It’s the best weekend of the season, with Scottish Cup tales waiting to be written
◆ The action starts tonight as Aberdeen visit Clyde, no doubt still haunted by last season’s nightmare trip to lowly Darvel
Third round, fourth round, call it what you will, the stage where the big guns are mixed in with the lesser lights cannot fail to quicken the pulse of the football romantic. For many people, this writer included, what's coming up qualifies as the best weekend in the Scottish football calendar.
A group of friends, all supporters of different clubs, have continued a tradition of organising a trip to a selected tie at this time every year. As usual, they are spoilt for choice.
The action begins as soon as this evening: Clyde against Aberdeen. The Steve Archibald derby. Or, more poignantly, the Craig Brown derby.
The former Scotland manager adored a giant-killing act as much as anyone, just so long as he was not on the wrong end of it. He will be looking down – and indeed, is looking out from the front cover of the match programme – as current Clyde manager Ian Mccall attempts to get the better of Barry Robson in the opposite dugout.
Brown, of course, managed both Clyde and Aberdeen at very different stages of his career. Archibald, meanwhile, scored goals for both teams as he completed the step up from apprentice motor mechanic to budding professional footballer. He won the league title at Pittodrie under Alex Ferguson at the start of the club's greatest era.
By contrast, Aberdeen reached a nadir on this equivalent weekend last year. Rather than kicking off the Scottish Cup fun, Aberdeen were rounding it off. And boy, did they round it off in, erm, style on the Monday night in darkest Ayrshire.
As is the case tonight, BBC Scotland covered the game live, with access all areas granted by hosts Darvel. "I promiseyourightnow,wecan win this," said manager Mick
Kennedy en route to becoming a brief social media sensation. The outspoken, largerthan-life Kennedy, now manager at East Kilbride, might be many things, but he's not a liar. Darvel won 1-0 in what's reckoned to be one of the biggest, if not the biggest, shocks in the competition’s long, distinguished history.
Indeed, this year's Scottish Cup is an extra special one. March is the 150th anniversary of the first time a captain ‘went up’ to lift the Scottish Cup – although whether there was a plinth, stairs or otherwise is not recorded. What is chronicled by the Dundee Courier is that Queen’s Park, “with the wind at their backs”, scored two goals in the second half to defeat Clydesdale and "gain the first cup ever played for on this side of the Border". The report concluded: "We may add that in the short space of four years football has become a most popular sport in the land, clubs rising up everywhere.”
Sixteen clubs contested the first competition. Over 130 teams embarked on the road to Hampden back in August, when Luncarty v Loch Ness was one of three first preliminary round ties. Both have now been eliminated, Loch Ness on that opening late summer's afternoon. The only thing threatening to cool the ardour this weekend is the weather forecast.
Sadly Queen’s Park, the inaugural winners, won’t be able to add to their tally of ten wins in such a significant year – they were knocked out by Partick Thistle in the previous
round. And whatever did happen to Darvel? Thumped 5-1 by Falkirk in the next round, that's what.
As for this season, Darvel exited in the first round following a comprehensive defeat by Bo’ness United. Perhaps reporters will be sent elsewhere next week to deliver follow-up pieces from the scene of a great cup upset. Several were required to set the Sat Nav for Darvel to see what they could discover 12 months ago. Where this time?
Rangers head to the Rock at Dumbarton. There could be dancing in the streets of one Banffshire town if Buckie Thistle spring a seismic surprise at Celtic Park.
Edinburgh would be a more straightforward destination. Spartans meet Hearts in an appetising local derby and credit to everyone involved in the decision to stage the game atthenewlypromotedleague 2 club's home stadium rather than take it elsewhere in a bid to maximise profit. BBC Scotland are again on hand to provide live coverage.
While it might be hard to see in-form Hearts falling to a shock result, one wonders about Hibs. Heading from a mid-winter training camp in Dubai straight into a Scottish Cup appointment at Forfar could be a dictionary definition of perilous. Home manager Ray Mckinnon will no
doubt order his players to make life as uncomfortable as possible for a team still shaking sand from their boots.
Mckinnon’s former Dundee United teammate Duncan Ferguson will welcome Lowland League side Broomhill to Inverness, with the hosts dreaming of a second successive final. Ferguson’s association with Hampden is mostly negative – a losing Scottish Cup finalist with Dundee United as a player, and again, 30 years ago, when at Rangers, this time against the Tannadice side.
Likeferguson,dundeecould be said to have a problem with Hampden.theylastwonatrophy there 50 years last month, though it wasn’t the Scottish Cup. That’s not been lifted by the Dens Park club since 1910 – and even then it was Ibrox. It’s now114yearssincethatfamous day, which, as Hibs fans know, soundslikeagoodtimetoenda drought. Tony Docherty's side headtokilmarnocktomorrow afternoon.
As for my pals. I just texted one of them, who’s Edinburgh based. Where you off to on Saturday? "Dingwall." Ross County v Partick Thistle, a replay of last season’s titanic Premiership play-off final. “Could be foolish, given the weather,” he added. When you setting off? “Friday.” Ah, the long trek of the cup.
It’s the 150th anniversary of the first time a captain ‘went up’ to lift the Scottish Cup