World Cup 2022 Qualifiers

[Stellaboz]

5 minutes ago, BFTD said:

I know it's not the World Cup, but we also managed top seeding for the Euro 2000 qualifiers.

Felt like an achievement at the time.

Incredible that France were in the 2nd pot! 

Looking at our results, what a horrific campaign. It should have came down to our head to head results with the Czechs but we managed draws away to Estonia and the Faroes whilst drawing at home to Lithuania. 

Gary McSwegan scored in the last game!  Can't ever remember him in a Scotland jersey. 

[BFTD]

2 minutes ago, Stellaboz said:

Incredible that France were in the 2nd pot! 

Looking at our results, what a horrific campaign. It should have came down to our head to head results with the Czechs but we managed draws away to Estonia and the Faroes whilst drawing at home to Lithuania. 

Gary McSwegan scored in the last game!  Can't ever remember him in a Scotland jersey. 

It really wasn't, back then. France were very much a second-tier nation for almost a decade in the Eighties/Nineties, and didn't qualify for three tournaments in a row. Not that they were shite or anything; they just developed an unhealthy reputation for bottling big games, the 1994 World Cup being a particularly egregious example. The draw was made before they won the World Cup in 1998, and this was back in the days when they used various permutations on performance in prior tournaments to decide the rankings.

Aye, we were very much on the wane again by the Euro 2000 qualifiers. Craig Brown got pelters in the next campaign for continuing with the old guard, but nobody was going to accept writing off a campaign or two in order to blood youngsters back then. So Bert ended up with that job, and...oh, the horror.

[Stellaboz]

4 minutes ago, BFTD said:

It really wasn't, back then. France were very much a second-tier nation for almost a decade in the Eighties/Nineties, and didn't qualify for three tournaments in a row. Not that they were shite or anything; they just developed an unhealthy reputation for bottling big games, the 1994 World Cup being a particularly egregious example. The draw was made before they won the World Cup in 1998, and this was back in the days when they used various permutations on performance in prior tournaments to decide the rankings.

Aye, we were very much on the wane again by the Euro 2000 qualifiers. Craig Brown got pelters in the next campaign for continuing with the old guard, but nobody was going to accept writing off a campaign or two in order to blood youngsters back then. So Bert ended up with that job, and...oh, the horror.

I totally get that about France, just mental how they were World Champions and still pot 2. Won it in the end though and cemented themselves as one of the great sides of the modern age. 

[BFTD]

3 minutes ago, Stellaboz said:

I totally get that about France, just mental how they were World Champions and still pot 2. Won it in the end though and cemented themselves as one of the great sides of the modern age. 

Aye, it's like when we ended up with the teams who finished 1st, 2nd, and 8th at the World Cup in our Euros qualifying group.

Still can't believe Ukraine managed the quarter-finals at that tournament  

[Lurkst]

3 hours ago, BFTD said:

I know it's not the World Cup, but we also managed top seeding for the Euro 2000 qualifiers.

Felt like an achievement at the time.

Yep, although the Pot 2 Czechs were clearly a better team than us with 10 wins out of 10.

[BFTD]

23 minutes ago, Lurkst said:

Yep, although the Pot 2 Czechs were clearly a better team than us with 10 wins out of 10.

You could say that about a few of the Pot 2 teams TBF.

Looking back, I'm not sure how we managed to become top seeds. We'd qualified automatically for Euro 96 and World Cup 98, the latter of which was especially impressive, but still finished second in both groups. I guess we were just more consistent than some sides. They did well, regardless.

Looking at it, we did well to qualify for Euro 92 as well, finishing above a Swiss side who'd get revenge on us two years later, a Romanian team who were between one solid World Cup performance and an even better one, and the Bulgarian team who were about to finish fourth at the same tournament. Pretty impressive.

[John Lambies Doos]

It really wasn't, back then. France were very much a second-tier nation for almost a decade in the Eighties/Nineties, and didn't qualify for three tournaments in a row. Not that they were shite or anything; they just developed an unhealthy reputation for bottling big games, the 1994 World Cup being a particularly egregious example. The draw was made before they won the World Cup in 1998, and this was back in the days when they used various permutations on performance in prior tournaments to decide the rankings.
Aye, we were very much on the wane again by the Euro 2000 qualifiers. Craig Brown got pelters in the next campaign for continuing with the old guard, but nobody was going to accept writing off a campaign or two in order to blood youngsters back then. So Bert ended up with that job, and...oh, the horror.

He had no youth to blood in fairness. Scottish football changed irreversibly in the late 80s with Souness bringing good English players to Scotland which prompted the rest of the teams to recruit second rate foreigners. Output of this was youth development diminished. Brown was still working off an old guard who developed in the 80s but unfortunately we're coming to an end in 2000s
Apart from Fletcher and McFadden breaking through in 2003, all we had were the Kevin Kyle's of this world

[Binos]

1 hour ago, John Lambies Doos said:

He had no youth to blood in fairness. Scottish football changed irreversibly in the late 80s with Souness bringing good English players to Scotland which prompted the rest of the teams to recruit second rate foreigners. Output of this was youth development diminished. Brown was still working off an old guard who developed in the 80s but unfortunately we're coming to an end in 2000s
Apart from Fletcher and McFadden breaking through in 2003, all we had were the Kevin Kyle's of this world

It's still happening

Average over paid foreign players in place of giving youth a chance

[Carnoustie Young Guvnor]

1 hour ago, John Lambies Doos said:

He had no youth to blood in fairness. Scottish football changed irreversibly in the late 80s with Souness bringing good English players to Scotland which prompted the rest of the teams to recruit second rate foreigners. Output of this was youth development diminished. Brown was still working off an old guard who developed in the 80s but unfortunately we're coming to an end in 2000s
Apart from Fletcher and McFadden breaking through in 2003, all we had were the Kevin Kyle's of this world

Also commonly cited is the schools thing. Just a tiny bit before my time but something like they stopped paying overtime for sports or something so teachers stopped taking the team so schools football basically stopped. And its obviously by far the biggest talent pool you have, cause everybody goes to school.

