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Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Mail
In Case You Missed It: Scottish sport under the microscope like never before as alarm bells sound for the future
The current state of Scottish sport has been a hot topic in Mail Sport this week, with rugby, tennis and football all coming under the microscope. The week began, of course, with the nation feeling rather glum in the wake of that Hampden humbling against Iceland, with the prospect of a meaningless — yet dangerous — friendly in Liechtenstein failing to get anyone excited. Such was the sense of hopelessness that our very own Calum Crowe sounded the death knell for our hopes of reaching the 2026 World Cup before a ball has even been kicked in our qualification campaign. The subsequent 4-0 cruise in Vaduz at least managed to turn down the heat on manager Steve Clarke, with Che Adams' hat-trick a welcome sight and hopefully a sign of better things to come. The path to the Americas begins in September with daunting away trips to Denmark and Belarus — albeit the latter fixture will most likely take place in Hungary — and SFA supremo Ian Maxwell did confirm that it is unlikely in the extreme that anyone other than Clarke will be the man at the helm. While football fills us with frustration, rugby is facing something more akin to rancour following Mail Sport's exclusive this week about the devastating cuts Scottish Rugby are imposing on the developmental game. Murrayfield chiefs have been accused of showing 'disrespect' and a 'lack of care' towards young players after announcing major changes to their academy system, with some age-grade teams having seen their number of official academy players cut in half. All this comes at a time when SRU performance director David Nucifora is still based in Australia and only visits Scotland during certain periods of the year. While so many people are affected by the drastic upheaval, Nucifora is essentially, as Calum Crowe put it so well, phoning it in from Bondi Beach. To compound a week of worry for the Scottish sporting landscape, Mail Sport's exclusive with Judy Murray was particularly ominous. On the back of the Scottish government's failure to build on the legacy of her superstar sons, Andy and Jamie, Judy accused Holyrood of continuing to fail sport in this country and revealed her fears that it is becoming a two-tier system of the 'haves' and 'have nots' in schools. Murray spent 11 years working on the failed Park of Keir project which she hoped would allow the nation to build on the Grand Slam and Olympic successes her sons achieved. Now she fears there will be no Scots in the Wimbledon juniors this year, a state of affairs she finds unacceptable. Scottish numbers dwindled on the Lions tour, too, with Zander Fagerson's withdrawal from the squad which will travel to Australia this summer officially confirmed. On the plus side, Scotland coach Gregor Townsend selected a strong squad for his side's own tour Down Under and he fully expects that some of his men will be drafted in by Lions coach Andy Farrell as injuries start to bite. On a more positive note, our intrepid groundhopper Hugh MacDonald entertained us in the absence of live football by taking us on a journey back to the times of the coal mines, exploring the inextricable links between the pit and the pitch. The legendary managerial trio of Stein, Shankly and Busby all had mining links, but it was the stories of the less heralded names, the men who would emerge from the darkness to compete for their clubs — and sometimes at a high level — that stood out from our look-back to a time that must seem so alien to many among the younger generation. Finally, if it's a more irreverent offering that you are hankering for, John McGarry's A-Z of the Scottish football season just gone is a must-read. As, of course, are our Rangers and Celtic Confidentials, available every week on Mail+.
