It's a cathedral of football in the streets of Cologne as On The Road's HUGH MACDONALD catches up with Tartan Army for the latest instalment of his Euro 2024 diary

•  Scottish fans in even better spirits than usual after their team battle their way to a 1-1 draw with Switzerland
• It's game on as Tartan Army battalions start their own kickabouts in the streets in the shadow of magnificent Gothic cathedral 
• Partick Thistle legend Brian Graham gets in on the act but there's no suggestion he's about to join the squad for Hungary game! 

Much has rightly been said about the Scotland support. So here’s more. The pre-match scenes outside Cologne Cathedral were both spectacular and poignant. As thousands sang, a small family game of football broke out. A young lad was trying to control the ball while dancing to 500 Miles. He had McGinn on his back. As he cavorted, McGinn walked past. Stephen, of that ilk.

Blue is the colour as Scotland fans make their presence felt ahead of Swiss game

SCOTLAND fans are wearing a variety of retro tops, while the current strip is also popular. A short stroll in the Cathedral Square revealed the mandatory soaking punter who - in the spirit of Trafalgar Square - had found a fountain to bathe in and a group of lads having a game in the shadow of the Gothic cathedral. Your diarist spotted a lad in a Morocco shirt and asked him what the story was. ‘I don’t know,’ he replied. ‘It just was the first one to come out the bag.’ He then offered me a swig of Buckfast. I made my excuses and left. It was that kind of afternoon.

THE Cathedral was a popular spot for fans to gather and many made a trip inside to light a candle for Scottish intentions. The magnificent building was started in 1246 and should be finished soon. It has the odd modern touch. A swipe of the credit card was required to set a candle alight.

Fans get the party started outside the magnificent cathedral in Cologne

THIS subject of alcohol consumption must be addressed. Every Scot seems to have a case of beer. Some of them have merely consumed one. My mate went out on a late-night session only to be told that the bar had run out of vodka. ‘I had to drink Malibu,’ he said with no little hint of shame. But he recovered to say: ‘A man has to do what a man has to do.’

A game of football threatens to break out near the steps of the cathedral

TRAMS to the stadium were so busy there was a group of sardines complaining about being cramped. The journey was somewhat lightened by the Scots fans breaking into a series of songs. One involved the Swiss sticking objects where only a proctologist could find them. These included Toblerone, Toblerone sideways, Roger Federer, secret banks accounts and cuckoo clocks. The age of satire is not dead.

Partick Thistle star Brian Graham and his young son savour the atmosphere

THE behaviour of fans has been exemplary but patience has been tested. In the wake of that triumphant, overwhelming, glorious draw, a regiment of the Tartan Army eventually headed to bed in Mohnweg, a mile from the stadium. Their slumbers were interrupted by a Swiss fan with a cow bell. This was promptly added to the Toblerone song which had now moved from humorous to having a threatening air. The Swiss desisted promptly.

A Tartan Army piper provides the soundtrack in the square

BEST jaikit? A lad produced a coat of many colours, telling your diarist it had been passed down to him by his grandfather. He had sewn it together from scrap pieces of tartan. The first patch celebrated Scotland’s qualification in Cardiff for the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. The names of the players, in formation, were embroidered beautifully. ‘There’s room for this team when we go on and win it all,’ he said. Hope is the last thing to die. Particularly when it is sustained by bottles of beer.

The Tartan Army are everywhere you look on the streets of Cologne

BUMPED into Brian Graham, Partick Thistle legend, with his son. Your diarist asked him if he was going on to Stuttgart. The answer was no. Pre-season training starts today with the Jags. The nights are fair drawing in.

Read more