Tears of a nation as Scotland crashes out of Rugby World Cup
Heartbreak for Scots as controversial penalty in dying minutes sees them lose to Australia
OUR GRASSROOTS RUGBY AFICIONADO GETS DOWN WITH THE FANS IN THE PUB
THEY came more in hope than expectation – but right up to the final agonising moments of a tense, winner-takes-all encounter, Scotland’s army of rugby fans could dare to dream.
A first World Cup semi-final for 24 years beckoned, only for it to be snatched away at the death, as so many times before, while the rain poured down.
Things had looked so much brighter at 10am, when platform five at Clapham Junction was like the gathering of the clans, with kilts of all hues clashing with the green and gold of Australian fans.
With kick- off still six hours away, it seemed some fans were already hedging their bets – with several sporting tartan bunnets strung with corks, Antipodean-style. One fan, clearly of Anglo-Saxon origin, walked past in a T-shirt emblazoned: ‘Plan B – Support Scotland.’
‘That’s a really big gesture,’ acknowledged a kilted warrior sporting a beard he had recently sprayed with a can of blue paint. ‘Yeah, I’m not sure I could bring myself to do that if it was England,’ admits Bluebeard’s friend cheerfully.
They were all heading for Twickenham where, had things turned out differently for the hosts, Scotland could have been playing England, who they haven’t beaten there since 1983.
Instead, the Auld Enemy’s ground, known affectionately among its fans as the ‘cabbage patch’, was overrun by thistles and marsupials, while many more without tickets lingered in the pubs and bars in the shadow of the famous old stadium, watching the drama unfold.
But despite England’s self-inflicted absence from the knock-out phase of the cup, many Scots were no more confident of causing an upset, with the Wallabies occupying the host dressing room.
Before the match, it was hard to find a Scot prepared to commit to a win – understandable, given how much heartache our fans have had to endure in recent rugby and football competitions.
‘My heart says Scotland will win, but my head says otherwise,’ admitted Gemma Wycherley, a 42-year-old company director who had been up since 5.45am to catch the 8am flight from Edinburgh with her friend Maddy Smith. ‘But win or lose, it’s just going to be a great experience.’
Whether seeking early solace or premature celebration, the pair were already enjoying a glass of prosecco in the bright autumn sunshine which lit up the fanzone in Richmond’s Old Deer Park, some 20 minutes walk from the stadium, and where giant screens showed Ireland’s epic defeat by Argentina.
Outside the zone, a recorder player had put down two hats for contributions from either team. The Australian hat contained more money. Perhaps the Scots realised how much cash they might need for their £7 pizzas and drinks at £5 a pint inside the zone.
Ireland’s loss left Scotland as the lone northern hemisphere side in the competition. Even those Scotland fans prepared to put their neck on the line were predicting a tight match, probably through bitter experience. ‘ Scotland by six points,’ said Jamie Leslie, 26, from Forres in Moray.
The Wallabies were braver. ‘ We will win 47-11,’ said 47-year- old Mike Willesee, who travelled over from Sydney last week and was happily wandering around in a green and gold onesie covered in green stars. ‘I’m quietly confident,’ he added, something of an understatement in that get-up.
‘I think it will be close, maybe just a couple of points in it,’ predicted South African Johan Diedricks, 52, who had arrived from Perth, Western Australia, earlier in the week with his wife, Debbie, 45. ‘We want South Africa to win the thing, but we are supporting our wee team today, which is Australia.’
Elsewhere in the giant fanzone, the SkyView big wheel was doing a brisk trade. ‘You can see for miles up there today, mate,’ says the oper- ator. ‘I hear if you look really hard, a long way into the distance, you can even see a Scottish victory.’
And yet, with just minutes to go to the final whistle, an unlikely win for the underdog Scots was still very much on.
In the aptly-named Cabbage Patch pub, just a line-out’s throw from Twickenham, the mood swung wildly. When Scots centre Mark Bennett scored what many thought would be the winning try, chef Martin McDonough, originally from East Kilbride, and his friend Jimmy Russell, a former Regimental Sergeant Major in the Black Watch, danced a jig of delight.
‘We are going to do this. We’re going to win,’ he bellowed – at the very moment Australia were awarded the decisive and hugely controversial penalty that would seal their win and kill off Scotland’s hopes at the final hurdle.
The result sparked an outpouring of celebrity sympathy on social media. JK Rowling tweeted: ‘You were magnificent. You did us proud. I’m bloody crying. Should’ve been ours.’
Rory Bremner wrote: ‘Magnificent from @Scotlandteam. More than anyone could have asked or hoped for. Fantastic effort.’
Alastair Campbell fumed: ‘That is horrific. Great performance. Dire ref. Gutting. Semi- final was a minute away. F word f word f word for effing days now.’
Even Police Scotland got in on the act, with officers in Falkirk tweeting that they were investigating a ‘robbery’ in the Twickenham area.
Back in the pub, Jimmy wailed: ‘It’s just like our football team missing out on Euro 2016 in France with the last kick of the game. Why does this always happen to us?’
‘At least we did ourselves proud and gave it a go,’ said Martin.
A lone piper struck up Scotland the Brave, and everyone jigged and cheered until the beer taps and the tears ran dry. It was a day for dreamers – and even the brave losers deserved to celebrate.
‘Heart says we’ll win, head says otherwise’