By Paul Forsyth
Last updated at 5:44 PM on 30th January 2011
Not for the first time in recent years, the Dunblane Hotel emptied pretty sharpish when Andy Murray's dream was shattered.
In the street outside, film crews packed away their equipment, tartan-bunneted punters sloped off home for lunch and the banner draped above the entrance had a forlorn look about it.
'It's your time Andy,' it read. 'Just do it for us.'
Loud and proud: The Dunblane Hotel was packed full of passionate fans
It wasn't, and he didn't, but they will not be holding it against him. A 6-4, 6-2, 6-3 defeat by Novak Djokovic in the final of the Australian Open probably felt like the end of the world for Murray, but 10,500 miles away, in the Perthshire town where he grew up, they retained a sense of perspective.
When Djokovic closed out the match, a few of the customers stood at the bar, applauding Murray's efforts. By whose standards had he failed? Callum Lord, kitted out in hat, scarf and trousers of matching tartan, was at school with Murray, and stressed that the British No 1 had disappointed nobody in his hometown.
'I just hope he doesn't feel that he has let anyone down. We are all proud of him. He shouldn't be disappointed with himself. He is still the pride of British tennis. He is a great player, world class, so it's only a matter of time. He will do it for us one day.'
At which point a microphone was poked in his face, and it was suggested that the same had been said of Tim Henman, that after three defeats in the final of a grand-slam event, there were shades of the Englishman about Murray.
Gripping viewing: The eyes were glued to the big screens during Murray's match
'I think that's ridiculous,' said Lord. Tim Henman was a good guy, but he didn't get to as many finals as Andy has. Andy has already surpassed that at a young age.'
It wasn't the first time Dunblane had prepared for a party, and it probably won't be the last. Just like a year ago, when Murray lost to Federer in the Melbourne final, the Dunblane Hotel was granted a special licence to open its doors at eight in the morning.
There were flags everywhere, messages of good luck and bacon rolls for the customers who turned up wearing everything from kilts and Jimmy hats to blue morph suits.
By 8.30, the beer was flowing, and the insults flying. 'Poor man's Montenegro,' shouted one at the television screen, as a tight first set unfolded, ut it wasn't long before Murray's Serbian opponent was silencing the throng.
When the Scot all but disintegrated in the second set, the crowd began to thin out, and those who remained assumed an air of resignation.
'He certainly puts you through the wringer,' said Tom McLean, the landlord. 'I really did have high hopes this year. With [Rafael] Nadal and [Roger] Federer out, I thought he had a good chance, but Djokovic is playing inspired tennis. I feel quite deflated, I have to say.'
All over for another year: Fans head home after watching their hero falter
McLean's wife, Emily, was soon conceding that the champagne would once again have to remain on ice. Maybe it was as well that Andy's father, Willie, and his grandparents, Roy and Shirley Erskine, had decided to watch it at home.
Maybe, she said, they were better not to be reminded of the expectation, local and international, that remained unfulfilled.
'You just feel for Andy sometimes,' she explained. Some of the pressure... it gets to him. If he was from another country, and there were two or three other players from that country, he wouldn't have all this to deal with.'
Maybe that was why they adopted a low-key approach across the road at the Dunblane Centre, a public facility built by funds raised in the aftermath of the 1996 massacre at Dunblane Primary School. Although children were invited to watch the match on big screens, national journalists were refused entry, and the attendance was relatively small.
The people of Dunblane are desperate for their favourite son to win a grand-slam event, but they are not demanding it. Andre Agassi lost three grand-slam finals before winning one, so there is time yet for the 23-year-old Scot.
Emily McLean said that, if Murray achieves nothing else in his career, he will still have transformed the image of a town that for so long was synonymous with tragedy.
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