The Mantis

A phrase not often used.

Depends on the brand.

Livi had a good trip last season to Crusaders, even if only a handful of them made it. I was rather hoping for Bray Wanderers away. Seeing as we're unlikely to get another Bucharest trip any time soon.

Spoke to a couple of the Spartans board at the game. They won't be overjoyed at the news. Quite happy to be knocked out as they're putting all their energies into winning the LL this season. Even left out Ross Allum last night, probably their top striker.

Dachi Khutsishvili, former ICT U20, appeared for Spartans FC last night v Albion Rovers in the Challenge Cup.

I think my memory had erased Dani Lopez from history. I kept thinking he played in 2009 till I realised that was Dani Sanchez.

I don't feel I can vote in this. Maybe 1 point to Vigurs, another to Baird for running about, and -5 to the rest.

Unacceptable yes, but hardly any different from last season where we just scraped into the last 16 of the Betfred. Lost the opening league games to Partick and County with a league cup defeat at Alloa sandwiched between them, then a 5-1 hammering at Tynecastle before finally winning a league match on the 27th. So to keep the pattern going we should be losing this Saturday before winning at Brechin on the 26th

At the 3rd goal, Chalmers actually won the ball about 30 yards out, but then failed to gather it, one of the most bizarre errors by a defender I have ever seen.

I feel sorry for some of you going into work on Monday. I went from the game straight to a family party and at least 15 times people came up to me and mentioned the result, and I live south of Edinburgh. Most of these signings, without naming names, are unfit to wear the ICT shirt. Vigurs was decent but his head went down at 4-1 and I wasn't sure whether Robbo subbed him for this or whether he took a knock. We gave away a gift goal right from the start and it never got any better. Mostly long ball all day - Dunfermline are decent but probably no better than playoff contenders, yet they swatted us aside without any bother while playing some decent passing football on the deck. One of the most embarrassing days ever as an ICT supporter.

According to chat on P&B, the Elizabethan is not really the place to meet these days. There are two bars in the main stand, Legends (where I've been before, not sure if they sell draught beer) and something else.

We talking about Draper?

