US trip akin to a holiday

No SOOTHSAYER was ever likely to be a contender for the Clairvoyant of the Year award on the back of predicting that there would not be a single withdrawal (a happening surely without precedent) from the Scotland squad summoned by Craig Levein for the trip to Florida.

“This is not a holiday,” insisted the national team’s assistant manager, Peter Houston, “we are going there to work.” This solemn proclamation, complete with its implied condemnation of sceptics among the public, was followed by gloriously displayed photographs of day one of the expedition.

These showed our heroes attired in polo shirts, shorts and golf shoes, gliding over verdant swards in motorised buggies and slogging over the kind of work the vast majority of people would probably like to tackle, but couldn’t actually afford.