Duffle coat nightmares over

Following their sunshine breaks, the big boys of Scottish football are back in action in the fourth round of the Scottish Cup this weekend – and there are some fascinating ties to look forward to.

I did have a wee chuckle to myself, however, when I saw that the first game of the fourth round will be on Friday night at Central Park where Cowdenbeath host Rangers. As culture shocks go, Friday will be an eye-opener for new Rangers recruit Jermain Defoe.

He is used to going to smaller venues in the FA Cup but he won’t have seen anything like the home of the Blue Brazil. Those white tyres and the racing track live long in the memory for everyone who has been there.

For my old club, Aberdeen, the very mention of their opponents Stenhousemuir sends a shiver down my spine.

I was in the Dons team that suffered a shock cup defeat at Stenny in 1995 and it is easily one of the worst results I have ever been involved in.

I remember Willie Miller had lost his job as Dons manager two weeks before the game and we had beaten Rangers in front of a packed Pittodrie in Roy Aitken’s first game in charge. As a result we travelled to Stenny with a spring in our steps and the attitude among the boys in the dressing-room was fantastic.

I seem to remember there was some doubt about whether the game would go ahead due to the weather but it was played and in hindsight I wish it hadn’t been.

It was torture. The instruction from Roy was to get the ball down and pass it but it was impossible on the heavy surface. We tried to pass but Stenny closed us down from the first minute to the last and when they had the ball they whipped it over the top to Tommy Steele. He was a prolific scorer at lower league level and he scored both goals as we were beaten 2-0 by Terry Christie’s side.

Terry is a gentleman but if I never see another duffle coat in my life I’ll be delighted.

Saturday will be a totally different scenario, though. Derek McInnes’s Dons are going well and, at home, I’d be surprised if they didn’t win by three or four goals.

The same goes for another of my old clubs, Caley Thistle, who face East Kilbride. I was at Caledonian Stadium on Saturday and Caley Jags played well to beat a depleted Ayr United and they should win comfortably against the Lowland League side.

One club which needs to stop the rot is Ross County. I knew their trip to Queens would be tough but I didn’t expect a 4-0 loss. They are under a little bit of pressure after back-to-back defeats in the Championship and maybe a free hit at Motherwell on Saturday can give them the break they need.

WHITE TYRES AND A RACING TRACK: Jermain Defoe is in for a Blue Brazil eye-opener