Steve Clarke has earned the right to continue as Scotland manager if he wants.
Scotland’s exit from the Euros has led to the predictable finger-pointing exercise of finding someone to blame – and Steve has had his fair share of criticism come his way following Sunday’s defeat by Hungary.
But I think the flak coming his way has been excessive and unwarranted.
It has been a disappointing tournament overall, however, that’s probably because we hoped for and expected more.
It stings – but Steve’s record stands up to scrutiny.
Two major tournaments in the last three attempts represents a seismic shift from what we had prior to that.
I see a group of players giving their all and fully behind their manager, and if the players are responding to what is being asked of them, and it has led to tangible progress in terms of qualifying for tournaments, then I’m loathe to change it.
In short, the manager is a proven commodity, the players want to play for him and we’re moving in the right direction.
That doesn’t mean there is not room for improvement.
Did Scotland struggle under the weight of expectation?
Overall it was a familiar tale of so near, yet so far for Scotland.
For all the disappointment we all feel, we must remember Scotland are a team who have to be greater than the sum of their parts.
With the four best third-placed teams going through from the six groups, it feels as if we were closer than ever to qualifying for the knockout phase of a finals for the first time.
But it wasn’t to be.
I have mixed emotions about it all. On the one hand, I’m as disappointed as any member of the Tartan Army as I too thought this could be our moment.
With an estimated 200,000 Scotland fans in Germany and the rest of the country back home in expectant mood, we all allowed ourselves to believe this was our time.
So to go out of the tournament after conceding a goal in the 10th minute of stoppage time was gut-wrenching.
When expectations are running high, teams can struggle.
Just look at our neighbours England – they have taken four points out of six and have been criticised heavily by their fans and media.
But regardless of whether you are a leading nation or an underdog, when your team lose a game or exits a tournament, the mood usually turns from expectancy to the blame game.
I see the same pattern developing already, but I prefer to look at all of this a little differently.
We have progressed under Clarke
Right now the pain feels raw, but rather than give Steve and the lads a kick when they are down, I prefer to applaud them for getting us this far.
The memories of being in Germany the last couple of weeks will last the Scotland fans a lifetime. They don’t sing “No Scotland, no party” for no reason.
Since the World Cup in France in 1998, we’ve spent more than two decades sitting watching these fabulous tournaments every two years from the comfort of our armchairs at home.
Scotland fans know getting to the finals of a major tournament is not something to be taken for granted, and we’ve now been in the last two Euros. That’s progress for me.
Was the tournament a good showing from Scotland?
No, and two shots on target in the three games we played in our group highlights why, when you take the tartan-coloured spectacles off, we ultimately were not good enough to go through.
Scotland lack guile but Clarke remains the best man for the job
What I saw from Scotland across the three games was a lot of work, sweat and ultimately tears shed as we feel short.
But what I didn’t see was enough quality.
The Hungary game on Sunday summed up Scotland. We had so much of the ball, which is a situation we are not used to being in, and we struggled because we don’t have good enough quality to unlock defences.
We can run all day and harry, but we lack that guile on the international stage.
Scotland are a team built on being organised, capable of hitting on the counter and carrying a set-piece threat.
There was huge disappointment that one of our main striking threats, Lyndon Dykes, missed the tournament due to injury.
He scored seven goals in 43 club games last season. It’s not a slight on Dykes, just a reflection of what we actually have.
Some fans will point to Hearts striker Lawrence Shankland and say he should have featured more.
But believe me when I say there’s a big difference between club football and the international stage, and Shankland’s return of three goals in 13 games shows how much tougher it is.
Nobody knows that better than the manager who is working with the players at international level and I struggle to see a long list of players who have been overlooked.
For me, the final decision on who leads us into the World Cup qualifying campaign should lie with the manager himself.
If Steve wants to continue, then he has my vote.
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