innings though. Deserts grow as the forests shrink.
When 2000 have the same cumulative wealth as 2 billion, not an easy fight to win.
Greed. Not listed as one of the 7 deadly sins without good reason.