Source: FOOTYMAD
Humiliation is the name of the game for Scottish Football.
It's nothing new but it's rarely been as sharply put in focus as on this night. Hearts participated in a friendly game in London after a first-leg demolition that was as ruthless as it was comprehensive. Celtic continued their run of appalling away form in European competition by succumbing to a Swiss side of no real merit. And Rangers, champions of Scotland, conspired to lose in successive knock-out ties to Malmo and Maribor. Over those four games we’ve seen some quite remarkable chances missed and all of our attackers have contributed – Naismith at first inaccurate and then later demonstrating a lack of footballing intelligence and missing out tonight due to suspension; Jelavic looking as if he was playing with someone else’s boots and heading as if he was one of those 50 pence players from school days; and the least said about the re-emergence of the familiar Kyle Lafferty and the unfortunate sitter missed tonight by David Healy the better. This is, incidentally, the same David Healy who is first-choice replacement up front: so pray for no injuries to our strikers. Tonight is an indignity suffered upon our game the likes of which we have arguably never before witnessed. The consequences for our national co-efficient are disastrous. The likelihood of any of our clubs playing again in the Champions League after next season may be something for the next generation to consider. There will be much discussion of the boss, Ally McCoist, and his future. Tonight’s side was largely correct and the lessons from earlier failures at least partially learned. The options on the bench spoke of the squad restrictions due to injury, visa problems and the not-altogether successful transfer dealings. The damage inflicted in the first leg would have all been forgotten had any of our well-paid front men been able to take their chances. Although McCoist’s appointment will be the subject of much wailing and gnashing of teeth, now is not the time to remove the manager. Some will wait until the end of season to judge the man in charge: it seems more than a little hollow in tonight’s moonlight to consider that the bauble of the SPL trophy would keep McCoist in the job but it is likely to be the case. As for the players: some of them have made good starts to their Ibrox careers and some have barely featured and will largely avoid the wrath of the Rangers family. Others will not be so lucky. In a broader sense, fans of Scottish football will have to ask what pressure they can bring to bear on those who run the game and who now have a huge responsibility on their hands. This simply won’t do and for all the schadenfreude displayed by fans of lower SPL and other professional clubs this is now a true national crisis. Anger and frustration, tinged later with disappointment, will turn in due course to an understanding of the sober reality of the situation – all Scottish representatives in Europe have been knocked out before September (even if there remains a chance that procedure and regulation could yet allow one to sneak back in, should the Sion situation re ineligible players be taken as seriously as has been suggested). We can accept that we now are – forever and a day - mere minnows and unprofessional participants in European integration or we can consider how we can rescue the situation. The prospect of another SPL campaign where controversy, real and invented, will be at the forefront and the two Glasgow clubs will leave the opposition well behind as they fight amongst themselves for the right to be the best of the worst will still hold enough weight for a good number of fans. But you have to wonder if the gradual drop in attendances at both Glasgow grounds will continue as more and more begin to wonder quite how seriously their own clubs – the object of their desire and their irrational loyalty – are truly taking this football game. In the meantime we can watch the other-worldy thing called the Champions Leauge and as the Europa League comes around wonder quite how Shamrock Rovers made it where both of our supposed big clubs could not.