Daily Mail
13-06-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mail
SPORTS DIGEST: Miller's starring role on first Scotland start shows teenager was right to back himself with 'best player' comments
There was all manner of pearl-clutching back in March when Lennon Miller declared his intention to quickly become Scotland's best player after earning his first call-up. The 18-year-old was seemingly criticised from all corners for showing some ambition, but admitted this week that he had misspoke when delivering those now infamous remarks. The Motherwell captain said the episode taught him to be careful what he says, but he did his talking on the pitch earlier this week when handed his first senior international start against Liechtenstein. The teenage midfielder ran the show in the 4-0 victory in Vaduz, assisting Che Adams ' second goal and was a constant livewire throughout, always looking to create for his team-mates. He strolled it. Granted it was a low level of opposition but this was still an encouraging full debut for the young man. It also adds even more intrigue to his next move. Miller has been targeted by a host of top clubs after another impressive season at Fir Park. It's easy to see why Motherwell would be keen to cash in on their prized asset but the fear is that once he leaves, he may struggle for game time wherever he goes. There's plenty of examples of young players leaving Scotland only to struggle to fulfil their potential elsewhere due to a lack of opportunities. As he tries to establish himself in what is easily the strongest part of the national team, let's hope Miller chooses his next move very carefully. Whatever it is, he should continue to back himself. SFA's strong stance on fan trouble is welcome The SFA is making the right noises about tackling fan trouble but whether it will lead to meaningful change remains to be seen. Agreement was reached at the SFA's annual general meeting that clubs face greater liability if fans misbehave at Scottish Cup matches. The update follows the SPFL adopting stricter rules for the Premier Sports Cup, which saw Celtic, Rangers and Motherwell sanctioned after pyrotechnic displays held up semi-final kick-offs. Speaking on Thursday, SFA chief executive Ian Maxwell said: 'We had one change to our cup rules from a crowd behaviour point of view which brings us more in line with SPFL regulations. 'If someone wants to come into a stadium and throw a seat at a player, I don't think you're ever going to be able to stop that because it's a criminal activity and what can you do? 'But it certainly gives us a bit more teeth, it gives us a bit more ability to take action. 'The fundamental is we've got hundreds of thousands of fans that come and watch football every week and want to do it in the right way. 'They want some noise, they want some activity, they want some energy round about the stadium and we're not saying for a minute that we don't want that either, but fundamentally, it has to come from a place of safety. 'We see, particularly at Hampden, if there's significant pyro use, there are a large number of supporters that have to leave the stadium because of breathing difficulties, because of safety concerns, because kids are frightened and it's those supporters that we need to look after. 'It needs us to do as much as we can along with the SPFL. It needs the clubs to do as much as they can. It needs the police and the stewarding teams on a match day to do as much as they can. 'It needs the Crown and the judiciary system to do as much as they can. It's a real collaborative approach that's required. 'We've got a government roundtable that we're at next week to discuss measures because it's a problem. 'There have been more significant instances, particularly towards the end of last season and we need to take steps to eradicate it.' There has been much debate about the so-called Ultras culture and Maxwell stressed the need to work with younger supporters. 'I think there's a educational element to it,' he said. 'I don't know if people that bring pyro into a ground actually know that it's illegal in a lot of cases because you see individuals doing it and it's not part of a group. 'I'm not sure if they actually understand that you're breaking the law by having a pyrotechnic - even on the way to a football stadium now - but at the moment, there's a lack of consequence for that behaviour. 'People are difficult to identify on a match day, it happens more afterwards that we'll look at CCTV and try to identify them - and then when they do get into the court system, sometimes there's not a lot of action taken because of the way the legislation is worded. So we're talking to the Scottish Government about how we change that. 'Everybody talks about the ultras groups. The ultras groups as a form of excitement, as a form of noise, as a form of activity, as a form of making the match-day experience what everybody wants it to be are absolutely fine, nobody has an issue with that. 