The Rangers Football Club appears to be rolling relentlessly towards the great unknown. You could be forgiven for mistaking it as a hijacked juggernaut being targeted by the moral guardians of our national sport after the hijackers have long since fled the scene. The last of the hijackers to flee, of course, is strongly suspected of having left a nasty device attached to the vehicle.
When the post-split schedule was announced by the SPL on Tuesday 3rd April, two of the Clubs’ fixtures caught my eye. These were the away games at Hearts and St Johnstone. The first, at Tynecastle, leapt out at me for no other reason than it was to kick-off at three o’clock on a Saturday afternoon. How long had it been since this fixture was subject to normal football schedules?
The other game, belonging to the last round of fixtures and to be played at McDiarmid Park on Sunday 13th May with a 12.30pm kick-off, provides Rangers supporters with their third opportunity to visit the Fair City this season. Moreover, I gazed at this fixture intensely and felt there might be something more final in Perth than Rangers last game of the season. No, it’s inconceivable, I thought.
Eleven days later, on the morning of the first Scottish Cup semi-final between Aberdeen and Hibernian, I considered the possibility of a Scottish Cup final contested by both Edinburgh clubs. I thought it an unlikely scenario as I fully expected Aberdeen and Celtic to emerge victorious from their respective ties. That expectation did not preclude me from investigating when Hearts last played Hibernian in a Scottish Cup final.
From my book shelf, I selected David Goldblatt’s ‘World Football Yearbook 2002-3: The Complete Guide To The Game’. As I tucked into porridge and bananas, a section of the book detailing the Scottish Cup record from 1874 to 2002 revealed Hearts had played Hibernian only once in the final and 1896 was the year. Reading further, I discovered it to have been the only occasion when the final had been played outside Glasgow and St Bernard’s Football Club (1878-1942), who won the trophy at Ibrox in 1895, provided the venue. By this time, I was intrigued and on finishing my breakfast, I switched on my PC to find out more. As I did, I came across the existence of a book, ‘St Bernard’s or when the well ran dry!’ by George H Park. This excellent publication boasts a foreword by Bob Crampsey and was obviously a labour of love for the author. All proceeds from the book are donated to CCLASP, a children’s cancer and leukaemia charity based in Leith. Not sure when the book was first published, I promised myself no effort should be spared to obtain a copy.
Conveniently, Rangers were away to Hearts the weekend after the identities of the 2012 Scottish Cup finalists had become known. Hitherto, I attended all Rangers’ fixtures stretching back to our own fateful Scottish Cup exit on Saturday 5th February and had no intention of breaking the sequence for a visit to Tynecastle. After submitting the necessary application for visitors’ tickets to Hearts, I went to collect them during the morning before the match. Between then and kick-off time, I was committed to visiting my nine month old grandson in Clermiston. Realising time was tight and armed with George H Park’s address and telephone number, I rang him up and asked if he had copies of his book available, and if so, would it be possible to call in person and purchase a couple of copies. George answered and confirmed every little thing would be alright. Excitedly, I jumped into the car and made off for Edinburgh city centre.
On my arrival, George kindly invited me into his flat where we made brief conversation. He informed me the book had been the subject of much painstaking research and was published in 2008 with a print run of just 1000 copies. The book had sold over 800 copies and as the sales figures began to dwindle, George recalled all unsold copies from selected outlets. He appreciated my interest and seemed pleased to have sold another two books. We discussed the forthcoming Scottish Cup final and I asked him if he thought it likely he would receive tickets for the occasion. George hoped good fortune might smile on him and he would be afforded the opportunity to be there on May 19th. As we bade our farewells, I said I hoped The Rangers would not go the way of St Bernard’s and given his endeavours in producing such a worthwhile book, a Scottish Cup final ticket would not be elusive.
Johnny Bluet
‘St Bernard’s or when the well ran dry!’ A History by George H Park is available from George for £5.99 or £7.25 p&p. at 15 Royal Crescent, Edinburgh. EH3 6QA.
Email: georgepark@btinternet.com