|
Scotland's World Cup
This is as good as Scottish football gets. Scotland were absolutely excellent against Norway. Right from start to finish, apart from a dodgy ten-minute spell, it was a terrific performance.
In the whole history of the World Cup, I honestly cannot think of two successive Scotland performances that have been better than the Brazil and Norway games.
I thought Scotland were very unfortunate to only draw against Norway. They should have had a penalty in the first half, because Gordon Durie was definitely inside the box when he was fouled. It was the wrong decision by the referee.
I have played in World Cups and I have watched many others but when Craig Burley's tremendous goal went in I was punching the air - and believe me, that is very unusual for me.
I don't normally feel so passionate about it, but this side have done so well that I'm dying to see them go through.
The team have character in abundance and the manager has done a brilliant job. I don't think Craig Brown has been given all the credit he deserves But once again, the luck was just not with them. And as a result they are out of France 98.
I am terribly disappointed that Scotland didn't go further, but I still think Craig Brown and his players must be happy with the way they played in the three games. They just never had the element of luck they needed. They deserved more than just one draw from the first two games - it could so easily have been four points from the Brazil and Norway matches.
Craig Brown has been exceptional for Scotland and has done a terrific job with the players at his disposal. The team spirit in the camp is frightening and it is the manager who engineers that - they all wanted to do well for him. They may have gone out, but Craig, his team and the supporters can all be proud of the way Scotland played.
They gave it their best shot. And you can't ask for more than that.
The World Cup Final - France v Brasil
Well, they say it's a funny old game - and the World Cup final seemed to prove it.
Going into the game most punters had only given the hosts half a chance, but on the night France showed us all that they, too, can summon brilliance.
Before the match there was clearly something going on with Ronaldo - which obviously upset the Brazilian team as a whole. But the final scoreline of 3-0 did not fully reflect France's dominance on the game - it could easily have been five or six. And the reason? Defence.
However, the man of the match - and perhaps the man of the tournament had he not missed two matches because of a red card - was simply superb. Zinedine Zidane looked like a legend. Every time he had the ball you were waiting for something to happen and sure enough it did.
The only downside for me has been the play-acting. I don't want to be in favour of using a fourth official and TV replays - but if that part of the game gets any worse there will be no choice.
Overall, however, France 98 has been stunning and has ended like a fairytale. The supporters have been fantastic, there have been great individual and team performances and, of course, some unforgettable goals.
It's been a success for football the world over.
|
|
