The Thistle and the Grail — Robin Jenkins

The Thistle is the unlucky local football team of Drumsagart, a drab industrial town in Lanarkshire. Cursed with poverty, an ineffective president and a string of defeats, the Thistle players are running low on morale, especially when so many people are against them, including the devious local policeman, the idealistic and sanctimonious new minister and sometimes their own wives. Despite their dismal prospects the team cling to the beautiful game as a last hope and dream. And, when they begin to win, a momentum springs up in their community as they soon come to represent ambition and hope. The Holy Grail of football, the Scottish Junior Cup, glitters at the end of a string of matches and suddenly the entire town of Drumsagart is depending on it. This edition includes an introduction by Harry Reid, former sportswriter and editor of The Herald.