Hundreds of bleary-eyed Scotland fans piled onto a huge cruiser in gloomy conditions on Thursday afternoon before the celebration got into full swing. This was the scene as the Daily Record joined the Tartan Army on a three-hour party cruise in Boston.
Fans appeared exhausted, as many were on day seven of their World Cup trip. But with an open bar and an extensive spread including sandwiches, wraps and salad, our foot soldiers quickly got the party going with chants of 'No Scotland, No Party' and 'Scotland's on Fire'. As the clouds cleared, delighted fans were seen embracing each other in hugs as they danced to all the usual songs.
As fans arrived back at Rowes Wharf after the three-hour cruise, they burst back into song and one punter said: 'Can we stay on here all night?'
Best party cruise yet
North East Tartan Army chief Chris Gibson, 50, has organised around a dozen party cruises for our supporters but said this was the best one yet. He said: 'What a day. We've all been partying here. This one has blown the rest out of the water. It was fantastic to have Craig Ferguson on here too. It's been such a brilliant day.'
He added: 'If they thought this was good, Boston is about to see the biggest party ever tomorrow night when we get the result and get through that group. They have no idea what qualifying through the group means to us - but they're about to find out!'
Charity hero Craig Ferguson joins the fun
Charity hero Craig Ferguson, who walked the length of America to Boston, was enjoying some downtime after raising £1million for men's mental health with his trek. After posing for pictures with dozens of delighted fans, the 22-year-old told the Record: 'That was just unbelievable. This is what it's all about. Look at everyone hugging and kissing.'
'I only heard that I was able to get on the boat yesterday. I missed the last one, and I thought I'm not missing this again! So I'm very, very glad that I got on it, because that was just amazing. Do you know what I love, it's when you're going out on the boat. And everyone on the harbour is just waving and taking pictures. It just makes you so proud, because everyone looks so enamoured - like who are these kilted men just going for it?! It's just the best thing ever.'
He added: 'I'll be at the game tomorrow. I'm falling into the same trap as I always do and I'm feeling too confident - but I'm going for a 2-2.'
