Sutton’s the only player to get two caps on the one day..his first and his last
McCoist warms up to skipper Scots against the Auld Enemy – at tennis
ALLY McCOIST has been involved in a few ScotlandEngland clashes in his time but it’s the ones the public didn’t see that still make him grin and grimace in equal measure.
As the Rangers and Scotland legend looked ahead to winning another cap against the Auld Enemy – this time as captain of his homeland against England at tennis on December 21 and 22 – McCoist admitted he’s thankful he’ll be sitting on the sidelines watching Andy and Jamie Murray going into battle for his team.
And he recalled with a mixture of amusement and bemusement the time when his former manager Graeme Souness used to defect and play for the English in feisty bounce games during the late 80s when a host of stars from south of the border arrived at Ibrox.
McCoist, trademark grin plastered over his face, said: “I’ve been involved in a few official Scotland v England matches, which were probably slightly less controversial than the unofficial Scotland v England matches.
“My record actually in Scotland v England matches wasn’t the best.
“I maybe got a draw, we lost at Hampden, and a 1-0 and 2-0 defeat at Wembley.
“I aim to go better than that in the tennis tournament. The unofficial Scotland v England matches, dear me, I hope the players show better, far better, behaviour next week than some of the players involved in those unofficial matches we used to have in training at Rangers.
“Graeme Souness, for some reason known only to himself, decided that he wanted to play for England alongside big Terry Butcher, Chris Woods, Graham Roberts and Ray Wilkins against guys like myself, Davie Cooper, Ian Durrant and Stuart Munro.
“We adopted Jimmy Nicholl for the five-a-sides on the Friday. Without going into too much detail, let’s just say they used to get a little tasty. I’m hoping for better behaviour in Aberdeen!”
There’s more than national pride at stake for Coisty when the Scots take on England.
There are serious bragging rights at stake with the man on the other side of the umpire’s chair captaining the English being none other than his BT Sport sparring partner Chris Sutton.
McCoist said: “I know how much all the boys want to win but I can guarantee you, they won’t want to win as much as me and Sutton. Could you imagine it?
“Oh man, it doesn’t bear thinking about if we don’t win this. He’s unbearable at the best of times. If it’s possible, he’ll be doubly unbearable.
“I’m looking forward to him getting his second England cap. He’s actually the only player to get two caps on the one day – his first and his last. It’s another opportunity for him to represent England.”
Sutton returned that verbal volley with an ace of his own, laughing: “He’s right! But just imagine if I’d been Scottish, I’d be in the SFA Hall of Fame with about a hundred caps!
“Myself and Ally are extremely competitive. I don’t know what impact we can have on our particular teams with motivational speeches, though. He was manager at
Rangers when they were struggling, I was manager at Lincoln City.
“So it could be a battle of the tactical minds. I don’t think it’ll pan out like that!
“He’s probably not accurate enough when he says I’ll be doubly unbearable. Try treble, quadruple.
“I’d love to play him at tennis. If you look at his condition, he wouldn’t be able to move around the court a lot.
“I’d just keep serving and volleying.
“I’m desperate to get up to Aberdeen and I expect England to put one over on you boys.
“Well, Andy Murray’s got a bad hip, hasn’t he? It’s not a fully fit Andy
Murray! I’m looking forward to it but it’s not the first time the English have been up to the north of Scotland and defeated the Scots. “Remember about Culloden? You can chuck Bannockburn at us but you had the advantage. You won’t get the advantage in Aberdeen. Conditions will be the same for both.” McCoist is convinced having the Murrays on board will mean the vast majority of the crowds that will flock to The Event Complex in Aberdeen will go home happy. The 59-yearold added: “When you talk about the greatest
Scottish sportsmen of all time, Andy has to be up there.
“I can’t remember anybody giving so much joy over a period, consistently, to households up and down Scotland than Andy Murray.
“Any time I see Andy or Judy, I always remind them Andy is actually my brother – because any time he plays tennis, he’s my mum’s boy!
“But that’s the effect Andy and Jamie have on the Scottish public. Andy’s taken so many Scots with him on this incredible journey. He’s one of the greatest Scottish sportsmen of all time.”
Schroders Battle of the Brits, Scotland v England, Aberdeen on December 21 & 22 via ticketmaster.co.uk/ battle-of-the-brits-scotlandv-england-live-tennistickets/artist/5346995