Even when I was at school, primary and secondary, there was no league.  You just had a couple of cups and then after about third year high school the Scottish cup too.  So you could play only a couple of games a season, maybe if you get through a couple of rounds five or six. When my dad was at school you played every Saturday morning, that had stopped by the mid 80's.  Probably Thatcher.

Has never restarted and never really been replaced, but we seem to be doing better now anyway. There was also zero facilities, nothing. Kids in Scotland used to learn in the street, when that stopped there was nothing put in to replace it.

[DA Baracus]

3 hours ago, Binos said:

It's still happening

Average over paid foreign players in place of giving youth a chance

Is it? I see far more younger players getting a chance these days. 

[DiegoDiego]

Souness bringing good English players to Scotland which prompted the rest of the teams to recruit second rate foreigners. Output of this was youth development diminished. Brown was still working off an old guard

It's still happening
Average over paid foreign players in place of giving youth a chance

We are/were hardly the only country impacted by the globalisation of football. I think its effect on the national team is greatly overestimated.

[John Lambies Doos]

We are/were hardly the only country impacted by the globalisation of football. I think its effect on the national team is greatly overestimated.

We aren't, was just merely stating there was a dearth once the old guard retired in 98 due to lack of developed talent because of foreign imports.

[Binos]

9 hours ago, John Lambies Doos said:

10 hours ago, DiegoDiego said:

We are/were hardly the only country impacted by the globalisation of football. I think its effect on the national team is greatly overestimated.

We aren't, was just merely stating there was a dearth once the old guard retired in 98 due to lack of developed talent because of foreign imports.

Who was effected worse than us

Can't think of another

[Carnoustie Young Guvnor]

Also the smaller league.  I don't care what anyone says, its just a very obvious fact that a 10 or 12 team league is less conducive to youth development than an 18 or 20 team league. People talk about meaningless games but they're actually good, you need a wee comfort zone in mid table, that allows teams to give kids a chance with much less pressure.

The smaller league is so cut-throat, lose 3 games you're fighting relegation, win 3 you're competing for Europe. So its much harder to give kids a chance. There has been a lot more of that the last 15 years or so but that was because virtually every club had bankrupted themselves in the 90's buying shite foreigners.

[GordonS]

On 28/12/2020 at 14:21, BFTD said:

Aye, it's like when we ended up with the teams who finished 1st, 2nd, and 8th at the World Cup in our Euros qualifying group.

Still can't believe Ukraine managed the quarter-finals at that tournament  

Their last 16 victory over Switzerland is one of the worst matches I've ever seen. I remember when it reached the end of the 90 minutes I set a timer for half an hour, went and did something else and came back for the penalties - which were also shit, as Switzerland didn't even score one. I've had an irrational dislike of both teams ever since and was cheering on Italy as they humped Ukraine in the quarter final.

[BFTD]

3 hours ago, GordonS said:

Their last 16 victory over Switzerland is one of the worst matches I've ever seen. I remember when it reached the end of the 90 minutes I set a timer for half an hour, went and did something else and came back for the penalties - which were also shit, as Switzerland didn't even score one. I've had an irrational dislike of both teams ever since and was cheering on Italy as they humped Ukraine in the quarter final.

Yeah, I think that's my worst-ever World Cup game. It took a lot to top the nightmarish ordeal that South Korea and Bolivia inflicted upon us in 1994, but they managed it. Similarly, there's still a wee voice in my head that says, "get them stuffed" whenever the Swiss or Ukrainians are playing. Petty, but deserved.

IIRC, Leslie Mottram literally added half an hour of injury time on to that 1994 game and was removed from the pool of referees as a result. Barking.

[DiegoDiego]

Yeah, I think that's my worst-ever World Cup game. It took a lot to top the nightmarish ordeal that South Korea and Bolivia inflicted upon us in 1994, but they managed it. Similarly, there's still a wee voice in my head that says, "get them stuffed" whenever the Swiss or Ukrainians are playing. Petty, but deserved.
IIRC, Leslie Mottram literally added half an hour of injury time on to that 1994 game and was removed from the pool of referees as a result. Barking.

Greece - Japan in 2014 was an ordeal. I think it was the only 3am kick off of the tournament and I had work at 7am. Something like six minutes additional time as well.

[John Lambies Doos]

Eh, Germany v Austria

[Carnoustie Young Guvnor]

I still regret missing most of Spain - Nigeria in 1994 to go and pick up my sister with my dad. Think it finished 4-3. The fucking bitch.

[Carnoustie Young Guvnor]

Maybe 98 I can't remember.  Bitter as f**k, such a stupid decision.  Really my fault, had the option.