So on Monday morning, after the disappointment against Portugal, which meant Scotland would be eliminated unless they could achieve the daunting task of beating Spain 2-0, we left Rotterdam and headed up the A4 motorway past Amsterdam, to Volendam where we would spend a couple of days. Before leaving Rotterdam we had a quick wander around the Oude Haven (Old Harbour). We also had a quick stop for photos at de Kuip or Stadion Feijenoord (see previous blog). We had been to Volendam 15 years before. On a city break to Amsterdam we took the bus to Volendam one evening for a meal and a wander around. It was a quaint touristy village and we were able to see the sea by stepping up to the top of a dike. The place seemed to have changed a lot. Our hotel was at the Haven but only residents could enter this area with cars as it was all protected by barriers and swipe cards. Our SatNav was working overtime trying to get us into the area around the Slobbeland area and we had Billy Connolly as a voice, so he was doing well to keep his temper. Eventually we found free parking about 1/4 mile away from the hotel and walked in, trundling our luggage. However some beer and fish soup in the sunshine soon restored us. The place was heaving with tourists but it quietened down when the souvenir shops started to close. We had a walk up the shore to the north and once we had passed through 1/4 mile of shops selling windmills, clogs and other tat we escaped the crowds and walked along the dike for a bit. We saw a couple of Great Crested Grebes which are quite tame here and it’s easy to get photos compared to Scotland where they’re very shy. Back in Bunnik I had managed a shot of a female GCG feeding a fish to its chick. Obviously this photo would have won all the wildlife photographer of the year awards but for some inexplicable reason I deleted it when I got home. Boo-hoo. A nice meal and yet more beers, and before bedtime I was creeping around Volendam Harbour taking night photos. On Tuesday we walked to Edam along the dike and accidentally came upon the wee stadium of Edamse Voetbal Club or E.V.C. We also found a windmill to photograph in Volendam and I watched FC Volendam training at their 7164 capacity Kras Stadion. At the moment they play in the Eerste Divisie which is a level below Ajax etc. Another evening, more food and more beers… On Wednesday we packed up and headed for Deventer for the Spain match. First we went to the famous Wednesday Kaasmarkt (cheese market) in Edam, which was absolutely mobbed long before the 10.30 start, and then over to Zaanse Schans which is a sort of windmills theme park. It was mobbed and we didn’t stay long. Besides, we had to nip back to Volendam as we were missing one camera and were too worried to enjoy Zaanse Schans. Thankfully our hotel had found the camera (or you wouldn’t be seeing half of these masterpieces). An hour and a half of motorway slog later, we were coming into Deventer over the large arched bridge over the river IJssel. Deventer was less obviously touristy than a lot of other places, in fact it had a distinctly businesslike feel, but later we discovered the Brink, the large