The mood on George Street is grim these days. A last days of Rome malaise is starting to emerge amongst the harried and fearful workers of Royal Bank of Scotland and HBOS as they flit from brasserie to bar, unsure where their next Christmas bonus will come from; heck, whether there will even be a Christmas bonus. Times are hard for the twin behemoths of Scottish finance and their employees, but their fall from grace amidst plummeting world markets is increasingly symptomatic of a nation whose tumble back into our traditional pessimism has been supported step-by-faltering-step by the recent failures of the national side.

In economic terms Scottish football is in a depression. The woeful performance of our club teams in Europe this season has already been widely reported. The national team is suffering a more lingering decline. The emphatic 3-1 victory over Ukraine at Hampden in the last qualifying campaign was a full year ago now and is beginning to seem an even more distant memory. Since then the Scotland team have recorded just one win in eight games, and even that a narrow and somewhat fortuitous 2-1 victory over the mighty Iceland. Meanwhile, the insipid Scotland squad have been tramping despondently across Europe falling victim to international football lightweights such as Georgia and Macedonia.

Our rise to prominence in the FIFA rankings – only one position behind England as recently as September – has been swiftly curtailed as we hurtled steeply downwards at the last update from 16th to 26th.
The justification for that ranking is looking increasingly thin. Wins at home and away against France in the last few years came amidst a general optimism in the country that saw a competent bunch of players vastly exceed reasonable expectations.

The miserable years of Berti Vogts had been consigned to the history books and in charge of the national team stood first Walter Smith, widely respected by at least one half of the Scottish football establishment, and when he somewhat controversially abandoned the national team mid-campaign in favour of a second spell at Rangers Alex McLeish accepted the responsibility of attempting to lead the national team to Austria and Switzerland. Both managers were tactically diligent and ensured that they got the most out of the limited pool of talent available to them. A sensational string of results were based upon tactical conservatism, a rigid 4-5-1 formation and the occasional burst of brilliance from James McFadden.

Of course, we all know the road to Euro 2008 ended in tears against Italy. To us Scots, it was a reminder that we are forever doomed to be heroic failures. What could be more typical, we muttered darkly, than the manner in which Italy rode their luck in putting an end to our stubborn resistance. Meanwhile, Alex McLeish followed Walter’s example and politely excused himself from the Scotland hotseat, slinking down to England to mastermind Birmingham’s relegation to the Championship. The sense of anti-climax was palpable, but the optimism that had driven Scotland’s remarkable campaign still existed.

Top-class players like Craig Gordon and Alan Hutton were evidence enough that Scotland had come a long way from the dark days of scouring the English lower leagues for faux-Scots like Robbie Stockdale and Paul Devlin. But it was inevitable that depression would set in before long; to come so close to qualifying in a group that contained both the previous World Cup finalists and missing out by the thinnest of margins was a bitter pill to swallow for the success-starved Tartan Army.

The appointment of George Burley as Alex McLeish’s successor was divisive from the start. Burley has never been without his detractors in Scotland and in a close-fought race for the job with Graeme Souness many in the media and Tartan Army felt the SFA had made a rash decision to snub the vastly experienced Souness. Burley himself has proved an odd character; a scrupulously polite and genial man, he nevertheless gives off an air of vague indifference that has endeared him to very few who do not know him personally. Those who do, and those who work with him, tend to insist Burley is a superb manager and a pleasure to work alongside. The recent decisions of Ranger’s strikers Kris Boyd and Lee McCulloch to retire from international football – in Boyd’s case, with the explicit condition that he would happily return as soon as Burley had left the set-up – seem to suggest that viewpoint might not be so widely shared.

None of that would matter if Burley was the success we all hoped he would be. We relished the prospect of attacking football after years of dour defensive displays, but perhaps wiser hands might have asked why we were endorsing such a radical change of direction. We needed some wag to shout out, “Haw, Burley. Didn’t anyone ever tell you that if it ain’t broken, don’t fix it?” No one did.

From the get go Burley’s attacking football has carried more than a whiff of denial about it, his 4-3-3 looking more like 4-1-4-1 and unable to deliver many goals either. Failure to score in a home friendly against Northern Ireland and in a 1-0 away defeat to Macedonia, leaving Burley without a win in his first four games, finally set alarm bells ringing.

