Hampden Park, 3/3/10.

Totally meaningless for the future qualifying campaign of course, but a win’s a win and especially welcome for being the first in a home friendly for umpteen years.

Craig Levein may make us hard to beat again.

Can’t see us being easy on the eye, though.

Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Czech Republic, Spain.

The last two in this list mean we’ve virtually no chance of qualifying.

Barring a miracle.

So Craig Levein has been given the poisoned chalice of Scotland manager.

Quite why he, or anyone, would want the job is a mystery considering the unrealistic expectations of press and public as revealed by their treatment of George Burley.

Yes, in the past Scotland qualified for five World Cups in a row (1974-1990) and six out of seven up to 1998 and haven’t managed that feat since even though the number of available places is now larger.

But don’t forget that a Scotland side littered with players we’d die to have now – Baxter, Law, Crerand, White (1961) and their successors four years later who beat Italy at Hampden when Greig, Murdoch, McNeill etc could be added to the roll call – failed in the attempt even though qualification was less lengthy in those days; albeit the 1961 vintage lost to the eventual World Cup finalists.

That run of six out of seven World Cups was an anomaly. A country the size of Scotland has no divine right to sit at the top table. Arguably even being in Pot Three in Europe is an over-achievement.

Look at the players listed above: do we nowadays have anyone fit to lace their boots? It’s no surprise we can’t qualify for anything. We’re simply not good enough. Organisation will only take you so far.

Times have changed. Time also to adjust expectations.

No matter who the new boss is (or was) he’ll have an almighty struggle returning Scotland to tournament participation.

Let’s just bask in being top of the list of unofficial World Champions. (Even if that’s only because back in the day we could beat England quite often.)

Cardiff City Stadium, 14/11/09

What can you say?

(At least there was some good news for the SPL yesterday, though.
A few of its clubs will be represented at the World Cup Finals next year, now that New Zealand have qualified.)

Hampden Park, 9/9/09

Excruciation over at last. But they teased us up until eight minutes to go.

So that’s it all over – barring the wait till the summer and England lose in the quarter finals. Again.

I suppose it’ll all ramp up once more in about a year when the Euro 2012 qualifiers begin.

We never learn.

Hampden Park, 5/9/09

They just keep doing it to us fans, don’t they? Stringing us out to the last game, torturing us with possibility.

Scotland probably will beat Holland now; just to extend the agony.

I’m astonished, though, looking at the groups that there is a genuine chance we won’t be ninth out of nine best second placed team if we do achieve it. (I did a quick subtraction of six points/two wins and there are several teams worse off than us.)

Call me a natural pessimist, but I still wouldn’t fancy our chances in a play-off even so.

Ullevaal Stadium, Oslo, 12/8/09

It’s ages since a Scotland match. I’d almost forgotten I was posting about them.

I didn’t see all the game as I’ve been away. (Updates on that over the next few posts.) I was listening on the radio in the car, though.

So a right good humping, but it’s been coming since this group started. I have never been sanguine about our chances of qualifying and feared for the consequences if by some miracle we did.

Hearing the line up I wasn’t too confident and we didn’t seem to be in the game much even up to the sending off which, of course, killed it.

No mystery. We just don’t have the players any more. I don’t think the best manager in the world is going to change that.

But it was also crazy to play a qualifier before the season started in the SPL and Premier League.

On my trip Doon The Watter I ended up at Largs, so naturally I took the chance to visit and photograph the refurbished Nardini’s.
This is a stitched together photo of the two I took of the exterior. I like the flags, a true Art Deco touch. Note the “ghost” of the car that was turning left on to the main street.

What a splendid job they’ve made of the restoration. It’s been tastefully done with lovely light shades in the cafe part, stepped octagonal box shapes.
The ice cream selling area (through the corner entrance) also has a Deco type shade on the central light but it’s a stepped cylindrical shape.
The glassware on the doors has also been rendered in the Deco style.
The décor inside and glass doorway reflect the Art Deco feel. The chairs and tables in the café part were less striking though.
This is the photo of the left side.

The present owners have no connection with the Nardini family as far as I know.
Encouragingly the place was busy, though.
We had to sample the wares, of course. The good lady had a double cone with Belgian Chocolate and Caramel Shortcake flavours, I had Double Cream Vanilla and Tablet. (The sign said, “Scottish Tablet,” – must be for the tourists.)
Here is the photo from the right aspect.

There were other ice cream purveyors in Largs including a different Nardini’s – perhaps someone from the original family trading on a smaller scale than before.
Largs is still a typical seaside town. There were even people buying rock from a wee sweetie shop. It took me back.

Due to someone viewing (on 1/8/09) my previous post about Nardini’s (see link above) I found this video on you Tube.

Nardini’s website is here. See also this nice set of aerial photos.

Last week I took a trip “Doon The Watter” (except I went by road rather than boat.)

Birds on foreshore at Greenock

On the shore at Greenock were these birds which at first I thought were oystercatchers but the plumage isn’t quite right and the beaks are too orange. Does anyone have any idea what they are?

Two more Art Deco buildings in Dundee’s Murraygate.

First is Marks And Spencer’s, right out of the Art Deco period.

The second is now under the Topshop/Topman umbrella but was formerly a Burton’s.

Compare the style with the Burton’s in Kirkcaldy. See another view of this Dundee building here.

Lots more Burton’s buildings are pictured in this collection.