We went, we saw, they conquered.

Frankly, the oompah band playing us out of the Euros with Scotland the Brave, whilst a pleasant gesture, didn’t quite catch the mood of the moment among those of us who had travelled hopefully and arrived to all too familiar disappointment.

Aren’t your fans marvellous, cooed sections of the German media. Well, yes, we do give good party, but then again none of the fans were actually on the pitch. You know, the bit where you score goals and pick up points.

Of course, to score goals you actually have to aim shots at the opposition net. Maybe nobody put that in the pre match briefings. Or, if they did, none of our boys seemed to have got the message.

It didn’t help that we had but one shot-shy chap up front and left Scotland’s top scorer and time-served assister sitting on the bench. One of them was still unused throughout.

However, I don’t believe this can all be put down to the manager and a too fearful strategy. We are a team of, mostly, journeymen, not helped by the fact that serial injuries to first choices gave us a definite air of 'make do and mend' when it most mattered.

So we got sent homeward tae think again. Just as we have been at every World Cup and Euro tournament for which we've qualified thus far. Much was made of the fact that it had been very many years since we could take qualification for granted. I know. I was at the last World Cup where we made an appearance.

We played Brazil in the opener in 1998. One of their two goals was scored by us. Our goal had been a penalty. So It had been one apiece at the time, and the footsoldiers were daring to dream. As we always do. We should, in truth, know better by now.

We should be well inured to disappointment and ritual humiliation.

Then again, in 2014, Germany tanked the mighty Brazil 7-1. Somehow, it made their 5-1 demolition of us in Munich seem slightly more bearable. You take your comfort where you find it.