While the 2-1 victory in Reykjavik this September alleviated some of the pressure now mounting on Burley the scoreless draw against Norway at Hampden last week was as poor a performance as any the team has put in under the new manager. Once again Burley deployed his mysterious 4-3-3 formation which predictably collapsed into a 4-1-4-1. McFadden was left hopelessly isolated upfront, bizarrely forced to field long balls that he never stood a chance of winning. Maloney and Morrison worked diligently but without reward on the wings - quite what target man they were supposed to be putting crosses into is anyone’s guess.

The second-half change to 4-4-2 was the correct move made far too late. But even in that Burley could not resist riling the Hampden faithful, substituting fans-favourite James McFadden, who despite his lonely task upfront had worked hard and looked the most likely player to forge an opening, and ignoring the prolific goalscoring presence of Kris Boyd on the bench in favour of Hib’s Steven Fletcher and the 30-year old Wolves striker Chris Iwelumo. Between them the substitutes had mustered just one cap previously.

Iwelumo’s remarkable miss just moments later – a two foot tap in that he somehow skewed past the left post – will no doubt haunt both Burley and Iwelumo’s dreams for many years to come. Had it gone in, as it surely must have if Iwelemu were ever given the chance again, Burley’s substitution would have been hailed as a masterstoke, his snubs to Boyd and McFadden forgotten. In the event it didn’t, and the scrutiny that Burley now faces is more than deserved.

There is a whiff of Berti Vogts about Burley’s recent performance. The call-up of the 30-year old Chris Iwelemu cannot fail to evoke comparisons with Berti’s tenure, when the hapless German called up a string of in-form journeyman strikers such as Dougie Freedman and Stevie Crawford with notoriously poor results. Still more Berti-esque was the bemusement on the faces of the Tartan Army at Burley’s selection and subs. His insistence after the game that his players had played well and, even more oddly, that he got his tactics correct smacked of the sort of incompetent denial employed extensively by Vogts.

Scotland’s sails may be flapping in the wind right now, but a kind wind might yet steer us out of our footballing doldrums. We still have to face both Norway and Macedonia and victories in those fixtures would probably steer us to 2nd spot, but that alone is unlikely to give the points total required to be one of the best placed runners-up and recipient of a play-off spot.
More intriguingly we are still to cross swords with the qualifying group’s top seeds the Netherlands, and Scotland are infamous for reserving their best performances for when they are hefty underdogs.

Yet the prevailing mood inside Hampden and the George Street haunts of the employees of Scottish banks remains the same. A nervous optimism, a faint hope that all is not quite as bad as it appears. Optimism, however, has rarely sat well on Scottish shoulders, and with the onset of winter the cold fingers of pessimism are closing in on Scottish hearts once again.

Despite a gushing stream and gusting head-wind, the first Head Race to be organised by the Edinburgh University Boat Club (EUBC) for quite a number of years took place under crisp blue skies in Stirling two weekends ago.

A Head Race is a time-trial style of race, where one crew follows another down the six-kilometre course in processional style, with the winners being the crews to cover the course in the quickest time, not necessarily first across the line. On this occasion, however, a quadruple scull from Stirling RC and Castle Semple RC finished at the front of a pack of 29 crews, and won the race with a very quick time indeed.

Finishing in second place was the EUBC Men’s 1st coxed four, stroked elegantly by this year’s men’s captain, Tamir Binmalley.
Normally Head Races take place over about five kilometres, and can take anything up to twenty minutes. However, due to a very strong stream, and the fact that the Head of the Forth was being held over six kilometres, times were subsequently rather slow. The fastest women’s four was from EUBC, including two returners from last year’s Scottish University Championship winning eight.

The Victor Ludorum prize for most successful club of the day went to St. Andrew BC, with winners in three of the categories, including women’s novice coxed fours.

University of Edinburgh                    60
Glasgow Caledonian University       85

Edinburgh University’s men’s basketball team were defeated in their latest match against Glasgow Caledonian University.  A glance at the two teams in the pre-game warm up revealed that the Glasgow team carried a huge physical presence against a relatively diminutive Edinburgh side.

