It’s very unlikely the Scottish men’s football team spent much time practising bicycle kicks. “No one leaves till they’ve scored an overhead!” isn’t a drill you’d expect to hear Head Coach Steve Clarke shouting. Well…
Some people say data-led game plans are draining the joy out of football. Maybe. But whatever was written on the tactics board when Scotland played Denmark in Scotland’s final qualifier for the 2026 World Cup, it definitely didn’t include the ‘highest goal in the history of football’.
Scott McTominay launched his bicycle kick 2.53 metres off the ground - a one-in-a-bazillion kind of finish. And if that wasn’t enough, Scotland then scored a 93rd-minute lob from inside their own half, looping it over the Danish keeper. Not quite one-in-a-bazillion, but certainly one-in-a-lifetime.
Put those two goals together, add the fact it was a World Cup qualifier, and throw in the small detail that Scotland hadn’t been to one in more than 25 years… and you’ve got what statisticians politely call a ‘rare event’.
Rare event can do one. It was absolutely sensational.
What I loved most wasn’t the improbability - it was the composure. The ability to operate so clearly, in real-time, when everything’s against you. No spreadsheet. No whiteboard. Just adapting to what’s in front of you in that exact moment.
If you’re wondering how Scottish I am, for generations my family has run McCalls Ltd - proud Highlandwear providers across Scotland. We’ve sold thousands of kilts to the Scottish football fans ‘Tartan Army’ over the years. After the match, I called my Dad “Where are you on the World Cup Tartan?”.. Not a second passed. “Aye, its being made as we speak.”
A rare event deserves a rare tartan. Regarding the tartan baseline colour… Gold?!
(Image: Alamy)
