I am a prood if haunless memmer o Scotland Writers’ Fitba Club. Formed at the hinner end o 2012, we play freendly matches against ither writers’ teams fae aroond Europe and local teams here in Scotland. Efter ninety meenits pechin, snocherin and kickin lumps oot o each ither, baith teams retire tae a suitably appointit howff tae read some poems and bits o novels whit we hae writ. Literature and fitba juist aboot in perfyte harmony. Nae herm in it. Keeps the writers aff the streets. And then there’s the beer, tae.

We hae some heavywecht (some actually are a heavy wecht) writers in the squad. Novelists, dramatists, journalists, makars, bards and a haill Duke Street jyle cell’s warth o crime writers, no tae mention some younger scrievers blessed wi the god-gien ability tae run mair nor ten yairds wioot threatenin tae hae a coronary. Literary galacticos aw.

Forby we can boast the maist ootrageous ringer in the history o the wance bonnie gemme: Arild Stavrum, ex-Aiberdeen and Besiktas, twa senior caps for Norway. Arild, nooadays a successfu Norwegian scriever o crime fiction, qualifees for Scotland Writers (juist) on accoont o him bein published in English by a Scottish publisher. Whither Arild wha’s faced wi the likes o Marcel Desailly had onythin whitsaever tae dae wi the Scotland Writers’ Fitba Club’s ainly awa win against the michty Österreichisches Autorenfußballteam in Vienna, we will never ken.

Itherwise, oor international record, while no rotten, isnae in ony danger settin the heather ableeze ony time soon. Fae seeven gemmes, we hae a respectable three wins and fower losses but three o thae defeats were hie-digit gubbins by England, Sweden and Italy. But oor finest oor is wioot doot the 2-1 victory ower the nominal Writers’ Fitba Warld Champions, La Nazionale Italiana Scrittori, in Embra lest year, oor twa co-captains’ stottin goals whummlin the unjoukable Francesco Trento’s second hauf score tae send the Scotland Writers’ Fitba Club doolal wi delicht.

Oddly eneuch, it wis the anti-Semitism rammy in the Labour Pairty this week that got me thinkin aboot the Scotland Writers fitba. Weel, no sae much the Scottish writers as the Great Britain Writers’ team that never wis.

Aboot three year syne, when the Israeli Writers’ team invitit a hantle countries tae play in a European Championship-style tournament in Haifa, a GB team wis proponed tae represent this splattered isle. But atween wan thing and anither, no eneuch players could commit tae the trip and nane o the UK writers endit up gaun tae the scrievers’ Euro tourney in Israel won (wha else?) by the Italians.

Some scrievers, quite richtly, had a problem in principle wi an event pairt fundit by the Israeli Government. That state’s ongaun oppression o Palestinians in the Occupied Territories wis reason eneuch tae pit folk aff.

Ma view wis we widnae likely be hingin oot wi politicians or generals but brither and sister writers as the fitba wis tae be pairt o the Israel Literature Festival as weel. Plus I hae a pal in Haifa I’ve no seen for years. But we didnae go and that wis fine. It wis juist fitba efter aw. Mind ye, because it involved Israel, it wisnae juist fitba. It wis inevitably mair than that.

When there wis aye a shilpit possibility o gaun, somebody got in touch wi me personally wantin a blether aboot the tournament. He wisnae pairt o the writers’ fitba set up and I didnae ken him fae Airchie. His point wis a blunt ane: writers shouldnae engage in ony wey wi the Israeli state.

I didnae mind ma literary colleagues’ stance on Israel. In fact, I respectit their position, and they I hope mines. But tae be telt by somebody I didnae ken, nae maitter how poleetly, whit I as a writer morally should or shouldnae dae wis somethin else awthegither.

The current stooshie ower Zionism and anti-Semitism honks o poat-steerin by the Tory pairty, keen tae get the spotlicht aff their ain ceevil war. But it’s clearly been made warse by Livingstone’s thrawn refusal tae apologise for his Hitler comment and Corbyn’s peeliewally leadership on the maitter.

But aw yon’s politics. Writers and ertists shouldnae be dragged intae ony o it juist because they’re writers and ertists that happen tae be fae a certain country. Fair eneuch if a makar or a novelist taks an overtly political subject heid on in their writin, but itherwise ertists are saft targets.

Unless they hae a track record o ootwardly supportin it, ertists shouldnae aye be held automatically accoontable for the actions o the state. Mair aften than no, it’s thae ertists and writers that are the maist carnaptious ootspoken critics o their governments. Tae no talk tae them and tae no let them talk seems coonter-intuitive and, weel, wrang.

Nigel Farage comin tae Edinburgh and gettin tobered by protesters is wan thing. An Israeli theatre group comin tae perform at the Fringe and gettin mair or less the same treatment is I think anither thing entirely. As for anti-Semitism, I traivelled roond Europe wance wi a group o freends aw fae different countries, yin o them Israeli. I’ll never forget the nicht twa aulder folk on a campsite we were steyin at, on learnin ma pal wis Jewish, immediately knelt doon yin on each side o him and taen a guid lang swatch at his neb.

Lest I heard, the Italian writers’ fitba team had plans tae invite baith the Israeli and Palestinian writers’ fitba teams tae play a tournament in Rome. Aw I can say tae that is, that’s the gemme, ragazzi. That’s the gemme.