Indeed the away team started the match with a rangy and imposing unit and the height advantage began to tell early on in the game.  Glasgow came out of the huddle aggressively and two strong moves to the basket signalled their intent and awarded them an early 4-0 lead.  However, signs of an early surge from Glasgow were nullified by Edinburgh as Horton drove forcefully to the hoop and finished well each time to level the match after a sluggish Edinburgh start.

However, it was the visitors who again threatened to open up a significant lead as the Glasgow forwards got into good positions in the key and knocked down open shots.  It was clear from the outset that this was to be a battle of the fast break against the half-court set with Glasgow employing the latter to good effect.  Donnelly, in particular, the lofty but skilful guard for the guests, caused Edinburgh problems on defence and it was he who was the catalyst for a 13-4 Glasgow run towards the end of the first quarter.  Edinburgh on the other hand struggled to find space in a congested Glasgow key, resulting in poor shooting.  The first quarter ended with the visitors on top 24-11.

However, the second quarter commenced with Edinburgh adopting a more intense style of play, forcing errors from the Glasgow ball handler.  The resulting turnovers meant Edinburgh could run fast breaks and mount an assault on the sizeable deficit.  Several neat moves involving de Weeps and Vudiken for the hosts allowed for unchallenged lay-ups which eroded the lead further.  Furthermore, slick ball movement created an opening for de Weeps to drain a shot from beyond the stripe, sparking excitement on the home bench.

However, as the fightback gathered steam Glasgow’s talented guard, Donnelly, connected with several tough jump shots to cut short Edinburgh’s run and regain the momentum.  Admittedly, before the Glasgow recovery Vudiken for Edinburgh had two three-point shots that seemed destined to hit nothing but net rattle off the iron and the loose balls were gobbled up by ravenous defensive forwards.  The lead was up to 19 by half-time, mainly down to the sharpshooting of Donnelly as his strong drives to the basket and smooth jump shot wreaked havoc in the Edinburgh key area.

A frantic third quarter followed as the turnover count started to rise for both teams.  However, while Edinburgh only managed occasional successful jaunts to the basket while Glasgow maintained their frustrating precision from the free throw line and mid-range jump shots to keep the scoreboard ticking over.  A lack of penetration into the key and incisiveness near the basket meant the deficit Edinburgh were chasing rarely dipped below the 20 point mark.  At the end of the third period Edinburgh trailed by 58-40.

At the start of the fourth quarter it was Horton once more, who was asking the questions for Edinburgh.  He took plenty of punishment on his regular, fearless drives to the hoop and twice managed to complete a three-point play by absorbing the contact from the defender and finishing the shot in mid-air.  However, despite these brave solo efforts at the basket a three-point shot from a Glasgow forward was a dagger through the heart for Edinburgh.  Donnelly, who had been a pivotal figure for Glasgow throughout was the one who deservedly delivered the exclamation point on the victory for the visitors.

The tall point guard stepped inside his marker and threw down a two handed slam that left the rim rocking and the Glasgow bench roaring.  The match finished 85-60 in Glasgow’s favour which was a disappointing return for the home team who, if they had taken chances in the first quarters, may have altered the final score-line.

University of Edinburgh 2-2 St. Cuthberts Wanderers

After extra time, Edinburgh win 4-2 on penalties

Edinburgh University fought their way into the fourth round after finally beating a resilient St Cuthbert Wanders in a penalty shoot-out following a 2-2 draw after extra time.
In normal time Edinburgh looked to find holes in St. Cuthbert’s back line. However, this tactic was largely ineffective as aerially, St. Cuthbert was far superior and it soon became clear that an aerial assault would produce nothing. At the other end, however, an unexpected turn of class from St Cuthbert’s large number 9 took him away from his marker, giving him the time to compose himself and chip the onrushing Mark Tait. A few half-hearted pleas came from the defence for off-side but these were ignored by the referee.

Within a minute, St Cuthbert’s celebrations were silenced as Edinburgh equalised. Showing an urgency and attacking focus which had been lacking from the opening 15 minutes, Ruaradidh Scott drove into the St Cuthbert box, drawing a reckless tackle from an opposition defender. Up stepped Stephen Maxwell who drilled his penalty just beyond the sprawling goal keeper.