market square, where the fanzone was set up the following day. We discovered that the in the film A Bridge Too Far, the Arnhem scenes were all set in Deventer, as Arnhem had lost its historic centre. We were staying in Bergpoort, a quiet street with absolutely no on-street parking, which made it a wee bit like Coronation Street. St Nicolas church with its twin towers is called the Bergkerk or Mountain Church as it stands on The Berg which is a molehill in the centre of Deventer. The stadium, De Adelaarshorst, was only about a mile away from our apartment, and even less from the Brink. Although the game wasn’t until Thursday I did attempt a wee recce. However the Spain Women were training in the stadium and there were stewards barring access. De Adelaarshorst (The Eagle’s Nest) was built in 1920 and holds about 10500 people. It is the home of Eredivisie club Go Ahead Eagles. They were founded in 1902 as Be Quick, then Go Ahead, and the Eagles was added in 1971. The club has produced a handful of famous players of whom Marc Overmars and Bert van Marwijk are the two that are most recognisable to me. The last time they won the Eredivisie was 1933. Their main rivals are PEC Zwolle who are also on the river IJssel. Jimmy Calderwood was manager for 3 months in 2012 With a crowd of 4814 turning up the Scotland -Spain match had the best atmosphere of the 3 games. It seems that many more Scotland fans had made the effort for this one and at times the place was rocking. Scotland lineup: Fay Frankie Brown, Dieke, Corsie, Arthur Crichton Evans, Love (Fiona Brown 73), Weir, L. Ross (Clelland 46) Cuthbert It’s fair to say that the girls rode their luck to pull off a win. Spain dominated possession and missed chances before Caroline Weir put the Scots ahead 4 minutes from the break, after Erin Cuthbert challenged the goalkeeper at the edge of the box. A scrappy goal but it certainly raised the spirits at the interval. Spain continued to dominate after the break, hitting the bar, and forcing a goal-line clearance from Ifeoma Dieke, but Scotland passed up an amazing chance when Leanne Crichton volleyed over from close in from a Weir corner. At the end Scotland just came short of the required 2-0 win although it would have been harsh on Spain to go out. There were many tears as the girls came over to salute the Scotland support. Christie Murray and Joanne Love jumped the barriers to meet with friends and family. In Scotland’s first major tournament, injuries to key players had cost them heavily. With a full squad, who knows. Highlights As we all filed out into the Deventer night, we had the bizarre sight of a bike traffic jam being handled by a steward. The bikes would be one of the overriding memories of the trip. Back to the apartment to finish the packing for the early rise and drive to Schiphol via the car hire at Hoofddorp, and pick up a lovely bottle of Ardbeg in duty free. Caroline Weir’s parents were sitting next to us on the flight. More than once we had been told “Amsterdam is not The Netherlands” and we had learned a lot about this wonderful country and would be keen to come back soon. View the full article

