The launch of a new Premiership league campaign at the weekend meant that the dust had barely had time to settle on last week’s England versus Scotland clash before it was in danger of being forgotten about amid the hysteria surrounding Jose’s return, Arsène’s long wait for silverware and Wayne and Luiz’s will he/won’t he/who cares saga.
Admittedly, the Wembley fixture was officially a friendly – and therefore by definition an unwelcome distraction for the majority of club managers – but, as evidenced during the match itself, those great rivals don’t do meaningless matches when they come face to face.
It will be recalled that the two countries had not played one another for 14 years, a lifetime to those Scots fans who longed for revenge following the pain of defeat in the qualifier for the Euro 2000 championships all those years before. That fact and, well, that England were the opposition was motivation aplenty for the Tartan Army.
For all that the game’s overall significance was almost certainly of considerably less importance to England than the visitors, Roy Hodgson had been in no mood to treat the occasion lightly, with planning for next month’s crucial world cup qualifiers well under way.
Add the not insignificant factor of 80,000 fans cramming into the stadium (a quarter of whom were backing the Scots) and it made a mockery of the friendly tag in any case.
And why not. This fixture has been about for about as long as men first became inclined to hoof a leather bag of air about the place, and many have missed it since it was effectively scrapped as an annual event a generation ago. For that reason, the game was keenly anticipated within both camps, and dubious pre-match withdrawals were few and far between as a consequence.
For all that the Scots were in relatively positive frame of mind following the surprising win in Croatia in June, it was generally accepted prior to kick-off that England were overwhelming favourites to win the match. However, that the game quickly assumed the appearance and tempo of a typical British-style cup clash served as a great leveler; indeed, for all Joe Hart’s bloomer gifted Scotland an early lead, few would have denied that they deserved to be in front at that point in any case.
As it transpired, England had to pull themselves level on two occasions during the game, before their winner was eventually plundered.
Five goals, a pulsating atmosphere, snapping tackles and goalmouth action aplenty – this had all the ingredients of an entertaining spectacle from start to finish.
The question afterwards was, aside from the enjoyment of the ninety minutes, what the respective managers could take from the fixture.
For Scotland manager Gordon Strachan, the outcome was considered a missed opportunity, given that there are few occasions when the chance to overcome the ‘Auld Enemy’ in their own backyard presents itself. To have twice enjoyed the lead and let it slip was clearly a source of frustration for Strachan, although when he looks back on this it can be considered another step in the right direction as far as Scotland’s recovery is concerned.
Pride has been restored, and the prospect of a mauling (brought into focus before kick-off thanks to the U21s losing six goals the previous evening) had proved to be far off the mark.
As for England, in truth this will have offered little for Hodgson – aside from the opportunity to spend a few days with his squad ahead of next month - although he can be pleased with the determination of his players to roll up their sleeves and win in a game which was very competitive.
However, Wayne Rooney once again failed to justify the hype, and Joe Hart hardly covered himself in glory. Then again, the debut winning goal by Ricky Lambert was a positive to take forward from the manager’s perspective – from the players’ perspective, bragging rights still count for something too!
The fixture was considered such a success that plans are already afoot to agree to a return match, possible in two years’ time. The date won’t be confirmed until such time that it’s established the two countries have avoided each other in the Euro 2016 qualifying draw.
Whatever the case, based on last Wednesday’s events, the re-introduction of international football’s oldest contest to the sporting calendar will be embraced by fans on both sides of the border.