As the first half drew to a close, Edinburgh never looked like scoring. The build-up play was intricate, accurate and teasing, but the final incisive ball was lacking. At half time, Edinburgh trudged off with the sky darkening and the rain beginning to fall.

The teams were greeted back on to the pitch with hammering rain. St Cuthbert took control of the opening exchanges, pinning Edinburgh into their half for long periods. Long balls were played in and around the penalty areas looking for mistakes. St Cuthbert looked to utilise their physical edge over Edinburgh, with the two strikers ploughing into the defence at every opportunity.

Just as Edinburgh began to wonder if it would be their day, they took the lead through Jamie Redman in the 72nd minute who controlled Woods’ cross-field ball and lifted it over the goal keeper. From then on, Edinburgh sat back in a bid to protect their slender lead. Up until the 87th minute, they achieved just that. However, a surging run from a St Cuthbert midfielder drew a desperate tackle from an Edinburgh defender. The set peice was curled into the top corner of Tait’s net, bringing the score level.

Within two minutes of extra time kicking off, Hazeldine had struck, wriggling free in the area and placing his shot beyond the keeper. The sound of relief and delight came from bench, stand and team. However, it was ruled offside, to the frustration of manager and talisman.
From then on, the tie descended into a scrap, with neither team prepared to commit too many players forward in search of the illusive winner. Thus the game was to be settled on penalties. Mark Tait made it easy for his team mates, expertly saving both of St Cuthbert’s first two. Hazeldine, Maxwell, Fusco and Woods stepped and put their efforts away with ease to send Edinburgh into the next round.

University of Edinburgh 17
University of Aberdeen 5

Edinburgh’s Lacrosse men cruised to a emphatic victory in their second league match of the season. Having beaten Stirling in the opening match of their campaign, they made sure that they retained top spot in the group. The visitors, Aberdeen University, were hoping for more success on the road than they saw at home when they lost to St Andrews 17-1. But in Edinburgh they found the only side in Scotland who compete with (and regularly beat) St Andrews.

It was Aberdeen who started brightly and managed to score straight from the start inside 30 seconds, with their best player breaking free on his own and giving his side an early advantage. Aberdeen could only hold onto their lead for all of two minutes, however, as Edinburgh equalised quickly and edged into the lead soon after with some slick play. The first quarter was an edgy affair and finished with Edinburgh narrowly 3-2 in front. From then on though, Edinburgh started to stamp their dominance on the game. Fast and intricate play with some excellent passing moves and strong challenges saw Edinburgh open up a 9-4 lead at the halfway point.

The third quarter proved to be tighter as Aberdeen looked to smother the Edinburgh attack but it was again the home side who dominated and their level of skill and aggression turned out to be too much for the Aberdeen team. Although Edinburgh managed just two further goals, their dominance was clear to see. Any hopes of a comeback from their northern rivals were soon put to bed in the final quarter. Although Aberdeen pulled a goal back, Edinburgh rose to a different level, adding six further strikes as they cruised to a comprehensive 17-5 victory.

It was a bitter blow for the Aberdeen side who suffered another heavy defeat but the blend of freshers and experienced players saw Edinburgh through with ease. A less blustery day would probably have seen Edinburgh score twice as many, as a number of excellent efforts which drifted just wide, along with a good performance from the Aberdeen keeper (who was not at fault for the scoreline), kept the home side’s tally down. The goal scorers on the day were West Pointer Nadler and Captain Spann who were assisted with efforts from Williams and Carley.

This crop of players could be just what the team need this year to push on and win that coveted BUCS national title, which they are clearly hungry for. There is a huge amount of confidence within the team and with the exception of St Andrews there is almost certainly not a team in Scotland who can compete with the Lacrosse men this year. They will then be looking to extend that to the whole of Britain.

This week also saw the Women’s Lacrosse seconds travelled to Aberdeen to take on their first team and they left having secured another victory. Having comprehensively outplayed Stirling last week, they again impressed with a dominant 18-0 victory.