Columnist: A tribute to Ally from a '˜skinny, scruffy Jambo'!

Paul McCabe gives his own tribute to Ally Gourlay

Like so many I was desperately sad to learn of the horribly premature death of Ally Gourlay.

I first got to know him on the occasions I covered the FFP sports desk and instantly found him to be friendly and easy going with a wicked sense of humour.

Amusingly, for the first six months knowing each other, he had just assumed I was a Rovers fan and in a good-natured but foul-mouthed tirade, accused me of deliberately misleading him when learning that my allegiance lies elsewhere.

Though our relationship was strictly professional to begin with we quickly discovered a shared fondness for obscure music and more often than not our meetings to discuss Rovers related matters would overrun by a considerable time as we babbled on about odd b-sides and rare album tracks of bands and artists destined to never reach the charts.

We always got on well,I always looked forward to seeing him and I’d like to think we were mates.

So it’s RIP from this “skinny, scruffy Jambo so-and-so”, to a baldy Raith one!

In a move Ally would have approved of I went through to Glasgow to see Suede on Monday night. Yeah, that’s right, on a school night and everything. Check me out.

The first half consisted of the band playing its superb new album ‘Night Thoughts’ behind a screen showing a specially film, before coming back on and ploughing through the hits.

Being of a certain age I could have stood back and watched but where’s the fun in that? So I threw myself into the mosh pit with gusto.

Keeping it real for old people with a sore back everywhere. You’re welcome.