Scotland’s World Cup takeover of Boston reached Fenway Park on Friday night
One ride through Boston will let you know that the Scots travel well. Fenway Park is no exception.
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Whether it was in or outside of the stadium, a kilt, sporran, or Scottish flag could be spotted at every turn on Friday night for the Red Sox’ 10-1 win over the Rangers.
Many Scottish fans don’t have previous experience with the World Cup, as it’s been 28 years since the nation’s last appearance, but what do they know about baseball? For many, not much.
“One of the American guys that I work with, he was actually saying if you hear the ball whistling, duck,” Dannie Buchan of Fraserburgh, Scotland, said.
“It’s one of [the United States’] iconic sports,” added Allan Walker of Falkirk.
Walker’s brother-in-law, David Garvin, was grateful to see something he considered to be iconic.
Because of the time difference and lack of popularity at home, Scottish fans say they rarely, if ever, watch baseball. But they draped their national pride all over Fenway all the same on Friday.
“It feels like every second person has a Scotland [jersey] on,” John Johnstone Jr. said.
John Jr. attended the game with his dad, John Sr., along with Walt Adamson, a native of Glasgow.
They were immediately drawn to the uniqueness and historical significance of the ballpark, and were sure to stop by.
“It’s an absolute theatre of world sport,” said Adamson.
“I like that it’s in the city,” said John Johnstone Sr. of Dumfries.
Johnstone’s son, John Jr., added that the ballpark is easy to get to.
Among the masses, it seemed like for every 10 Scots, there were two who had been here before.
Specifically, Glasgow native Robert Lochrie last attended during the 2013 World Series season. As he returned on Friday, he took his son for the first time. Lochrie reached out to the team ahead of their trip and the two were granted field passes before the game.
Lochrie considers himself a fan of the team, and the gesture from the Red Sox was clearly icing on the cake.
“I don’t think there’s a lot of teams or clubs that would do something like that,” Lochrie said. “Speaks a lot to like the grassroots nature of the Red Sox.”
While Lochrie and his son spent the hours before the game in the stadium, the Johnstones and Adamson were among the large group that paraded outside of it.
With a large Scottish population finding their way to Lansdowne Street, chants filled Fenway seemingly every few minutes. It was almost impossible to spot a Scottish fan without a smile. Yes, being on vacation and their team’s success is part of the experience, but it’s the historical context of Scotland’s success that truly paints the picture.
“To bring my kids is probably the biggest thing, because we were their age the last time that happened,” said Garry Clarkson, who was alongside his wife, Jo.
Scotland has advanced to the group stage of the World Cup nine times. The most recent appearances were 1998 and 1990, and they’ve never made the knockout round.
With matchups with Morocco and Brazil to follow Saturday’s opener against Haiti in Foxborough, there’s no guarantee they’ll do it this time, but fans are grateful for the moment.
“It’s amazing how many people came across, sacrificed probably a lot of things in life, and cost of bills to come and follow us for three games,” Walker said.
Scottish fans agree it’s an opportunity to unite the country, but first, it served as a time to learn a new sport.
There’s no telling whether those fans were prepared for The Wave, nor “Take Me Out to the Ballgame,” but they celebrated together ahead of arguably the biggest game for Scotland in their lifetimes.
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