Karo ta ƙarshe da Scotland ta halarci Kofin Duniya, Craig Brown ne ke jagorantar ƙungiyar — kuma ƙwaƙwalwar ajiyar Faransa 98 na raye kamar koyaushe. Brown, wanda ya rasu yana da shekaru 82 a shekarar 2023, ya bar bayani mai ƙima kan abin da ya ɗauka don shirya ƙasa don babbar matakalar wasa ta duniya.

Rod Stewart, Sean Connery, da mai gida wanda ya tafi

Shirye-shiryen sun fara da muhimmanci a New Jersey, inda Scotland suka buga wasannin horarwa a kan Colombia da Amurka. Amma Brown ya sami bugun farko lokacin da mai gida Andy Goram ya zo wurinsa ya sanar da shi cewa yana barin sansanin saboda dalilai na sirri. "Ya cancanci yabo saboda ya yi magana da ni kuma ya aiko mini da kyakkyawar wasika," Brown ya ce.

Bangaren Amurka na tafiyar yana da ɗaukakarsa. Shekaru biyu kafin, Rod Stewart ya gayyaci ƙungiyar zuwa kide-kidinsa a Madison Square Garden — tare da kimanin 5,000 na magoya baya da aka bar waje — yayin da 'yan wasan suka tarar da kansu a kan mataki. Stewart ya dawo a shekarar 1998 har ya shiga zaman horarwa. "Ya yi kyau sosai," Brown ya ce da tawali'unsa da aka sani.

Kiran waya daga Sean Connery ya zo sansanin Scotland ma. Brown ya tuna cewa sakatariyarsa da farko ta yi zaton wasa ne, tana zaton Ally McCoist yana ɗayan gefen layin.

Lif-lifi, ɗakin motsa jiki da aka gina, da darussan Faransanci daga John Collins

Tare da Jonathan Gould ya maye gurbin Goram, Scotland sun ƙaura zuwa sansaninsu a St Remy a kudancin Faransa — wurin da Brown ya zabo da kulawa sosai. Ɗakin motsa jiki ya buƙaci a gina shi daga sifiri don gamsar da 'yan wasa kamar John Collins da ke mai da kai sosai ga shiri na jiki. An ma tambayi ƙungiyar game da nauyin lif-lifin da suke so da tsayin gadon da suke buƙata.

Collins, wanda ya yi shekaru biyu a Monaco kuma kusa ya shiga Everton, ya kuma zama malamin Faransanci na gaggawa ga Brown. Da aka roƙe shi ya ba da jumla don tattaunawar jarida, Collins ya ba da shawarar: victoire ou défaite, importe c'est la fete — "nasara ko kaye, mafi muhimmancin abu shi ne nishaɗi."

Kilts, Ronaldo, da dare mai tarihi a Paris

A ranar 10 ga watan Yuni 1998, Scotland sun sauko daga bas ɗin a St Denis suna sanye da cikakkun kilts — yanke shawara da Brown ya shirya a asirce ba tare da sanar da babban daraktan Tarayyar Ƙwallon Ƙafa ta Scotland na lokacin Jim Farry ba, da ya sani izinin ba zai taba samu ba. Da dare kafin, firaministan Tony Blair ya ziyarci sansanin.

Abokin hamayya shi ne Brazil, zakaran duniya kuma mafi fata a gasar, tare da Ronaldo — a lokacin yana Inter Milan — a matsayin mafi haɗarin makami nasu. Brown ya shawarci Bobby Robson, wanda ya horar da Ronaldo a PSV, ya kuma karbi nasiha kai tsaye: "Ba za ka iya tsayar da shi ba, kawai kada ka bar shi ya karɓi ƙwallon." Brown ya umarci Christian Dailly da ya bi Cafu ya hana ɗan baya na dama ya ciyar Ronaldo.

Tsarin ya yi aiki a wani mataki. Cesar Sampaio ya buga kai bayan mintoci biyar, amma Collins ya daidaita da bugun fansa kafin rabi na farko ya ƙare. Sai kuma, mintoci 16 kafin lokaci ya ƙare, Tom Boyd ya jefa ƙwallon cikin ragan nasa, ya ba Brazil nasara da 2-1. "Sun yi duk abin da aka roƙe su," Brown ya ce game da 'yan wasansa. "Ya ba mu kwarin gwiwa game da abin da ke gaba."

Norway, burin daidaitawa, da baƙin ciki a St Etienne

Norway suka biyo baya a Bordeaux, kuma Scotland sun mamaye — sai Havard Flo ya buga kai daga kusa jim kaɗan bayan ci gaba da wasa ya farfado. Burewar Craig Burley daga wucewuwa mai kyau ta pashi na Davie Weir — "pashi na hankali," a zantukan Brown — ya tsira da maki ɗaya, amma Scotland sun buƙaci nasara a kan Morocco don ci gaba da begen wucewa.

An kashe wannan begen a St Etienne. Salaheddine Bassir ya buga a tsakiyar rabi na farko, Abdeljalil Hadda ya ninka gudu a farkon rabi na biyu, kuma Burley — sanye da sabuwar gashin kansa mai fari — an fitar da shi da jan kati saboda ƙalubalantuwa marar hikima. Scotland sun sha kashi da 3-0, kuma yaƙin neman cancanta ya ƙare.

Nasarar Norway 2-1 a kan Brazil da daren nan ta sa sakamakon bai da tasiri a matsayin ƙungiya, amma tunanin Brown yana tare da magoya bayan da suka sadaukar da kansu don tafiya su biyo. "Ka yi tunani cewa wasu daga cikinsu sun rasa ayyukansu domin su zo su biyo mu," ya ce. "Kana jin baƙin ciki saboda baka ba su ƙarin abin ji daɗi ba, amma mun yi ƙoƙarinmu na gaske."