Dundee poet Gary Robertson has spoken of his “amazing” experiences at Euro 2024 – including his shock at seeing his nephew jump naked into the famous Rhine River.
Gary, 57, is among at least 200,000 Scotland fans in Germany for this summer’s football tournament.
The binman has written five books and six plays – many focusing on the challenges of growing up in Fintry.
Now he has been telling some new stories as a recognisable member of the Tartan Army, who have been named the best supporters in Euro 2024 in a poll by German media outlet RTL.
These include getting lost on his way to the hotel, his dad trying to buy drinks using a hotel roomcard and his nephew’s naked jump that has been viewed online more than 11 million times.
Dundee group miss first Scotland game due to early booking
For a man who has bagged all 284 of Scotland’s Munroes, Gary was typically proactive as Scotland closed in on qualification for this summer’s tournament.
Three of the eight Group A games remained when he booked accommodation in Frankfurt for himself, his father John, 80, his son Cailean, 29, and two of Cailean’s friends.
“A year ago we said, ‘let’s do this’, as you don’t know how long your family will be here.
“We thought we wouldn’t bother going out for June 14, because that was the day of the opening ceremony.
“Only for us to get pulled out of the hat against Germany, so we flew out at 6am on Saturday – the day after the game!”
To add insult to injury, they will be flying home as Scotland aim to keep their Euro 2024 hopes alive against Hungary on Sunday night.
Gary Robertson’s nephew ‘does a Tom Daley’ in the Rhine
But what Gary has missed out on in timing has been more than compensated for in unforgettable moments.
Few will be remembered more vividly than when his nephew – who remains nameless – took a dip in the Rhine River in Cologne.
The incident happened as Gary’s group headed to a fan zone to watch Scotland’s Group A clash against Switzerland on Wednesday.
“We were told that we couldn’t take our cans of drink into the fan zone,” Gary said.
“So we just thought we would drink them here before going in.
“Then somebody said, as a throwaway comment, that we should do a Tom Daley and jump in the Rhine.
“My nephew says ‘no bother’. The next thing he is naked and jumping into the Rhine, which is coming like a tidal wave!
“It’s lucky he never landed in Holland as it was flowing like a hurricane.
“But he just leapt in.”
Afterwards, Gary said his nephew simply “got cleaned up and we went to the fanzone.”
‘This Scotsman is sheer madness’ claims German newspaper after Cologne tumble
The incident made waves internationally.
The Twitter/X video of the jump has received 11.9 million views and attracted 285 comments.
In Germany, a screengrab of the jump appeared on the front page of Bild newspaper.
The online version labels it a ‘life-threatening fan action’ with the accompanying headline ‘This Scotsman is sheer madness.’
The article continues: ‘The young man can be seen leaving his clothes behind, jumping into the water and – fortunately – climbing out of the Rhine safely after a few seconds, to the laughter of other Scottish fans.
‘The video has been viewed more than eleven million times and has sparked heated debate.
‘One of the reasons: The action may be amusing – but it is actually life-threatening!’
13-mile journey to Frankfurt hotel takes five hours after getting lost
Gary says the “carnage” of his stay in Germany began as soon as he touched down.
“A 13-mile journey from Frankfurt Airport to our hotel took us five hours,” he said.
“It was nuts.
“When we landed we got lost. We were heading to the border of Holland, I think.
“We never planned it. We thought we would just get off the plane, get the train and get to our digs.
“This Ukrainian guy diverted his journey to get off the train with us to show us where we should be.
“It was planes, trains and automobiles. I swear John Candy was with us.
“Absolute nightmare.”
Failure to buy drinks ‘with a plain white card’
Spending quality time with his father John has been a particular highlight for Gary.
“He has walked the miles, drunk the beer,” Gary said.
“He is 80 but still thinks he is 18.
“I would like to think I would get to his age but I can’t see it!”
Gary did have to help him out on one occasion though.
“Dad was trying to pay for a round of drinks with his card – he was swiping it and saying ‘it is not working’,” he explained.
“So he puts his card into the machine, tries his bank number and he was like ‘it’s still not working’.
“So I had to pay for the round.
“Five minutes later he tells me he was using the hotel roomcard – it was a plain white card that he was trying to buy drinks with!
“It really has been a laugh a minute.”
‘Only Scotland can lose 5-1 yet be so upbeat’
Being on tour with fellow Scotland fans has been a blast, says Gary.
“It’s been absolutely fantastic,” he added.
“The people we have met, the laughs. You have to be there to experience it.
“Being in a European city with so many cultures and different football fans, the banter and friendship has been amazing.
“We lost 5-1 in the first game but it never mattered but everybody has been buzzing.
“There is no country on the planet, other than Scotland, that can lose 5-1 yet be so upbeat.”
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