So on Monday morning, after the disappointment against Portugal, which meant Scotland would be eliminated unless they could achieve the daunting task of beating Spain 2-0, we left Rotterdam and headed up the A4 motorway past Amsterdam, to Volendam where we would spend a couple of days. Before leaving Rotterdam we had a quick wander around the Oude Haven (Old Harbour). We also had a quick stop for photos at de Kuip or Stadion Feijenoord (see previous blog). We had been to Volendam 15 years before. On a city break to Amsterdam we took the bus to Volendam one evening for a meal and a wander around. It was a quaint touristy village and we were able to see the sea by stepping up to the top of a dike. The place seemed to have changed a lot. Our hotel was at the Haven but only residents could enter this area with cars as it was all protected by barriers and swipe cards. Our SatNav was working overtime trying to get us into the area around the Slobbeland area and we had Billy Connolly as a voice, so he was doing well to keep his temper. Eventually we found free parking about 1/4 mile away from the hotel and walked in, trundling our luggage. However some beer and fish soup in the sunshine soon restored us. The place was heaving with tourists but it quietened down when the souvenir shops started to close. We had a walk up the shore to the north and once we had passed through 1/4 mile of shops selling windmills, clogs and other tat we escaped the crowds and walked along the dike for a bit. We saw a couple of Great Crested Grebes which are quite tame here and it’s easy to get photos compared to Scotland where they’re very shy. Back in Bunnik I had managed a shot of a female GCG feeding a fish to its chick. Obviously this photo would have won all the wildlife photographer of the year awards but for some inexplicable reason I deleted it when I got home. Boo-hoo. A nice meal and yet more beers, and before bedtime I was creeping around Volendam Harbour taking night photos. On Tuesday we walked to Edam along the dike and accidentally came upon the wee stadium of Edamse Voetbal Club or E.V.C. We also found a windmill to photograph in Volendam and I watched FC Volendam training at their 7164 capacity Kras Stadion. At the moment they play in the Eerste Divisie which is a level below Ajax etc. Another evening, more food and more beers… On Wednesday we packed up and headed for Deventer for the Spain match. First we went to the famous Wednesday Kaasmarkt (cheese market) in Edam, which was absolutely mobbed long before the 10.30 start, and then over to Zaanse Schans which is a sort of windmills theme park. It was mobbed and we didn’t stay long. Besides, we had to nip back to Volendam as we were missing one camera and were too worried to enjoy Zaanse Schans. Thankfully our hotel had found the camera (or you wouldn’t be seeing half of these masterpieces). An hour and a half of motorway slog later, we were coming into Deventer over the large arched bridge over the river IJssel. Deventer was less obviously touristy than a lot of other places, in fact it had a distinctly businesslike feel, but later we discovered the Brink, the large market square, where the fanzone was set up the following day. We discovered that the in the film A Bridge Too Far, the Arnhem scenes were all set in Deventer, as Arnhem had lost its historic centre. We were staying in Bergpoort, a quiet street with absolutely no on-street parking, which made it a wee bit like Coronation Street. St Nicolas church with its twin towers is called the Bergkerk or Mountain Church as it stands on The Berg which is a molehill in the centre of Deventer. The stadium, De Adelaarshorst, was only about a mile away from our apartment, and even less from the Brink. Although the game wasn’t until Thursday I did attempt a wee recce. However the Spain Women were training in the stadium and there were stewards barring access. De Adelaarshorst (The Eagle’s Nest) was built in 1920 and holds about 10500 people. It is the home of Eredivisie club Go Ahead Eagles. They were founded in 1902 as Be Quick, then Go Ahead, and the Eagles was added in 1971. The club has produced a handful of famous players of whom Marc Overmars and Bert van Marwijk are the two that are most recognisable to me. The last time they won the Eredivisie was 1933. Their main rivals are PEC Zwolle who are also on the river IJssel. Jimmy Calderwood was manager for 3 months in 2012 With a crowd of 4814 turning up the Scotland -Spain match had the best atmosphere of the 3 games. It seems that many more Scotland fans had made the effort for this one and at times the place was rocking. Scotland lineup: Fay Frankie Brown, Dieke, Corsie, Arthur Crichton Evans, Love (Fiona Brown 73), Weir, L. Ross (Clelland 46) Cuthbert It’s fair to say that the girls rode their luck to pull off a win. Spain dominated possession and missed chances before Caroline Weir put the Scots ahead 4 minutes from the break, after Erin Cuthbert challenged the goalkeeper at the edge of the box. A scrappy goal but it certainly raised the spirits at the interval. Spain continued to dominate after the break, hitting the bar, and forcing a goal-line clearance from Ifeoma Dieke, but Scotland passed up an amazing chance when Leanne Crichton volleyed over from close in from a Weir corner. At the end Scotland just came short of the required 2-0 win although it would have been harsh on Spain to go out. There were many tears as the girls came over to salute the Scotland support. Christie Murray and Joanne Love jumped the barriers to meet with friends and family. In Scotland’s first major tournament, injuries to key players had cost them heavily. With a full squad, who knows. Highlights As we all filed out into the Deventer night, we had the bizarre sight of a bike traffic jam being handled by a steward. The bikes would be one of the overriding memories of the trip. Back to the apartment to finish the packing for the early rise and drive to Schiphol via the car hire at Hoofddorp, and pick up a lovely bottle of Ardbeg in duty free. Caroline Weir’s parents were sitting next to us on the flight. More than once we had been told “Amsterdam is not The Netherlands” and we had learned a lot about this wonderful country and would be keen to come back soon. View the full article