'It's when it boils over into "there's a risk of harm, there's a safety concern", that's when we need to be able to take some sort of action to try and stop that type of behaviour.' No surprise to see Townsend name a strong squad A summer tour of the pacific looked an ideal opportunity for Gregor Townsend to give experience to new faces, and rest some more familiar ones after a long, hard season. In truth, though, it was never likely. The Scotland head coach has named a strong 36-man squad for the tour, which begins on July 5 in Whangarei against Maori All Blacks, with Tests against Fiji in Suva and Samoa in Auckland to follow. The travelling party will be captained by Rory Darge, with regular starters such as Darcy Graham, Ben White, Grant Gilchrist and Jamie Ritchie also included. There are also welcome returns for George Turner after a year playing in Japan, and Andy Onyeama-Christie, back in the squad following long-term injury. Only three uncapped players make the squad; Glasgow Warriors prop Fin Richardson, Saracens fly-half Fergus Burke and No8 Alex Masibaka, who has spent the last two years with French second tier side Soyaux Angouleme XV Charente, on loan from Montpellier. While it would perhaps be more exciting for fans to see more young players given a chance, it's no surprise to see Townsend stick with what he knows given the circumstances. For a start, good results against Fiji and Samoa will be crucial if the Scots are to improve their world ranking ahead of the World Cup draw in December. Townsend is also mindful of the need to keep his stars in good condition with the Lions tour happening at the same time. The threat of injury is never too far away, a fact highlighted this week with Zander Fagerson having to pull out of Lions duty with injury. The Scotland boss revealed he would be delighted if any of his travelling party were required to join up with Andy Farrell's men. 'We want them to do that,' said Townsend. 'We're so pleased and proud that eight guys were originally selected but we were disappointed that there weren't more. And if it means that opportunities open up, we will be wishing them all the best.' Secretly, however, the head coach will know that good results are also be vital to his long-term job security moving forward. His contract is set to expire next year and he admitted this week that no talks had taken place yet with Scottish Rugby over a new deal. Another disappointing Six Nations campaign raised uncomfortable questions around the squad's lack of progress and Townsend's future in the role. Three wins from three on the upcoming tour is the minimum requirement if he is to start building his case to stay on longer term. Coaching appointments hinting at Smith's future? Franco Smith is not a man to wear his heart on his sleeve, so when the Glasgow Warriors head coach does speak candidly, people tend to listen. The South African has a year left on his contract at Scotstoun but didn't totally shut down links with the Wales job earlier this year. After Glasgow's defeat to Leinster in the URC semi-final last weekend, he once again seemed to hint he was not a certainty to return for next season. 'I'm looking forward to reflect a little bit,' he said. 'I think it's 44 weeks we've been at it, there's only 52 weeks in the year, so it's a full year's work. 'If you defend the title you have to be on top of your game in all of it, so it will be important for me now to go and reflect a little bit, and take a bit of downtime, and hopefully see what's going to come next.' But what will come next for the 52-year-old? That Wales role still hasn't been filled, and he has not hidden his frustration with key players such as Henco Venter, Tom Jordan and Sebastian Cancelliere leaving Scotstoun as the SRU look to prioritise bringing through young talent. The Scotland job is also potentially going to be available in the near future, with Gregor Townsend's current deal with the national team expiring around the same time as Smith's contract with Glasgow. However, Warriors fans will have been pleased to hear this week that the boss has wasted little time in bolstering his coaching staff at Scotstoun. Former Edinburgh back-rower Roddy Grant and ex-Scotland Sevens international Scott Forrest have both joined the Scotstoun set-up, filling the void left by the departure of defence coach Peter Murchie. Attack coach Nigel Carolan has also agreed a new deal to stay on at Glasgow. 'We're pleased to be able to confirm our coaching group as we turn our attention towards the new season, and to retain Nigel's services as we prepare for the new campaign,' Smith said, and those words will be music to Warriors' fans' ears. Of course, nothing is set in stone, but it's the clearest indication yet that Smith is prepared to see out the final year of his deal. Monty wants an Open return for Turnberry Scottish golfing legend Colin Montgomerie has backed calls for Trump Turnberry to return to The Open rotation. There appears to be increasing pressure on the R&A to give the USA President what he wants - and that means the Ayrshire course once again hosting the Championship despite reservations about its ability to do so. However, Monty, for one, appears to be siding with Donald Trump on this decision at least. The 61-year-old, who has 31 European tour wins to his name, made the claim in a recent interview with BBC Scotland. He said: 'As a professional golfer, a professional Scottish golfer, I really hope it is [used]. 'It's ranked number one in Scotland and in Britain, and rightly so. It's the best course in Scotland, and it deserves to host an Open. 'And let's hope the authorities can all get together and find a way around it, and make that happen, and the sooner the better.'
