Cherish This

Craig McIntosh, Scotland

We have teamed up with MiXR, the app that helps you find the best pubs and bars to watch football, to showcase the diversity of fan and pub culture throughout England and Scotland during the 2024 Euros. Eight passionate fans have documented the tournament atmosphere at MiXR pubs across the UK while cheering on their national team to show there is a place for any fan, whatever you’re for.

Since he has stopped playing football due to an injury, Craig McIntosh uses his passion for photography to stay close to the game he loves and supported Scotland from both The Southsider and The Hanover Tap in Edinburgh.

My name is Craig and I am 38 years old. Currently, I live in Dunfermline, Scotland, working as a  Finance Assistant for Edinburgh University. I also juggle photography jobs on the side. 

Football has been a huge part of my life. Growing up in a small rural village in Scotland during the 90s, playing football was one of the only things we had to do to entertain ourselves. When I turned 10 years old, I joined a local team called Pencaitland Youth Football Club with my cousin and never looked back. 

I played for many teams over the years but one of my biggest highlights was winning the Scottish Borders Junior Football Association League at 16 years old, playing for the local team of Pencaitland. I continue to play until the age of 32 where I had to stop due to a knee injury. 

I have since found ways to stay involved with football using my passion for photography. I worked directly with Hibernian FC as part of a collaboration with Art of Football where I documented lifelong fans living in the Leith area. One of the photographs I took for this project was shortlisted for the Portrait of Britain award and also led to me being interviewed by BBC Scotland. 

Highs And Lows

My earliest memory of watching the Scottish national team compete in a major tournament was Euro 96 and then World Cup 1998 in France. I vividly remember getting home from school and watching the opening game with Scotland playing Brazil. I remember the absolute elation of John Collins scoring and then the all too familiar heartache of Tom Boyd’s shouldered own goal, costing us the result. I just recently watched it back and it still hurts! Had I known Scotland were about to embark upon 20+ years of failure after failure, I would have cherished those moments more.

Sadly, one of the first things that come to mind when I think of my time following Scotland is disappointment. Every high coupled with an inevitable low.

The highs of watching James McFadden scoring the winner against the Netherlands in the first leg of our playoff tie in 200, only to go over to Amsterdam and get battered 6-0 in the return leg.

The joy of watching Leigh Griffiths scoring back-to-back freekicks, putting Scotland 2-1 up against England, only for Stuart Armstrong to give the ball away in the dying moments of the game leading to a Harry Kane equaliser.

I attended my first match in 2021 when Scotland beat Israel 3-2 with a last minute goal from Scott McTominay. I remember calling my dad after the game when we were walking home and he said, "Cherish that because results like that don't happen often when you're following Scotland".

Watching our current squad of players is a breath of fresh air when I think of the dark days under Berti Vogts. The strike partnership of Kevin Kyle and Scot Dobbie - those were trying times. I am very hopeful that we will progress out of the group stages of this tournament. 

A Buzz Around The City

I enjoy watching the game with people I am comfortable being around. That could be my friends from high school that I have known for 20+ years or going to see my dad and watching the game in his living room. I have always enjoyed listening to him talk about the Scotland teams of the past. He has been to many historic games such as the match at Wembley when Scotland beat England after the 1966 World Cup where Jim Baxter did the famous keepie uppies. 

For the 2024 Euros, I will meet up with my friends from high school and go to pubs in Edinburgh or East Lothian. As we are all nearing our forties, we do not frequent the pubs as much as we used to, but it is usually the same bars in Edinburgh that we will meet up in. 

The Tron or the Chanter have always been regular haunts of ours. What I enjoy about tournaments like this is how it brings everyone together, like my friends and I. It feels like a big cultural event and there is a buzz around the city that you can feel in every bar showing the games.