IT is possibly the oldest and most overused cliché in sport.

But has the saying about a good team being a mixture of youth and experience ever, either before or since, been as apposite as when Scotland took on, and vanquished, England at Wembley on this day back in 1967?

Sir Alf Ramsey’s team, who had lifted the World Cup on their home turf the year before, were on an astonishing 19 game undefeated run which stretched back 18 months and were widely expected to beat Bobby Brown’s side and, what is more, beat them comfortably.

Brown had picked a willowy kid, the Sheffield Wednesday player Jim McCalliog, in midfield and an ageing veteran who was nearing the end of his playing days, the Celtic keeper Ronnie Simpson, in the visiting side.

Not even the most inebriated travelling supporter, and there were a fair few of them in the 99,063-strong crowd that afternoon, was convinced their heroes could overcome rivals who fielded, among others, Gordon Banks, Bobby Charlton, Jimmy Greaves and Geoff Hurst.

Yet, the involvement of that duo, who were 16 years apart in age, was to prove nothing short of a masterstroke and would ultimately help to secure a triumph that is still talked about and celebrated some 50 years on.

Ronnie McDevitt, a seasoned Tartan Army footsoldier and the author of Scotland in the ‘60s, explains how the involvement of the pair proved so important.

“Two players made their debuts for Scotland against England that day,” said McDevitt. “Ronnie Simpson, at 36, was the oldest man on the park while Jim McCalliog, who was just 20, was the youngest player.

“Brown, the manager who also took charge of his first game that day, always said that McCalliog was the key man even though it was his debut.

“Bobby had taken charge of the Scotland Under-23 game against England in Newcastle that March and had brought McCalliog in to the team. Those were big games in those days with big crowds. His side had won 3-1.

“He once told me: ‘Jim Baxter was the artist, Jim McCalliog could run through the middle and Billy Bremner could do his thing on the other side’.

“Bobby Clark, the Aberdeen keeper, played in that under-23 game too and Bobby seriously considered playing him against England. But he was also uncapped at that point and he went for the experience of Ronnie Simpson. Ronnie had been Bobby’s ball boy when they were both at Queen’s Park together years earlier. But he also had an exceptional game.

“It wasn’t as one-sided a game as people might think. John Greig headed the ball off the line and Ronnie Simpson certainly played his part.”

It was by no means a first choice Scotland side that took to the field in that Home Internationals game. “On the Wednesday before the game Celtic had played Dukla Prague in the first leg of the European Cup semi-final,” said McDevitt. “Jimmy Johnstone, who had been picked in the Scotland squad, got a bit of a knock.

“Bobby called in Willie Wallace, who had scored in the 3-1 win over Dukla, as cover. He ended up playing, but he wasn’t in the squad originally.”

Wallace was joined in the Scotland starting line-up by his club mates Tommy Gemmell and Bobby Lennox. However, the latter, who scored the second goal late on in the second half, felt that it was one of their Rangers counterparts, Jim Baxter, who was instrumental in the victory, both before and during it.

“When I was writing my book Bobby told me that some of the Scotland players had gone to the pictures in the city centre the night before the match,” he said. “As luck would have it, as they were coming out afterwards some of the England players were leaving as well.

“Bobby didn’t know any of them personally so he stood back. But Jim Baxter and Denis Law went over to have a chat and a bit of banter. When they got back on the bus Baxter said: ‘They’re really s******g themselves about the game in the morning!’ It was all part of his psychology, a ploy to give the players’ confidence.

“Bobby also recalled how in the Wembley dressing room before the game Jim turned around to all the players and said: ‘If any of you are in any trouble at all just give the ball to me!’ His gallusness rubbed off on those around him.”

Baxter would be an iconic figure regardless of whether he had been involved that day. But his already considerable legend increased in what was arguably his finest hour and a half. Sir Alex Ferguson later said his personal performance should have been set to music.

He famously capped his virtuoso display by playing keepy-uppy with the ball in the closing stages. He did not, however, sit on it. “That’s one of the myths about that game,” said McDevitt. “ITV started archiving their sport films after the 1966 World Cup and we are very fortunate that we can see the game in its entirety now. It didn't happen.

Baxter’s antics possibly allowed Geoff Hurst, the England striker who had been the hero of his country’s World Cup triumph, to get forward to net a late goal that made the scoreline 3-2. But Scotland held on to record a memorable victory which their supporters still revel in to this day.

“That was the only time that XI played together for Scotland,” said McDevitt. “Bobby would have liked to pick the same side again, but he wasn’t able to. Jim Baxter had a great game, but he was in the twilight of his career and only played another two games for his country.”

It is often suggested that the team was picked by an SFA committee, not the manager. McDevitt, though, dismisses that. “Bobby Brown picked the team,” he said. “He had complete control of selection. That was a bit of a myth that grew up as well.”

When West German referee Gerhard Schulenburg blew the final whistle many of the Scotland fans – who numbered far more than their official 29,173 ticket allocation – invaded the field. But no goalposts were pulled down and no players were assaulted. “They formed a big circle on the pitch and did a Ring a Ring o’Roses,” says McDevitt.

The romance of the 3-2 win, which led to many Scotland fans proclaiming their team unofficial world champions, hasn’t diminished any over the years.

“I would say it is in the top 10 greatest Scotland wins,” said McDevitt. “Some people say: ‘Och, it was just the Home Internationals!’ Many think the 1963 win at Wembley was better. The reason for that being that we played with 10 men after Eric Caldow broke his leg. Jim Baxter, who scored both of Scotland’s goals in that 2-1 win, preferred that one.

“But in 1967 England were the World Cup holders and they were unbeaten in 19 matches. Bobby Moore, Bobby Charlton and Gordon Banks were world class players. It deserves to be so highly regarded.”

Scotland in the ‘60s: The Definitive Account of the Scottish National Football Side During the 1960s by Ronnie McDevitt is published by Pitch Publishing and is available online.