Unbridled euphoria and harmony swept over the Hotline as Steve Clarke's warriors united a nation with their Nations League heroics against Ukraine. Well, almost.
Ryan Porteous was singled out for special praise – to the tune of £156million, in fact – after his full international debut silenced some discontented pre-match rumblings over his selection. Neil Renton, Edinburgh, said: "What a performance from Ryan Porteous against Ukraine, proving his critics wrong and the fact he’s the best Scottish centre half just now. If Harry Maguire was bought for £78million, Porto must be worth double that."
And a patriotic Stephen Johnstone, Ardentinny, added: "Scotland's defence stood as solid as the Dumbarton Rock and the front men gave us a Krakow of a game against Ukraine. Steve Clarke 's men got pot luck with a draw and now Scotland has a Euro 2024 playoff safety net but hopefully will not need it as this present squad are as good as the Graeme Souness, Kenny Dalgleish and Joe Jordan era. Euro 2024 greatness is a formality under Stevie Clarke."
But enough of that positivity, here's Alan Flett, who emailed: "Those who believe Clarke has taken Scotland forward are deluded. We are no better than we were under previous managers, such as Walter Smith, Alex McLeish and Gordon Strachan. But unlike Clarke, they didn’t have the Nations League to bail them out of their failed qualifying campaigns. International football has become irrelevant anyway and I don’t understand why anyone would get excited about it."
And with our buzz over Scotland's rise now well and truly killed, let's see what else today's Hotline has to offer. Ah yes, the new Sky Sports TV deal, Rangers ' opposition to which did not impress Lance Little, Erskine.
He said: "Well done to the SPFL for accepting the Sky deal despite Rangers' childish opposition. They should also have punished this embarrassment of a club last season and withheld the cinch money when they refused to advertise it. The SPFL and its members must show this club, who have also been just fined for price fixing, who is the boss."
Jake Curley, Edinburgh, said: "Dave Cormack might improve Aberdeen's financial clout if they tried against other teams in the league rather than just busting a gut against Rangers."
Paul McArdle emailed: "All the gullibles raging about a new TV deal whilst lining up to be mugged off by their own club getting fleeced by paying huge fixed inflated prices for their strips is peak banter years."
Frank McFerran, Carrickfergus, reckons Rangers shouldn't be getting a hard time over their stance. He said: "Why are Rangers so hated in Scotland? Every time I read a paper or look at an app, it’s something untoward about Rangers, anyone would think that Celtic are the saints of Scottish football and Rangers are the evil."
And Joe Robertson, Falkirk, had some TV deal frustrations of his own as he said: "Talk about TV deals? What about the raw deal us Scottish fans who can't afford Sky, BT or Premier Sports are getting? England are on council telly for free! Get a grip SFA, what about the majority, not the minority?"
And, finally, Former Rangers captain Lee Wallace announced his retirement aged 35 earlier this week and that prompted a tribute from Eddie Easson Ballingry, Fife. He said: "So sad to hear about Lee Wallace retiring. This guy stayed at Rangers after they went bust when he could've left and earned big money.
"He stayed and saw the club through the bad times, unlike the ship jumpers who couldn't wait to get away then, lo and behold, come back for more money and are treated like the prodigal sons. As I have said before about the Ibrox loyal, they have short memories."
