SOON after midday tomorrow, Sir Alex Ferguson will be back on familiar turf, prowling the touchline at Old Trafford and barking instructions as his Manchester United players attempt to beat Everton and remain on course to retain the Barclays Premier League title.

A couple of hours earlier, Ray Green will have stepped out on the communal pitches of East Lothian, as he does every Sunday morning during the football season, for his regular 11-a-side kick-about.

Even at 62, and with more than 700 goals under amateur rules behind him, this lifelong Rangers supporter retains a passion for the Beautiful Game to rival that of the man he used to cheer from terraces at Ibrox.

This afternoon, though, Ferguson and Green find themselves in direct opposition to one another, with Ayr Racecourse, a place rich in Scottish Grand National history despite it being home to the country's most illustrious jumps race only since 1966, representing their field of dreams.

According to Coral, sponsors of today's £180,000 showpiece, these two Scots are the most likely recipients of the famous old trophy. Ferguson is a part owner of Harry The Viking, who seeks to furnish Paul Nicholls with a second National success in a week following Neptune Collonges' victory by a nostril at Aintree.

As for Haddington-based Green, and his wife Anita, today is an opportunity to reclaim the crown Merigo won in thunderous fashion two years ago as the horse and his Lockerbie handler Andrew Parker bridged a 28-year gap between Scottish-trained winners. Should Merigo repeat his 2010 feat by winning again today under his regular rider Timmy Murphy, another entry into the tartan record books will be his.

This time it would be as the first horse to reclaim the crown since the Scottish National was shifted a dozen or so miles down the road to Ayr following the closure of the Bogside course near Irvine.

"I'm looking forward to it," said Green of the prospect of catching up with Ferguson in the pre-parade ring. "The last time I saw Sir Alex, I berated him for not marking Billy McNeill properly for the first goal of the 1969 Scottish Cup final defeat to Celtic. That was just about his last act as a Rangers player. Not long after that, of course, he left for Falkirk.

"As a manager, I really don't think we'll see his like again. To have turned 70 and still have the fire in his belly for football the way he does is just amazing. He is a winner through and through and it looks like he's going to win another championship this season. It's not often that Sir Alex finishes second, but I'll be happy to see his horse finish second to Merigo."

With only six previous runs under his belt, and just three of them over fences, Harry The Viking is a galloping definition of inexperience, not that you would have known it based on his most recent outing at last month's Cheltenham Festival, where the seven-year-old chased home Teaforthree in the National Hunt Chase. Neat and nimble over the majority of his fences there, Harry The Viking charged up the infamous Cheltenham hill with such relish that the extra half-furlong of today's assignment will hold no fears.

Further improvement is expected and, with Ruby Walsh taking over in the saddle for the first time, many will fancy the Irishman and Nicholls to add to their previous Scottish National successes, Walsh aboard Take Control in 2002 and Nicholls with Belmont King in 1997.

To do so, Harry The Viking will have to overcome the worthiest of opponents in Merigo. Although Beshabar proved marginally his superior in a pulsating finish 12 months ago, Merigo's second-place performance that day enhanced his reputation as a horse tailor-made for the Scottish National.

His record at Ayr is impressive, too; in seven races at the course, he has won four times and never finished outside the first three. One of those victories was achieved against Ballabriggs, the winner of last year's Aintree Grand National.

The most recent came only six weeks ago, and dispelled any concerns Green and Parker may have harboured that a winter spent toiling in some of the best three-mile handicap chases in the north had extinguished the fire within. "Whichever way you look at it, Merigo's record at Ayr is tremendous," Green said. "He loves a level, left-handed track, the Scottish National trip is perfect for him and he seems to come to himself at this time of year. Timmy knows how to get him into a good groove around Ayr and, although he isn't the quickest, over four miles he has an ability to gallop his rivals into the ground."

Expect Murphy to make use of Merigo's stamina by taking up a prominent early position, with Walsh and Harry The Viking stalking in behind. What plays out over 27 fences and nearly three circuits of the Ayr track remains to be seen.

Should two runners pull clear up the home straight, Green would not be surprised if it is Merigo and Harry The Viking left fighting it out. "You always need a little luck but if Merigo performs as well as he has in each of the last Scottish Nationals, then he's got to there or thereabouts again," Green said.

"In 2010, he won pulling a bus. Last year, he was 12lbs out of the handicap yet he very nearly won again. He's in better form now than 12 months ago, yet he's able to carry 8lbs less this time. To me, that makes him a well-handicapped horse.

"I have the utmost respect for Harry The Viking, who is an improving young chaser, but the Scottish National is a big test of inexperienced horses, so there is a question mark about how he'll handle it, but there are none over Merigo. He's the one they will all have to beat again, I think."

Nine minutes, rather than 90, is all it will take for Green and Ferguson to find out.