The Herald Scotland
10-06-2025
- Sport
- The Herald Scotland
Why Steve Clarke won't repeat 4-4-2 experiment in World Cup qualifying
Nor was Boyd, who is as well known these days for being a forthright and knowledgeable pundit for Sky Sports as he is for his heroics in the final third during his previous existence, surprised when Che Adams scored a hat-trick and George Hirst netted his first goal for his country during an emphatic and badly-needed 4-0 triumph. However, the man who found the target on seven occasions during his 18 cap international career suspects it will not be an experiment that will, despite its resounding success this week, be repeated once the World Cup qualifying campaign gets underway in September. Even against Group C minnows Belarus. Read more: The Ayrshireman can understand exactly why members of the Tartan Army have grown frustrated at the failure of a Scotland striker - of Adams, Tommy Conway, Lyndon Dykes, Hirst, Lawrence Shankland and James Wilson - to score during the past 12 months. Adams' early opener on Monday evening was the first time in 367 days, in 12 games, in 1,116 minutes, that a player who was leading the line for the national team had found the target. His effort ended a drought which stretched back to the goal which Shankland pitched in with against Finland in the second half of the Euro 2024 warm-up friendly at Hampden on Friday, June 7, last year. But for Boyd, who took part in a McDonald's Fun Football session for local youngsters at Hampden on Monday afternoon before watching the second June friendly at home on television, centre forwards scoring goals has become of far less importance in the modern game. He doesn't think the failures in the Nations League play-off against Greece in March and the June friendly against Iceland last Friday night can be attributed to the Scotland attackers' lack of ruthlessness. (Image: Craig Williamson - SNS Group) 'The issue is that we grew up in an era when there was always two strikers and those two players usually got you the goals,' he said. 'But I think we've been quite fortunate that we have a number of players behind a striker who have been able to deliver for Scotland. 'The role of a striker has changed over the years, there's no getting away from it. But that lone striker role that we deploy quite a bit allows us to get players from the middle of the pitch forward and they have contributed to Scotland in a big way over a period of time. 'To be honest, I think that's just where the world of football is right now. Look at Mo Salah at Liverpool, Ousmane Dembele and Desire Doue at Paris Saint-Germain and Lamine Yamal at Barcelona. They're all big players who score goals for their clubs but they're all wingers. 'If you take the likes of Erling Haaland, Harry Kane and Robert Lewandowski out of the equation, there's not an awful lot of old-fashioned No 9s any more. Football has changed, it's evolved.' Boyd believes that Clarke, who he worked under towards the end of his playing days at Kilmarnock, would be savaged by Scotland supporters if he played two strikers in important fixtures, in the forthcoming World Cup qualifiers, because it would mean that he would have to drop one of his best midfielders. Read more: 'What Steve needs to do is get the best out of the boys that he's got,' he said. 'Sometimes it is best to play with one up front and have the players that we've got behind him get the goals. That is the way it works. 'If Steve was to put in another striker and drop one of our star midfielders, drop John McGinn, Scott McTominay, Lewis Ferguson or Billy Gilmour, he's going to get criticised for that. 'Our strikers have got strengths in their game, there's no doubt about that. But there's not really an out-and-out goal scorer among them. If a team is a jigsaw and you're trying to put it all together, you need to realise where we're really strong and that is behind the striker with our midfielders. 'Throughout the Steve Clarke era, those players, those big players like John McGinn, Ryan Christie, Scott McTominay and Billy Gilmour, have almost always produced when it has mattered most.' Boyd, though, is hopeful that we have, even in this era of false No 9s, shadow strikers and twin No 10s, not seen the end of the 4-4-2 formation. He will not be at all surprised if it is in vogue once again in the not too distant future. (Image: SNS Group / SFA) 'Will it come back?' he said. 'Will we see two strikers up front again? You know, the big guy and the small guy? Do you know what? We just might. 