MIAMI — The chant of the day: “No Scotland, No Party.”
The fashion choice: Kilts.
The musical instrument: Bagpipes.
The beverage: Anything with alcohol.
The Tartan Army has invaded South Florida for the World Cup. Its latest stop was Little Havana, where thousands of Scots turned a Miami Marlins-Texas Rangers game into a pregame party two days before Scotland’s World Cup showdown with Brazil. It will be one of the biggest soccer matches in the nation’s history, which dates to 843 AD — or the 1860s, which is when the country started playing football, which later became known as soccer.
Thousands of Scottish soccer fans. Singing and drinking. Marching and drinking. Dancing and drinking. Did I say … drinking?
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I asked Colin Craig from Falkirk, Scotland, what’s in a Scot’s blood that makes them so happy, or “buzzin” as they like to say in their country.
“Alcohol,” he answered.
And Allison Anderson of Shetland was asked why the Scots celebrate even when their national team loses, like they did after a 1-0 setback to Morocco on June 19.
“We’re drunk,” she answered.
So you get the point. And that’s why a mile-long march that closed Little Havana streets from the Ball & Chain to the ballpark and led by Marlins mascot Billy the Marlin and a group of bagpipers, was tolerated by thousands of Scots in the 90-plus degree heat.
And why the party continued inside the park with fans of the sport played on a pitch mingling with fans of the sport in which they throw a pitch.
Swapping stories, taking pictures and … drinking.
So if you thought the greatest accomplishment of the Tartan Army was drinking Boston dry — Samuel Adams never had a chance against the Tartan Army — consider what happened after its arrival in South Florida.
Nothing will top the power of making a Miami Marlins home game relevant. The announced attendance of 20,008 was more than 7,000 above the Marlins home average, which is the second lowest in baseball.
“I’m having the time of my life,” said Scotty Hall of Glasgow as he was dancing by his seat on the second level decked out in his soccer jersey, kilt and a Glengarry, a Scottish bonnet.
“We are a nation that has endured so many wars and conflicts that put us in a dark place. We see that. But when it comes to enjoying yourself and forgetting your troubles and really trying to make a difference, we are just relentless in extremes. There is so much sadness, and life goes by so quick. You really just have to love your life while you’re still alive.”
Brian Clements from Motherwell attended the game with his brother-in-law, Jay Mallari, a Filipino who calls himself “an honorary Scott.”
Clements explained how soccer is part of a Scot’s DNA. And so too is the Tartan Army, a name coined in the 1970s by a British sports journalist to describe the massive crowds that would travel to support their national team while wearing recognizable Scottish kilts.
Problem is the national team has not done much to help the Tartan Army’s popularity. Scotland had not qualified for the World Cup since 1998 before making the field of 48 this year.
“To come to a country like America and come to Boston and Miami and show the American people who we are as a fun group and what we represent culturally with our soccer, was too much to miss,” Clements said.
‘We’ll never forget the joy you brought to our city’
The Tartan Army left an indelible mark on Boston, a city very familiar with celebrations tied to their sports teams’ success. Even after more than a dozen championship Duck Boat parades in the last quarter century, Bostonians never experienced what they saw the last week from the followers of Scotland’s scrappy underdogs.
So much so they left with the Boston Globe thanking those fans with a full-page tribute: “Thank you for the laughter, the bagpipes, and the memories. The World Cup will move on. So will the songs, but we’ll never forget the joy you brought to our city.”
State senator Paul Feeney thanked the Tartan Army for visiting children’s hospitals, making donations to Massachusetts charities (nearly $30,000), playing bagpipes outside of elementary schools and in neighborhoods. Delta Air Lines allowing any passenger traveling from Boston to South Florida wearing a kilt or with bagpipes free priority seating. The airline also offered Scottish themed party favors.
Boston and Glasgow officially established a sister-city partnership.
“We always bring the same love and passion and enjoyment for the game,” Clements said. “We didn’t expect this. We hoped the Americans would embrace us and they’ve done more than that. It’s been fantastic.”
Tartan Army member smuggles traffic cone into Marlins game
Craig stood shirtless by the Budweiser Bar and Patio with a real orange traffic cone, which attracted curious Marlins fans requesting pictures. The placing of the traffic cones on the heads of statues is a Scottish tradition that originated as a late-night prank in the 1980s in Glasgow when one was put on the head of the city’s Equestrian statue of the Duke of Wellington.
With city officials allowing the Scots to have their fun declaring ‘no harm, no foul’ with the prank, one count had 17 statues in Boston sporting traffic cones.
Not so in Miami where one police officer blasted a horn and yelled for a Scottish fan to get down while attempting to put a traffic cone atop a statue of Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León.
“They’re obviously not Boston,” that fan was heard saying in a video posted on social media.
As for Craig, he was proud to have somehow talked his way into the park with a traffic cone. Otherwise, he was not about to spill where it came from.
“No comment. I plead the fifth,” he said.
Not far from Craig, Cat Gutierrez of Miami also was being asked for her picture, but by kilt-wearing Scots. And it had nothing to do with a traffic cone.
Gutierrez arrived with a sign that read: “THIS LATINA IS LOOKING FOR A SCOT.”
“I got a number, and had so many pictures,” she said about just wanting to have some fun with fun-loving people. “I’m on everybody’s phone right now.”
Scotland looking to advance to knockout round for first time
The Tartan Army will not occupy South Florida nearly as long as it did Boston. Scotland faces Brazil in Miami Gardens on June 22 with a chance to qualify for the knockout round of the World Cup for the first time.
Scotland is a heavy underdog at +681.
Win and the Tartan Army will be headed to either Houston or Monterrey to spread their cheer and joy and perhaps find a few monuments to cap with traffic cones.
Even a draw gives Scotland a good chance to advance. Lose, and the Scots need a lot of help.
“The thing about the Scottish, we know our limits,” Hall said. “We’re not here to win the World Cup. We are here to have a good time. And we just hope it lasts longer than we expect it to and as long as this lasts we are going to make the most of it.”
And what if it lasts a lot longer, like well into the knockout stage? What would that be like?
Crazy! Crazy! But in a fun way,” Clements said.
Is there any doubt?
Tom D’Angelo is a senior sports columnist and reporter for The Palm Beach Post. He can be reached at tdangelo@pbpost.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Scotland’s Tartan Army turns Miami into a World Cup party | D’Angelo
Reporting by Tom D’Angelo, Palm Beach Post / Palm Beach Post
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By Tom D'Angelo, Palm Beach Post | USA TODAY Network