Paid X2 this morning Scotty.

I'm back now but the invoices seem to have expired.

A few shouts coming from the shelter opposite the stand, can't understand some people.

I heard the last time he was at a party, it was 50 years ago in a student flat in Edinburgh and he's never recovered from the swirly.

Spot on Johndo. Looking forward to partying there as my last visit was also in 1999. Before that it was always a hard place to go, we always seemed to lose late goals and the locals were pretty horrible, more interested in slagging off ICT than supporting their own team.

I wonder how long they'll take to get his name right

After leaving Utrecht we headed up north for a couple of days and spent an afternoon in Groningen. Groningen is a university city, the largest city in the North with a population of just over 200000 and it was supposed to be quieter during the summer, but we had the usual hectic game of ‘dodge the bike’ – Groningen has been called the ‘World Cycling City’. We did the obligatory Groninger Museum and were mightily impressed with the building, which stands in the middle of the canal and links the railway station to the city centre. Of course, before leaving Groningen I had a nosey at the Noordlease Stadion where Groningen, the Pride of the North, play in the Eredivisie. Pinching your nickname off ICT, whatever next. Grote Markt, Groningen We then headed westwards to a B&B called ‘Middle of Nowhere’ where we spent a nice chilled couple of days with a fabulous sunset, and visited Ameland, one of the Friesian Islands, which is a 45 minute ferry trip, and hired bikes to get around. We also had great meal at Logement Doosje run by a couple called Bennie and Dina. Bennie is fanatical about whisky and Scotland and has an astonishing selection of over 100 malts. Middle of Nowhere On Sunday we had a run down to Rotterdam via the 32 km Afsluitdijk which encloses the IJsselmeer from the outer sea and connects Friesland to Noord-Holland. When I was at school our primary teacher told us it was the Zuiderzee. It was a bit of a culture shock going from roads in the North with passing places, to 5 lane motorways round Amsterdam, especially in torrential showers, but eventually we found our way into Rotterdam and booked into our room at the Stayokay in the famous Cube Houses designed by Piet Blom. No getting away from the parking charges in central Rotterdam at €20 per day. So same routine as last time: shower, change into match gear, beer, pizza. The Stayokay (what the Dutch call their hostels) had decent Trappist beers on tap. Het Kasteel (The Castle) is rooted in the Spangen area of Rotterdam and holds 11926. It was a simple Metro ride from our station at Blaak to Marconiplein. We fancied getting the leisurely no 8 tram right to the front door but we wasted too much time on beer and pizza and we had to rush, so the Metro it was. To the right was the Denis Neville Stand which is the traditional home end. The Scotland fans who bought tickets from the SFA were housed in here. We had been too quick off the mark and had got more expensive seats as part of a 3 game Scotland package from UEFA. The Portuguese fans were away to our left but we were able to mix freely. Both sets of fans kept up a series of chants and in a small stadium the atmosphere was much better than the England game. The Bok de Korver Stand at the other end was empty. Opposite us was the Tonny van Ede Stand which is the main stand with the hospitality boxes and players’ tunnel. As Arthur Montford would say, disaster for Scotland… Here’s the lineup for matchday 2: So one enforced change from the first game, with Jane Ross ruled out, and both full backs, Kirsty Smith in for Chloe Arthur, and Rachel McLauchlan replacing Frankie Brown. Yet another game which was lost by defensive howlers. Scotland badly missed Jen Beattie who was injured before the tournament, as well as veteran midfielder Kim Little. Striker Jane Ross had scored ten times during the qualifiers but sustained a shoulder injury against England. Lana Clelland replaced her up front and did well, but it took substitute Erin Cuthbert to finally bring a goal for the supporters to cheer, when Caroline Weir played her in to equalise the first half goal from Mendes. The joy was short lived as Portugal’s winner came 4 minutes later via route one, as Leite ran on to a header and outpaced Vaila Barsley to slip the ball past Gemma Fay. Scotland still had time to miss a couple of chances and Weir rattled the crossbar. Although Scotland physically dominated their smaller, more technically gifted opponents in midfield, it was ironic that the winner came in Wimbledon style… Portugal also had 5 bookings, including the goalkeeper, who was booed repeatedly during the second half for blatant timewasting. Rachel Corsie was also booked 2 minutes after the winner as frustration got the better of her. A huge opportunity missed for Scotland and now they have the unenviable task of beating Spain by 2 goals to stay in the competition. The attendance was 3123. highlights are here . Time to do what Scottish fans do best and drown our sorrows: Next day we had a rake around the Oude Haven, the old harbour. Before we left Rotterdam next morning I was keen to get another look at Stadion Feijenoord (De Kuip – The Tub). We had been here in 2002 for a match against NAC Breda which sadly finished goalless. Christine and I got off the train at Feyenoord Station right outside and somehow managed to blag tickets despite not being members. It was fascinating to see the Breda fans arrive on the opposite platform and be taken by a walkway right over the top and into the stadium without meeting any home fans at all, and take their place in a wee section at one end behind a net. Here’s a pano which I made back then: And here’s a couple of shots I found on the internet that I really like: an aerial pic from 1956 and another from about 1960… Finally here’s de Kuip, home of the Kampioen, as it looks today: Next up is Scotland v Spain in Deventer on Thursday, but first we’re hopping up to Volendam for a couple of days. See you. View the full article