'In football, everybody likes to try to reinvent the wheel. But nine times out of ten the game will revert back to what it was before. I for one hope that is the case. I would like to see Steve get two strikers on the pitch and create opportunities for them to score goals. But I do think we will go back to one up front when World Cup qualifying comes around.' That campaign will come a little too quickly for the boys and girls who took part in the McDonald's Fun Football sessions at Hampden on Monday – but Boyd is hopeful the long-standing initiative will produce a few more players like Che Adams, George Hirst and Lawrence Shankland for Scotland in the years to come. 'Programmes like McDonald's Fun Football are important for communities across Scotland,' he said. 'They give children a safe, positive place to just play the game and have fun. 'McDonald's are offering more free sessions this summer across Scotland and it's brilliant to see. I wish I had this when I was a youngster, I would've loved it. I'd encourage every parent to not miss out and to get their child signed up to their nearest free session.' Kris Boyd was celebrating the latest free wave of McDonald's Fun Football sessions this Summer, available to all children aged 5-11 across the UK. You can sign up now for your nearest free session at
The National
10-06-2025
- Sport
- The National
Why Steve Clarke won't repeat 4-4-2 experiment in World Cup qualifying
Having been a member of a few potent strike partnerships during his own playing days, the former Kilmarnock and Rangers player very much approved when the national team lined up in an old-fashioned 4-4-2 formation against Liechtenstein in the Rheinpark Stadium in Vaduz. Nor was Boyd, who is as well known these days for being a forthright and knowledgeable pundit for Sky Sports as he is for his heroics in the final third during his previous existence, surprised when Che Adams scored a hat-trick and George Hirst netted his first goal for his country during an emphatic and badly-needed 4-0 triumph. However, the man who found the target on seven occasions during his 18 cap international career suspects it will not be an experiment that will, despite its resounding success this week, be repeated once the World Cup qualifying campaign gets underway in September. Even against Group C minnows Belarus. Read more: The Ayrshireman can understand exactly why members of the Tartan Army have grown frustrated at the failure of a Scotland striker - of Adams, Tommy Conway, Lyndon Dykes, Hirst, Lawrence Shankland and James Wilson - to score during the past 12 months. Adams' early opener on Monday evening was the first time in 367 days, in 12 games, in 1,116 minutes, that a player who was leading the line for the national team had found the target. His effort ended a drought which stretched back to the goal which Shankland pitched in with against Finland in the second half of the Euro 2024 warm-up friendly at Hampden on Friday, June 7, last year. But for Boyd, who took part in a McDonald's Fun Football session for local youngsters at Hampden on Monday afternoon before watching the second June friendly at home on television, centre forwards scoring goals has become of far less importance in the modern game. He doesn't think the failures in the Nations League play-off against Greece in March and the June friendly against Iceland last Friday night can be attributed to the Scotland attackers' lack of ruthlessness. (Image: Craig Williamson - SNS Group) 'The issue is that we grew up in an era when there was always two strikers and those two players usually got you the goals,' he said. 'But I think we've been quite fortunate that we have a number of players behind a striker who have been able to deliver for Scotland. 'The role of a striker has changed over the years, there's no getting away from it. But that lone striker role that we deploy quite a bit allows us to get players from the middle of the pitch forward and they have contributed to Scotland in a big way over a period of time. 'To be honest, I think that's just where the world of football is right now. Look at Mo Salah at Liverpool, Ousmane Dembele and Desire Doue at Paris Saint-Germain and Lamine Yamal at Barcelona. They're all big players who score goals for their clubs but they're all wingers. 'If you take the likes of Erling Haaland, Harry Kane and Robert Lewandowski out of the equation, there's not an awful lot of old-fashioned No 9s any more. Football has changed, it's evolved.' Boyd believes that Clarke, who he worked under towards the end of his playing days at Kilmarnock, would be savaged by Scotland supporters if he played two strikers in important fixtures, in the forthcoming World Cup qualifiers, because it would mean that he would have to drop one of his best midfielders. Read more: 'What Steve needs to do is get the best out of the boys that he's got,' he said. 