Saturday, May 17, 2008




































The Glorious Game

What a week of highs & lows for both sides of the Old Firm.

Rangers go crashing out of the UEFA final & their fans run riot in Manchester. Tommy Burns dies of cancer @ 51.

I had never met Tommy, although my son has been in his company. By all accounts he was a well respected & loved man & he had such an impact on other people’s lives. He was a man of strong faith & principles & I was so delighted to see the Celtic fans applauding the Rangers supporters paying tribute to Tommy at the gates of Paradise. I think this shows that there is hope in defeating the divisive sectarianism that destroys Glasgow.

Mind you I did chuckle a bit when the fireworks went off in my neighbourhood after the game. This was to celebrate Rangers losing! However I do live in a very one-sided area.

Personally I blame Walter Smith’s lack of ambition & vision. He seems to be prepared to win the game by boring the fans & opposition to death. You have to attack to win. Yes, a solid defence is terrific, but you don’t win by defending.

I wish we could go back to the old fashioned type of football, two wingers & three strikers. All this nonsense about the lone striker. I have never seen this tactic work.

Recently, I watched Celtic Vs Hibs. What a spectacle. An exciting, open game full of drama (yes the odd error), a sheer delight to watch & I am sure it was the same to play in. The highlight for me was Filipe Morais, who is just like his countryman, Cristiano Ronaldo, but with a slightly less technically-formed , skill set. Portuguese football (if you exclude the love of diving at every opportunity) reminds me so much of the real Scottish game of our rich past.

Perhaps we should pay closer attention to their game & forget all about our apparent desire for big Dutch strikers. I believe the need has passed. Scott McDonald Vs Van Venegoor illustrates the fact so well.

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