After leaving Utrecht we headed up north for a couple of days and spent an afternoon in Groningen. Groningen is a university city, the largest city in the North with a population of just over 200000 and it was supposed to be quieter during the summer, but we had the usual hectic game of ‘dodge the bike’ – Groningen has been called the ‘World Cycling City’. We did the obligatory Groninger Museum and were mightily impressed with the building, which stands in the middle of the canal and links the railway station to the city centre. Of course, before leaving Groningen I had a nosey at the Noordlease Stadion where Groningen, the Pride of the North, play in the Eredivisie. Pinching your nickname off ICT, whatever next. Grote Markt, Groningen We then headed westwards to a B&B called ‘Middle of Nowhere’ where we spent a nice chilled couple of days with a fabulous sunset, and visited Ameland, one of the Friesian Islands, which is a 45 minute ferry trip, and hired bikes to get around. We also had great meal at Logement Doosje run by a couple called Bennie and Dina. Bennie is fanatical about whisky and Scotland and has an astonishing selection of over 100 malts. Middle of Nowhere On Sunday we had a run down to Rotterdam via the 32 km Afsluitdijk which encloses the IJsselmeer from the outer sea and connects Friesland to Noord-Holland. When I was at school our primary teacher told us it was the Zuiderzee. It was a bit of a culture shock going from roads in the North with passing places, to 5 lane motorways round Amsterdam, especially in torrential showers, but eventually we found our way into Rotterdam and booked into our room at the Stayokay in the famous Cube Houses designed by Piet Blom. No getting away from the parking charges in central Rotterdam at €20 per day. So same routine as last time: shower, change into match gear, beer, pizza. The Stayokay (what the Dutch call their hostels) had decent Trappist beers on tap. Het Kasteel (The Castle) is rooted in the Spangen area of Rotterdam and holds 11926. It was a simple Metro ride from our station at Blaak to Marconiplein. We fancied getting the leisurely no 8 tram right to the front door but we wasted too much time on beer and pizza and we had to rush, so the Metro it was. To the right was the Denis Neville Stand which is the traditional home end. The Scotland fans who bought tickets from the SFA were housed in here. We had been too quick off the mark and had got more expensive seats as part of a 3 game Scotland package from UEFA. The Portuguese fans were away to our left but we were able to mix freely. Both sets of fans kept up a series of chants and in a small stadium the atmosphere was much better than the England game. The Bok de Korver Stand at the other end was empty. Opposite us was the Tonny van Ede Stand which is the main stand with the hospitality boxes and players’ tunnel. As Arthur Montford would say, disaster for Scotland… Here’s the lineup for matchday 2: So one enforced change from the first game, with Jane Ross ruled out, and both full backs, Kirsty Smith in for Chloe Arthur, and Rachel McLauchlan replacing Frankie Brown. Yet another game which was lost by defensive howlers. Scotland badly missed Jen Beattie who was injured before the tournament, as well as veteran midfielder Kim Little. Striker Jane Ross had scored ten times during the qualifiers but sustained a shoulder injury against England. Lana Clelland replaced her up front and did well, but it took substitute Erin Cuthbert to finally bring a goal for the supporters to cheer, when Caroline Weir played her in to equalise the first half goal from Mendes. The joy was short lived as Portugal’s winner came 4 minutes later via route one, as Leite ran on to a header and outpaced Vaila Barsley to slip the ball past Gemma Fay. Scotland still had time to miss a couple of chances and Weir rattled the crossbar. Although Scotland physically dominated their smaller, more technically gifted opponents in midfield, it was ironic that the winner came in Wimbledon style… Portugal also had 5 bookings, including the goalkeeper, who was booed repeatedly during the second half for blatant timewasting. Rachel Corsie was also booked 2 minutes after the winner as frustration got the better of her. A huge opportunity missed for Scotland and now they have the unenviable task of beating Spain by 2 goals to stay in the competition. The attendance was 3123. highlights are here . Time to do what Scottish fans do best and drown our sorrows: Next day we had a rake around the Oude Haven, the old harbour. Before we left Rotterdam next morning I was keen to get another look at Stadion Feijenoord (De Kuip – The Tub). We had been here in 2002 for a match against NAC Breda which sadly finished goalless. Christine and I got off the train at Feyenoord Station right outside and somehow managed to blag tickets despite not being members. It was fascinating to see the Breda fans arrive on the opposite platform and be taken by a walkway right over the top and into the stadium without meeting any home fans at all, and take their place in a wee section at one end behind a net. Here’s a pano which I made back then: And here’s a couple of shots I found on the internet that I really like: an aerial pic from 1956 and another from about 1960… Finally here’s de Kuip, home of the Kampioen, as it looks today: Next up is Scotland v Spain in Deventer on Thursday, but first we’re hopping up to Volendam for a couple of days. See you. View the full article