'Sometimes it is best to play with one up front and have the players that we've got behind him get the goals. That is the way it works. 'If Steve was to put in another striker and drop one of our star midfielders, drop John McGinn, Scott McTominay, Lewis Ferguson or Billy Gilmour, he's going to get criticised for that. 'Our strikers have got strengths in their game, there's no doubt about that. But there's not really an out-and-out goal scorer among them. If a team is a jigsaw and you're trying to put it all together, you need to realise where we're really strong and that is behind the striker with our midfielders. 'Throughout the Steve Clarke era, those players, those big players like John McGinn, Ryan Christie, Scott McTominay and Billy Gilmour, have almost always produced when it has mattered most.' Boyd, though, is hopeful that we have, even in this era of false No 9s, shadow strikers and twin No 10s, not seen the end of the 4-4-2 formation. He will not be at all surprised if it is in vogue once again in the not too distant future. (Image: SNS Group / SFA) 'Will it come back?' he said. 'Will we see two strikers up front again? You know, the big guy and the small guy? Do you know what? We just might. 'In football, everybody likes to try to reinvent the wheel. But nine times out of ten the game will revert back to what it was before. I for one hope that is the case. I would like to see Steve get two strikers on the pitch and create opportunities for them to score goals. But I do think we will go back to one up front when World Cup qualifying comes around.' That campaign will come a little too quickly for the boys and girls who took part in the McDonald's Fun Football sessions at Hampden on Monday – but Boyd is hopeful the long-standing initiative will produce a few more players like Che Adams, George Hirst and Lawrence Shankland for Scotland in the years to come. 'Programmes like McDonald's Fun Football are important for communities across Scotland,' he said. 'They give children a safe, positive place to just play the game and have fun. 'McDonald's are offering more free sessions this summer across Scotland and it's brilliant to see. I wish I had this when I was a youngster, I would've loved it. I'd encourage every parent to not miss out and to get their child signed up to their nearest free session.' Kris Boyd was celebrating the latest free wave of McDonald's Fun Football sessions this Summer, available to all children aged 5-11 across the UK. You can sign up now for your nearest free session at
Glasgow Times
10-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Glasgow Times
Glasgow school among winners in anti-racism competition
Holyrood Secondary School, in Glasgow, Sanderson High School in South Lanarkshire, and Gryffe High School in Renfrewshire were recognised for their creative efforts in the Show Racism the Red Card's (SRtRC) competition. The event at Hampden Park in Glasgow saw the participation of more than 100 young, active anti-racists from across Scotland. Show Racism the Red Card Scotland - Creative Competition (Image: Supplied) More than 3,100 entries were received from children in primary one to college students. Che Adams, Connor Barron, and James Wilson were among those who attended the ceremony, along with Minister for Equalities, Kaukab Stewart, and sportscotland chief executive officer, Forbes Dunlop. Read more: 'Something happened': Family of Cole Cooper demand 'full truth' after body found Health board praised for frontline innovation and compassionate leadership Eco partnership launched in Glasgow to cut home energy use The competition aims to inspire young people across Scotland to use their creativity to design thought-provoking work that raises awareness of racism and promotes an anti-racist message. This year's theme was 'The Power of Our Voice'. Martyn Ware, director of policy, analysis, and standards at SQA, said: "Education has a critical role to play in tackling racism and promoting an anti-racist culture in our society." Billy Singh, campaign manager for Show Racism the Red Card in Scotland, said: "The Show Racism the Red Card's Creative Competition has again inspired young people across Scotland to use their creativity to design thought-provoking artwork that raises awareness of racism and promotes a strong anti-racist message. "This year, we have seen some truly inspirational work, and our judges faced some really difficult decisions deciding upon our overall winners. "I want to thank everyone who took part in this year's competition; we never cease to be amazed by the young people who get involved and their willingness to learn and want a more caring and inclusive Scotland."
