A Highland cow from south west Scotland has become the latest unlikely football pundit after predicting Scotland’s World Cup fortunes with the confidence of a seasoned international manager.
Senga, a two year old Highland cow from Kitchen Coos and Ewes at High Airyolland Farm in Dumfries and Galloway, has been enlisted by bookmaker Ladbrokes to forecast the outcome of Scotland’s World Cup campaign.
The shaggy haired soothsayer was presented with feed buckets labelled with possible results for Scotland’s group stage matches and promptly made her selections.
According to Senga’s predictions, Scotland will open their campaign with a victory over Haiti before drawing with Morocco and losing to Brazil.
Those results would leave Scotland on four points and facing an anxious wait to discover whether they had done enough to reach the knockout stages.
Should Steve Clarke’s side make it through, however, Senga believes the adventure will continue all the way to the quarter finals.
The Highland cow was also asked to predict Scotland’s leading goalscorer during the tournament.
Rather than backing one of the national team’s forwards, she opted for Scotland captain John McGinn to finish as the country’s top scorer.
While her Scottish predictions will be warmly received by many members of the Tartan Army, her forecast for England may prove equally popular north of the border.
Senga believes England will enjoy a successful tournament and reach the semi finals before suffering a familiar fate.
Her prediction is that the Three Lions will once again be eliminated on penalties.
Neale McQuistin from Kitchen Coos and Ewes said:
“We always knew Senga was special, but we didn’t expect her to become a football pundit.
“She’s usually incredibly level-headed, but if she thinks we can take four points from the group, the Tartan Army should start letting themselves believe anything is possible.”
The tradition of animals predicting football results stretches back many years, most famously with Paul the Octopus, who gained worldwide attention during international tournaments.
Now Scotland has its own four legged football oracle.
Alex Apati, PR Manager at Ladbrokes, said:
“If Scotland make it to the quarter finals and England go out on penalties, then we might see Senga becoming an honorary member of the Tartan Army.
“We’ve already seen a flurry of bets on an England shootout exit, because if there’s one thing more reliable than a psychic coo, it’s English penalty heartbreak.”
Whether Senga proves to be a genuine football fortune teller or simply a hungry Highland cow remains to be seen, but her predictions have certainly given Scotland supporters plenty to smile about ahead of the tournament.
