Yeah, probably of limited interest. And I’m writing this in pieces. But…
That 80 minutes was what sport is meant to be about. One group of players combined better than the other group to produce a result. That’s the stark truth.
But the story..the drama…the emotions… It’s so much more than that.
Scotland rarely win this. We’re underresourced, underfinanced; frankly, second best in most categories. But what Stern Vern and Gregor have give given us back is pride in playing for the team, the jersey, and the fans. The marketing slogan of #asone is resonating. Even JK Rowling has signed up.
This is like Norwich City beating Manchester City; it’s like… Actually, I don’t have a comparator. We didn’t squeak a win here, we got the result on merit. We earned the points, and just gutsed out the last 20 minutes.
I’m so proud of the team right now. Players who were never rated are outshining other flashier names; players who had rocky games last time out came back resoundingly. But more than that; much more than that. When you support Scotland over 40 years, you get used to getting cuffed by all and sundry. So you start to look at why you support your team. Because you feel a part share in ownership of the team. I’ve long since reconciled myself to the equation that s long I know the team bust themselves for the shirt, I’ll live with the result.
And then Vern turned up. And then the equation changed. Expectations changed, and now the hope started to kill. We were actually in with a shout against most teams (there’s a far more technical breakdown, but only rugby nerds would appreciate it). They were still playing for the shirt, but now with aspiration.
England’s always the big one. Australia and NZ? Pah. England is how we judge ourselves. The losing win in 2000 is the best example of that. As long as we show up against those over rated, arrogant, self important, complacent…[insert epithet of choice], everything’s OK. I’ve watched since th elate 70s. I know whereof I speak.
So what about today? 25-13. Comfortable, in some respects. Low stress win, since we were 22-6 at half time. And yet I am in absolute pieces at the keyboard. I’ve already e-mailed the neighbors to apologize about the noise.
We weren’t supposed to win. Read the press and we weren’t expected to show up. England, right? At a canter.
We showed up. Everyone showed up from minute 1 to minute 80. First choice, replacement, everyone. It was a gutsy, gutsy, performance. And everyone was quality. Start of the tournament, who would have heard of Jones or Horne? John Barclay is never on anyone’s top players. What this game proved is rugby is a team game, and everyone in blue subscribes to that view. They all showed the doubters wrong.
Incoherent? Possibly. Drunken ramblings? Probably. But for me, and thousands, this was a momentous day. We won. We won, with skill, with heart, with guts, with a great Coach (trust me on this. He is, and he will be. He’s the rugby Pep). We outmatched our opponents. Hey Owen Farrell, how does THAT feel? We put together a performance that left people proud, and for those of us in the USA, in absolute pieces in front of the TV, shouting.
#asone
And breathe.
Chrisf says
Speaking as an England fan, congratulations to the Scotland team – that was a well deserved win.
It’s good to see Scotlad playing well again. They’ve been threatening this for a while – the recent games against NZ and Aus, but then didn’t turn up for the first two games of the Six Nations.
ipesky says
Scotland were fantastic and played with huge intensity to win a cracking big match. And England were really bad. But let’s get away from the ‘arrogant’ , ‘ complacent’ , nationalistic line. England have been successful for a while on the back of being dismal under Lancaster – that’s the way it goes. Farrell is a brilliant player as are Hogg and Russell. So it goes.
You should try supporting Yeovil Town.
dai says
They weren’t that dismal under Lancaster, they tended to lose one per season, which is pretty similar to Jones. The exception being his first season which can be an easier time to win a Grand Slam following a World Cup. See also Wales in 2008 and 2012.
chiz says
It was one of those days when you just have to feel sorry for people who sneer at sport. Pride, passion, skill, courage, athleticism, teamwork, and above all of that something ineffable where from the very start you just know that one team is going to win today. They call it belief but it’s almost magical. 60,000 people at full throat is a hell of a thing too.
Vulpes Vulpes says
I feel like Terry and Bob must have felt. I have the game on the PVR, and was looking forward to watching it this morning, huddled up with a large Irish and a roaring fire, having eschewed the live experience due to a profound head cold. But no. Thanks for the ‘no spoilers’ thought.
Gatz says
I would have thought the title of the thread was a sufficient spoiler warning.
dai says
Ha ha. I watched delayed too and avoided all my regular websites, facebook etc. Not a problem.
deramdaze says
I rarely see the 6 Nations as I’m usually at a rugby or football match when it’s on.
However, on my way back from a football match yesterday (Liskeard Athletic are alright, aren’t they!) I popped in “for one” in our local just as Scotland got that brilliant try on half-time, so I stayed for the second half.
There was a great atmosphere in the pub as a few of the Welsh and Irish supporters had stayed on for the second match.
It was all you describe it as.
Terrific stuff.
It somehow seemed “important.”
Alas, the League Cup Final today doesn’t. If Man. City or Arsenal (a truly disastrous final for the competition) “only” win the League Cup this season, the season will be deemed a failure, so why should I be remotely bothered about it?
geacher says
Very well written piece Sither… no one could have written that better.