First stop on the Euro 2017 tour is the 24426 capacity Stadion Galgenwaard in Utrecht. FC Utrecht were formed as recently as 1970 by a merger of 3 clubs. Utrecht are the only club outside the big three (Ajax, Feyenoord, PSV) never to be relegated from the Eredivisie and last season they were 4th. Their average attendance was just over 18000. The modern stadium dates from 1982 but has had a couple more revamps since then and the current look of the place dates from 2004. Apparently the name is from the site in Utrecht where the gallows was. Our tickets were in the Noordzijde which is the main stand. To our right, the Cityside, and to our left, the Bunnikside. We were actually staying in Bunnik, a village to the East of Utrecht, so at least we knew our way home. The day started for us at 6am. When we got up, we discovered a text from EasyJet saying our 10.10 flight from Edinburgh was delayed till 12.35. We still had to check in on time anyway and then somebody took the **** big time as our gate was announced as 6, then 7, then 19, then 7, then 14, so there was a plane load of angry fliers keeping fit by traipsing from one end of the airport to the other. Eventually we boarded and sat on the tarmac for ages, but finally we got away and emerged into a baking hot day in Schiphol, almost 30 degrees, at about 2.30 local time. The next problem presented itself at the car hire. My computer had given up the ghost a few days earlier so I just had an email on my phone from Rentalcars which was not the hirer, just an agent, and no reference number. I spent a (not so) happy hour asking at various desks whether they actually had my name down for a car. Eventually I found an angel of a young woman at Sixt who made a few calls with only my email address for ID, and she found that my car was with Dollar, out at Hoofddorp. One shuttle bus later and we had the keys to a dinky wee Fiat 500. Not long after that we were clear of Amsterdam and heading round the Utrecht ring in rush hour, and into the village of Bunnik. A quick shower, bite to eat and a beer, change of togs into the match gear and off we go. We’re based about 5km east of Utrecht but, this being Europe, there’s a regular bus service for €2.70 that stops right outside the stadium and runs till about 1am. What exactly were these imbeciles hoping to get by voting to leave? I’ve forgotten. Being early, we had a walk right round the outside of the Gargenwaald, a very pleasant wooded area with canals. Utrecht is a very bike-friendly city with bike traffic lights at the busiest junctions. There are, however, no bars in the vicinity of the ground so I asked one of the orange-shirted helpers (they have a huge balloon floating above them with a question mark on it) if there was beer sold inside. He assured me there was, so in we went, to find that the only beer was 0.5% Carlsberg in plastic glasses of maybe 250ml, or possibly 330ml, for €3 a pop. Oh well, never mind. Anyway, no putting it off any longer. Well, just a little longer. I was chatting to a couple from Stirling when these two England lads with the cross of St George painted right across their faces started putting up this huge flag right in front of us with the Butcher’s Apron on it and they were told to remove themselves… The line-up on a historic occasion for the Scots: Anyway we’ll quickly skim over the match details. Scotland drove forward from the start and Jane Ross hooked in a shot from 30 yards out which was tipped over by Karen Bardsley for a Scotland corner. And, emmm, that’s about as good as it got. Not forgetting that England are ranked no 5 in the world and Scotland 21, it was a disappointing night as Scotland enjoyed a lot of possession and corners, and won most of the fouls against the England girls, who showed their class at times, especially on the break where sloppy passes by Scotland were quickly punished. Despite Scotland forcing the majority of the corners, they were all cleared by English heads. The Scots lassies also gave away a bit in size and physicality to their opponents, who weren’t averse to the occasional cynical challenge, and there were bookings for Houghton and Scott, while Caroline Weir was also booked late on for Scotland. It has to be said that the Scotland defending was suicidal at times, starting with the 10th minute opener, and #ourgirlsourgame will be looking for a big improvement on Sunday in Rotterdam. The attendance was 5587 and although outnumbered the Scottish support were magnificent as always. At the end of the game we only had a 5 minute wait for the 41 bus back to Bunnik and a walk in the dark back to the very comfortable hostel in the company of some Belgian fans who had been at the game. They were very knowledgable and had a lot of encouraging things to say about the team. They were playing down in Breda the following night and beat Norway 2-0, a terrific result. Still time for a nightcap – La Trappe Tripel from Brouwerij de Koningshoeven near Tilburg. We’ve been chilling out and biking around Utrecht today and trying even more excellent beers. My experience of Dutch beer before now was Heineken and Amstel but it’s been a revelation. We leave Utrecht behind tomorrow and head north to Groningen and Ameland in the Friesian Islands. We’ll stay a couple of nights at a B&B called ‘Middle of Nowhere’ up at Warfstermolen before heading back down to Rotterdam on Sunday for the Portugal game. In the meantime here’s a bit more of Utrecht for you: View the full article

