John McGinn joins in with Bavarian oompah band as Scotland squad arrive in Germany for Euros
CLAPS of thunder made way for wild applause.
Jagged forks of lightning replaced by camera flashes in the crowd.
It rained and poured all afternoon in Garmisch-Partenkirchen as the heavens opened in spectacular style.
But after arriving at their German training camp, it was Steve Clarke’s Scotland who really went down a storm.
There was certainly no dampening the enthusiasm of John McGinn as he danced the ‘Schuhplattler’ in front of wide-eyed locals in lederhosen.
The event may have been moved indoors because of the weather which hit the Bavarian town but the Aston Villa star brought the house down with his impromptu jig.
The rest of the squad roared with laughter as McGinn stole the show.
Skipper Andy Robertson then grabbed the mic and said: “Thank you for the warm welcome.
“It’s been a long day of travelling and we’ll all ready for bed, but it’s been wonderful to see the local people.”
The mayor of the town, Elizabeth Koch, was thrilled to see the entire squad arrive at the Bayerhalle after their original plans had to be scrapped because of the deluge.
And she even promised the Scotland training pitch won’t be effected when they run out for their first session today.
She beamed: “We had a really bad weather forecast for their arrival, so we decided to move to this special hall.
“Then, after hearing yesterday that only three or five players would be here, we were told the whole team was coming! That was great!
“The training pitch is only 400 metres from here. It is new and the drainage is fantastic, so we have no worries with the weather.”
If you want to imagine Garmisch-Partenkirchen then think Aviemore. On Steroids.
The winding stretch of road to get here from Munich is similar to the A9.
The peak of Mount Wank – yes, you heard – not entirely different from our Cairngorms.
In the depths of winter the town is an Alpine Ski resort.
In the summer backpacking trekkers stride off into the distance.
All year round tourists come here for the spectacular scenery and fresh mountain air.
Hopefully being based here will invigorate Clarke and his players.
The Scotland boss wanted the squad to get a sense of the mood of the nation before setting off.
That’s why he decided against an extended warm-weather training camp abroad ahead of the tournament kicking off.
And yet, as he arrived here last night, there must have been a huge sense of relief that they’re now on German soil.
Despite how soggy it was!
Being out in the sticks, effectively in the middle of nowhere with no outside interference, will hopefully bring this group of young men closer together.
They’re already a tight bunch.
But it’s in camp that teams really bond, and if they’re to have any success in the next couple of weeks then that unity is vital.
Clarke has also talked about the Negative Normals, as he calls them, and how the downbeat attitude of some nay-sayers has annoyed him.
But who cares about them?
The Scotland boss certainly shouldn’t be concerning himself with the hard-to-please, quick-to-criticise no-marks on social media.
Because that’s all it is.
The loyal TA foot soldiers are behind the team as always.
And it’s worth pointing out that travelling media and press corps here are too.
It’s a nonsense if anyone thinks otherwise.
There’s nothing we want more than to see Scotland make it though to the knockout stage and the general feeling amongst the guys over here is that this team can do it.
But ultimately it’s irrelevant what any of us think. Or even what some sour-faced stay-at—home ‘supporters’ fear could happen.
What matters is that Clarke’s players believe they have what it takes to get points from Germany, Switzerland and Hungary.
That’s what was missing at the last Euros.
There was nowhere near enough swagger in the three performances against the Czechs, English and Croats.
Since then this group have gone toe-to-toe with big teams and not flinched.
They’ve not always got the results they deserve but, in the games that counted, they played in a way that made the nation proud.
And they’re here at Euro 2024 because they absolutely deserve to be.
They’ve now had the warm welcome upon their arrival at one of the most picturesque little towns they could possibly have imagined.
A place most of them couldn’t have picked out in a map before they got here.
But by the time this is all over hopefully Garmisch-Partenkirchen will be etched on their minds forever.
Skipper Robbo know the fans travelling here will have a good time regardless. But he is desperate to give them three performance and results to be proud of.
Asked what the locals can expect from the Scotland supporters, he smiled and added: “The fans will drink a lot of beer.
“They’ll be here in numbers and will enjoy themselves, but Scottish people try to be respectful and will behave themselves.
“Hopefully they can be celebrating is winning.
“Everything we’ve done has been building up towards this.”
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