I mean “no one”
You got right to the heart. Well done.
Tiggerlion says
Hats off to Scotland for a well deserved win. Their pack was awesome, especially in the first half when they took the game to England and resolute in defence in the second. Add in the odd flash of brilliance from a couple of youngsters and their future looks bright.
England, on the other hand, lacked cohesion. Not to worry, they have a really smart coach, who identified Scotland’s strengths pre-match. With Wales and Ireland also looking strong, I think we can look forward to some epic North Hemisphere battles over the next few years.
Enjoy your win, Si. I suspect there is more to come.
Carl says
As someone born in England of Scots parents, I’ve grown up sometimes wondering why I didn’t take the easier option and support the country of my birth rather than my heritage.
But afternoons like yesterday really do make up for the years of pain. I appreciate all the more for its rarity and the fact that it could be many more years until the next time.
What I did like was Jeremy Guscott having to eat humble pie after his crowing in the BBC match build-up about an England win by 10 points, easily.
Martin Johnson, to his credit, cautioned against complacency and overconfidence and didn’t think it would be easy at all.
But I believe that thinking that all they had to do was turn up was a big part of England’s downfall. By the time they could get themselves sorted at half-time thinks had already slipped too far. I disagree that it was a low stress win. Once Owen Farrell went over early in the second half I was on the edge of my seat for the rest of the half, hoping another defeat was not going to be snatched from the jaws of victory.
A doff of the cap to Finn Russell. We started the tournament with high hopes following the autumn internationals, but they were destroyed within 10 minutes of the start of the first game against Wales. Finn had a stinker and wasn’t a whole lot better against France. But yesterday he went and played and pretty much everything came off.
Vulpes Vulpes says
“thinking that all they had to do was turn up”.
There you have it. The English disease. In sport as in politics. Rees-Moggitis. Pathetic.
Carl says
There’s a thought. Rees-Mogg in sporting mode: on the end of a crunching tackle from someone like Johnny Gray.
“Play up, play up and play the game.”
bigstevie says
Usually the other team does only have to turn up to beat Scotland. We shoot ourselves in the foot almost every time.
Missing touch when kicking penalties
Missing conversions right under the posts
Getting penalties overturned
No other team seems to do this. I don’t care if we lose to a team that’s better than us, but it’s heartbreaking watching schoolboy errors over and over again.
Saturday was a joy to watch because they played as they can and didn’t bugger it up with continual mistakes.
deramdaze says
“Missing touch when kicking penalties
Missing conversions right under the posts
Getting penalties overturned.”
erm … Cornish Pirates? .. well the Pirates won 22-12 so, hey, a good weekend for Cornwall and Scotland!
Football – appalling League Cup Final.
Solution? – The “big” clubs get far too much of any easy route in entering the competition 3, that’s “THREE,” rounds in.
No wonder the final is invariably complete shite.
Carl says
Well indeed, that is true.
Who can forget that game against Italy at Murrayfield about 10 years ago when two kicks were charged down in our own 22 within minutes of each other and both resulted in tries.
Days like that make yesterday all the sweeter.
But did those teams turn up with the same arrogance?
Fifer says
Many years ago, I lived witihin strolling distance of Murrayfield. I got used to the patterns of travel; the Welsh started arriving on the Sunday and were soon asking for water, tea, baths etc as they camped in their cars in the street; the Irish would arrive about Wednesday and would take over any number of bars for the rest of the week exuding the very best of Celtic bonhomie; the French would start coming in on the Friday and had an unerring ability to find the party; the English would fly in on Saturday morning, watch the game and then fly home that evening. Unpopular? Arrogant? “Just have to turn up”? Really?
dai says
I don’t think England losing is down to arrogance or “not turning up”, they were beaten by a better team on the day. Happens quite a lot, having a world class ref helped, unlike the clueless homer in Dublin.
Carl says
Scotland were better, but the lack of any England performance in the first half suggests that they had gone out on the pitch expecting Scotland to roll over.
Why did they not go straight down the tunnel at half-time? They had a talk from Hartley as they huddled round him. It suggests that things had not gone as they thought they would.
dai says
That’s not necessarily arrogance, but a game plan that isn’t working.
Carl says
The arrogance has gone by then. That’s the point; they realised they had a game on their hands that they hadn’t expected.
If the game plan isn’t working Eddie Jones is the person to sort it out. That’s what managers/head coaches do at half-time.
If, in the final game, they are losing to Ireland at half-time I doubt Hartley will give them pre-dressing room rallying words, because that will be something they will have considered as a possibility.
ipesky says
The lazy ‘arrogance’ tag which is always put on England does Scotland a serious disservice – England are a fine rugby team prevented from finding their rhythm by a storming Scottish work at the breakdown and belligerent running. Frustration, maybe. It’s not necessarily arrogance to come expecting to play well. It’s great sport though when the drama doesn’t follow the script on paper.
Also, Ian Robertson – what a servant of the game. Top commentator.
dai says
Exactly. Not a Robertson fan myself, won’t go into that here.