First stop on the Euro 2017 tour is the 24426 capacity Stadion Galgenwaard in Utrecht. FC Utrecht were formed as recently as 1970 by a merger of 3 clubs. Utrecht are the only club outside the big three (Ajax, Feyenoord, PSV) never to be relegated from the Eredivisie and last season they were 4th. Their average attendance was just over 18000. The modern stadium dates from 1982 but has had a couple more revamps since then and the current look of the place dates from 2004. Apparently the name is from the site in Utrecht where the gallows was. Our tickets were in the Noordzijde which is the main stand. To our right, the Cityside, and to our left, the Bunnikside. We were actually staying in Bunnik, a village to the East of Utrecht, so at least we knew our way home. The day started for us at 6am. When we got up, we discovered a text from EasyJet saying our 10.10 flight from Edinburgh was delayed till 12.35. We still had to check in on time anyway and then somebody took the **** big time as our gate was announced as 6, then 7, then 19, then 7, then 14, so there was a plane load of angry fliers keeping fit by traipsing from one end of the airport to the other. Eventually we boarded and sat on the tarmac for ages, but finally we got away and emerged into a baking hot day in Schiphol, almost 30 degrees, at about 2.30 local time. The next problem presented itself at the car hire. My computer had given up the ghost a few days earlier so I just had an email on my phone from Rentalcars which was not the hirer, just an agent, and no reference number. I spent a (not so) happy hour asking at various desks whether they actually had my name down for a car. Eventually I found an angel of a young woman at Sixt who made a few calls with only my email address for ID, and she found that my car was with Dollar, out at Hoofddorp. One shuttle bus later and we had the keys to a dinky wee Fiat 500. Not long after that we were clear of Amsterdam and heading round the Utrecht ring in rush hour, and into the village of Bunnik. A quick shower, bite to eat and a beer, change of togs into the match gear and off we go. We’re based about 5km east of Utrecht but, this being Europe, there’s a regular bus service for €2.70 that stops right outside the stadium and runs till about 1am. What exactly were these imbeciles hoping to get by voting to leave? I’ve forgotten. Being early, we had a walk right round the outside of the Gargenwaald, a very pleasant wooded area with canals. Utrecht is a very bike-friendly city with bike traffic lights at the busiest junctions. There are, however, no bars in the vicinity of the ground so I asked one of the orange-shirted helpers (they have a huge balloon floating above them with a question mark on it) if there was beer sold inside. He assured me there was, so in we went, to find that the only beer was 0.5% Carlsberg in plastic glasses of maybe 250ml, or possibly 330ml, for €3 a pop. Oh well, never mind. Anyway, no putting it off any longer. Well, just a little longer. I was chatting to a couple from Stirling when these two England lads with the cross of St George painted right across their faces started putting up this huge flag right in front of us with the Butcher’s Apron on it and they were told to remove themselves… The line-up on a historic occasion for the Scots: Anyway we’ll quickly skim over the match details. Scotland drove forward from the start and Jane Ross hooked in a shot from 30 yards out which was tipped over by Karen Bardsley for a Scotland corner. And, emmm, that’s about as good as it got. Not forgetting that England are ranked no 5 in the world and Scotland 21, it was a disappointing night as Scotland enjoyed a lot of possession and corners, and won most of the fouls against the England girls, who showed their class at times, especially on the break where sloppy passes by Scotland were quickly punished. Despite Scotland forcing the majority of the corners, they were all cleared by English heads. The Scots lassies also gave away a bit in size and physicality to their opponents, who weren’t averse to the occasional cynical challenge, and there were bookings for Houghton and Scott, while Caroline Weir was also booked late on for Scotland. It has to be said that the Scotland defending was suicidal at times, starting with the 10th minute opener, and #ourgirlsourgame will be looking for a big improvement on Sunday in Rotterdam. The attendance was 5587 and although outnumbered the Scottish support were magnificent as always. At the end of the game we only had a 5 minute wait for the 41 bus back to Bunnik and a walk in the dark back to the very comfortable hostel in the company of some Belgian fans who had been at the game. They were very knowledgable and had a lot of encouraging things to say about the team. They were playing down in Breda the following night and beat Norway 2-0, a terrific result. Still time for a nightcap – La Trappe Tripel from Brouwerij de Koningshoeven near Tilburg. We’ve been chilling out and biking around Utrecht today and trying even more excellent beers. My experience of Dutch beer before now was Heineken and Amstel but it’s been a revelation. We leave Utrecht behind tomorrow and head north to Groningen and Ameland in the Friesian Islands. We’ll stay a couple of nights at a B&B called ‘Middle of Nowhere’ up at Warfstermolen before heading back down to Rotterdam on Sunday for the Portugal game. In the meantime here’s a bit more of Utrecht for you: View the full article

Should have been sacked long before that for the beard.