No sooner had George Burley been shown the door than ill-informed gossip masquerading as journalism sought to put the blame at the door of Rangers Football Club.
Burley and the SFA's attitude toward our players has been done to death here and elsewhere, and it is obvious that any squad stripped of the talents of Boyd, Ferguson, the in-form McGregor and even big Lee McCulloch, will suffer.
Burley's attitude toward that group was along the lines of Can't Pick, Won't Pick, Didn't Pick, Have a Drink.
Two words for Burley's footballing gravestone will suffice: Chris Iwelumo. The fact he played that gentleman ahead of a fit Kris Boyd will never be forgotten.
But leaving that aside, Sky News reporters were among those keen to push the line that Burley had little options available to him, largely because "the Old Firm are filled with foreign imports."
Here are some facts, from the season so far:
Rangers have had a majority of Scots (6 or more) in EVERY starting line-up.
In fact, in thirteen of our seventeen competitive fixtures the side has included seven or more home grown players. Our average, such as it matters, is 7.23 Scots per game.
Compare that to our separated brethren. Celtic have played four more matches than Rangers, due to their earlier involvement in Europe, and only twice have six Scots started for the second team in Glasgow. In sixteen of the twenty one games played so far, four or fewer eligible Scots have pulled on the grey and green.
Celtic's average is 3.90 Scots per game.
So, the number of times a Scot has made the starting line-up: 123 to 82, which when you note the four extra games played, makes the comparison even more illuminating.
Incredibly enough, as his final trick, Burley chose to play three Celtic defenders against Wales. Had he witnessed the recent exploits of Messrs. McManus and Caldwell? Questions must be asked about the health of the now ex-manager.
But let's hear no more rubbish about 'The Old Firm' limiting the choice of the Scotland manager, unless it relates to the appalling form and talent evident from Saturday's defensive debacle.