IMMEDIATELY before the kick-off at tonight's friendly international versus Northern Ireland at Hampden Park, there will be a minute's applause in memory of one of the nation's most renowned footballing sons, the Heart of Midlothian and Tottenham Hotspur stalwart Dave Mackay.

As the match unfolds - with every possibility of it being stacattoed by stoppages for the treatment of injuries - many veteran members of the Tartan Army will doubtless ponder the fact that the beautiful game is much the poorer for the loss of Mackay and his ilk.

Mackay's family and friends, Hearts fans, football luminaries and the Scottish public in general, bade their sad farewells at his funeral yesterday. The esteem in which he was held was reflected in the vast numbers who lined the streets of the capital. In death, as in life, dignity was the watchword.

The tears that were shed yesterday were genuine and heartfelt, unlike some that accompany the sporting melodramas of today.

Dave Mackay might have been touched, but he might also have been embarrassed. His achievements were accomplished without a hint of the histrionics we have witnessed in recent times.

His death marks the end of an era. It is to be hoped that his values can come to the fore once more.