Why Not Blame Alan Hansen?

Didn't see the game (US versus Switzerland anyone?), not even seen the goals yet but I won't let that stop me from venturing an opinion on the result minutes after end of the game. Now is not the time for considered analysis.

Maybe the Scottish Patient had a point, and Scotland have fallen victim to the curse of the dodgy kit. I'm sure the tops looks great atop a pair of jeans, but when have a football team ever won an important game looking like Hearts of Midlothian? (Sit back, and drink in the media campaign to ensure that Scotland never wear that kit ever again.)

No doubt the post mortems in the press will play on the matter of Scottish football perhaps getting ahead of itself in recent weeks, and point to the fact that despite the rennaissance of the Scotland team in recent years, it's only ever a few injuries and suspensions away from slipping up on a Georgia Peach. But, one can only wonder if on a different day, a Scotland team that had Scott Brown, Paul Hartley, Alan Hutton and whathisname* available, might have been able to squeeze out a result.

Anyway, irrational ranting getting the better of me, I'll be blaming Italy and Alan Hansen for this debacle. If it weren't for the Italians beating a woeful Georgia on Saturday, the Georgian coach, Klaus Toppmoller, wouldn't have gone ahead and blooded a 17 year old goalkeeper (Georgi Makaridze), and played a 16 year old central midfielder (Levan Kenia), and a goalscoring 17 year old (Levan Mchedlidze) in the team that faced Scotland tonight.

"You don't win anything with kids"? Fuck you Hansen. I knew that line would come back to haunt the rest of us eventually.

Only upside is that the 'Ninety-Minute-Nationalism' has been put in perspective, and I don't have to attend that meeting of the New York branch of the SNP next Tuesday.

*My blogging campaign on behalf of Derek Riordan knows no limits. D.R should simultaneously get a game for both Celtic and Scotland.