As Scotland’s national team prepare for their Euro 2020 bid a host of anthems have emerged hoping to spur the players on.
And the competition won’t just be on the football pitch, with a number of songs vying to become the fan favourite.
As well as homegrown talent in the form of a Dundee punk band, the field of seven songs includes Fife-rooted punk/ska offering.
But which anthem is your winner? Check out the songs released ahead of the Euro 2020 competition so far and then vote for your favourite in our poll.
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Toepokes and Tragedies – Rudebeard
A band with Fife roots has resurrected a 23-year-old song in the hope of inspiring Scotland’s men.
Fife-born chef and musician Rod Drysdale first wrote Toepokes and Tragedies in 1998 “in the bath after a few Tizers”.
“It was a loving lament for defeated heroes that struck a chord on the Scottish underground scene, where football songs usually die unloved”, Rod told The Courier.
Now, Rod has re-released the song with revamped lyrics for 2021, with lyrics including, “Go and fight for your flag on the hallowed turf at Hampden, take it with you to Wembley-oh-ee-oh”.
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They Didn’t See Us Coming – Randolph’s Leap
Indie band Randolph’s Leap celebrate Scotland’s men as the underdogs in their offering for the Euro 2020 competition.
The song incorporates BBC Scotland commentator Liam McLeod’s nail-biting commentary of the penalty shoot-out win over Serbia that saw the team qualify.
Singer Adam Ross said: “The song is a bit of an underdog anthem.
“It’s about defying expectations but also remembering to have fun and make the most of these matches and the atmosphere that will accompany them.
“Who knows, it could be a while before it comes round again!”
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Kilts on, taps aff – The Cundeez
Dundee punk band The Cundeez are hoping their celebration of one of Scotland’s most loved traditions will spur on Steve Clark’s side.
Frontman Gary Robertson said Kilts On, Taps Aff said the song came together in weeks after Scotland qualified.
Explaining how guitarist ‘Trotsky Cundee’ remembered a long-forgotten riff, he said: “Trotsky came to rehearsal with a bagful of riffs. He literally played two and we said ‘right, that’s the tune’.
“I basically went away and wrote this song on a Saturday afternoon. These two riffs had verse and chorus, and the song just fitted.
“We are really happy with it. It’s written for the Tartan Army heading to the Euro championship.
“We are just trying to let everyone and their granny hear it and hopefully it can inspire the Scotland team.”
Kilts on, taps aff can be bought online here.
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The LaFontaines – Scotland, Bonnie Scotland
The LaFontaines Euros anthem, released this week, sees the band team up with veteran Scotland goalkeeper David Marshall and a host of former internationals.
The idea came about after a joke on the band’s podcast.
Frontman Kerr Okan explained: “Like the rest of the nation that night we were watching the game and kicked every ball with the team and we were podcasting after it talking about what it meant to qualify for the first time in 23 years.
“So as a joke we just decided that what the nation really needs, after a result like that, is for us to write the National Team’s anthem so that’s what we did. We wrote it live on the podcast in 30 minutes and went to bed.
“We woke up the next morning and it had gone low-key viral with people saying it was our best song. From there players and fans started sharing it. It’s magic, I’m absolutely buzzing!”
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There’s Nae Team Like Scotland – Neil Grant
Fan Neil Grant s hoping his offering will inspire the Tartan Army as Scotland takes on the Czech Republic.
Confident of Scotland securing a place in the tournament, Neil actually penned the song before they qualified.
He said: “I took a huge gamble with the song as I’d been planning for this one for a long time.
“It was done in the hope that we would qualify and I certainly wasn’t fully expecting that we would.
“I wrote the song at the end of 2019 and then I spent a few months planning the video, which was luckily filmed the weekend before lockdown in Glasgow.”
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DJ George Bowie – Yes Sir, I Can Boogie
DJ George Bowie is hoping to wow the Tartan Army with his remix for the Euro 2020 competition of Yes Sir, I Can Boogie.
The 52-year-old radio star has released his own version of the Spanish duo Bacarra’s 70s disco classic.
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The Fratellis – Yes Sir, I Can Boogie
The Fratellis have also released their own cover of Yes Sir, I Can Boogie. The song became Scotland’s unofficial anthem after a video of the team’s changing room celebration after they qualified went viral.
Have your say
Decided what your favourite is already? Lets us know in our poll.
