FMH 2014 - Och Aye The Noo (Dynasty in a Day)

[Rawhide]

O flower of Scotland
When will we see your like again
That fought and died for
Your wee bit hill and glen
And stood against him
Proud Edward's army
And sent him homeward
Tae think again

The hills are bare now
And autumn leaves lie thick and still
O'er land that is lost now
Which those so dearly held
And stood against him
Proud Edward's army
And sent him homeward
Tae think again

Those days are passed now
And in the past they must remain
But we can still rise now
And be the nation again
That stood against him
Proud Edward's army
And sent him homeward
Tae think again



July 17 2013

Jack Hayden is appointed the new manager of the Scotland national football team. The SFA made the announcement this morning in Glasgow. Scotland currently sit in fourth place in Group 1 for qualifying for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, just three points behind leaders Croatia, and also behind Serbia and Belgium.

Hayden's first match in charge will be a friendly against minnows San Marino.

August 14 2013



Scotland side for friendly against San Marino (caps in brackets)
Formation - 4-4-2

GK - McGregor (29)
DEF - Bardsley (12), Whittaker (18), Berra (27), Hanley (7)
MID - Fletcher (61), Morrison (27), McFadden (48), Snodgrass (10)
FWD - Fletcher (12), Naismith (22)

15 - San Marino 1-0 (Conti)
21 - Tied 1-1 (Naismith)
45 - Scotland 2-1 (McFadden)
72 - Scotland 3-1 (Morrison)
75 - Scotland 4-1 (Naismith)
77 - Scotland 5-1 (Fletcher)
84 - Scotland 6-1 (Fletcher)
86 - Scotland 7-1 (Naismith)

Possession - Scotland 57%, San Marion 43%
Shots - Scotland 28-2
Shots on target - Scotland 21-2
Corners - Scotland 10-3
Passes Completed - Scotland 74%, San Marino 63%
Tackles Won - Scotland 65%, San Marino 37%

August 24 2013

We drop three players from the squad to take on Croatia and Macedonia in our final two World Cup qualifying games. We must beat Croatia and then rely on other results going our way to finish in the top two, which is our goal.

Called into the squad are Tony Watt (Celtic, 19yo, forward currently playing in Sweden, uncapped), Leigh Griffiths (Wolves, 23yo, forward, 2 caps) and Matt Phillips (Queen's Park Rangers, 22yo, midfielder, 2 caps)

The media is up in arms about the selection of Watt, as well as the exclusion of Norwich defender Russell Martin.

A loss to Croatia will see us fall out of contention for the top spot in our World Cup qualifying pool.

[Rawhide]

September 6 2013



GK - Marshall (6)
DEF - Bardsley (13), Whittaker (19), Wilson (5), Berra (28)
MID - Morrison (28), Bridcutt (1), Naismith (23), Snodgrass (11)
FWD - Rhodes (9), Fletcher (13)

Unavailable due to injury - Fletcher, McFadden, Adam

28 - Scotland 1-0 (Rhodes)
30 - Tied 1-1 (Eduardo)
37 - Croatia 2-1 (Lovren)
62 - Phillips replaces Rhodes
68 - Croatia 3-1 (Rakitic)
81 - Croatia 4-1 (Petric)
81 - Watt replaces Fletcher

Other results in Group 1
Belgium 5 Wales 0
Serbia 4 Macedonia 0

Group 1 Standings
All nations have played 9 games

Croatia 20
Serbia 19
Belgium 17
Scotland 14
Macedonia 4
Wales 1

Scotland are eliminated from the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying.

September 10 2013



GK - Marshall (7)
DEF - Bardsley (14), Whittaker (20), Wilson (6), Berra (29)
MID - Morrison (29), Bridcutt (2), Naismith (24), Snodgrass (12)
FWD - Rhodes (10), Fletcher (14)

6 - Scotland 1-0 (Fletcher)
7 - Tied 1-1 (Kostovski)
16 - Scotland 2-1 (Morrison)
33 - Scotland 3-1 (Fletcher)
45 - Goodwillie on for Rhodes
71 - Caldwell on for Berra
86 - Hutton on for Whittaker

Other results in Group 1
Belgium 3 Serbia 0
Croatia 3 Wales 1

Final Group 1 Standings

Croatia 23
Belgium 20
Serbia 19
Scotland 17
Macedonia 4
Wales 1

Croatia qualifies for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Belgium qualifies for the 2014 FIFA World Cup European playoffs.

[Rawhide]

September 2013

With Scotland out of the FIFA World Cup, attention turns towards the Euro 2016 qualifiers. We have three friendlies currently in the books - a home date against the Belgians on November 20, and two away trips to Algiers and Bogota during 2014. I will be using those three games to field a developmental team, rather than reward the same team that missed out on World Cup qualification.

October 2013

World Cup qualifying playoffs
Belgium v Greece - 0-1, 2-0 - Belgium qualifies
Slovenia v Sweden - 0-3, 3-4 - Sweden qualifies
Spain v Czech Republic - 4-1, 1-1 - Spain qualifies
Ukraine v Portugal - 0-2, 0-1 - Portugal qualifies

November 2013

We chose a 26 man squad for our game against Belgium and change our tactic to 5-3-2.



GK - McGregor (30)
DEF - Wilson (7), Berra (30), Hanley (8), Fox (4), Sutton (33)
MID - Adam (23), Fletcher (62), Morrison (30)
FOR - Rhodes (11), Naismith (25)

34 - Belgium 1-0 (Fellaini)
42 - Tied 1-1 (Rhodes)
45 - Martin on for Hanley, Whittaker on for Wilson, Maloney on for Adam
65 - Scotland 2-1 (Morrison)
65 - Watt on for Fletcher, Goodwillie on for Rhodes
77 - Scotland 3-1 (Watt)

December 2013

The pools for the 2014 FIFA World Cup are drawn.

Group A
Brazil
England
Ivory Coast
Jamaica

Group B
Chile
Iran
Russia
Spain

Group C
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Ghana
Japan
Mexico

Group D
Australia
Egypt
Holland
Sweden

Group E
Cameroon
Colombia
Italy
Portugal

Group F
Belgium
France
South Korea
Uruguay

Group G
Argentina
Croatia
New Zealand
Saudi Arabia

Group H
Germany
Morocco
Norway
USA

[Rawhide]

January - May 2014



Four debutantes are named by Scotland in the squad - Stevie May (19yo attacker, St Johnstone), Matthew Kennedy (19yo midfielder, Everton), Rhys McCabe (21yo midfielder, Sheffield Wednesday) and Scott Allan (22yo midfielder, Birmingham). They'll all see action in this friendly against Algeria, who have lost their last three friendlies, all against teams playing in the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

GK - McGregor
DEF - McManus, Hanley, Martin, Fox, Hutton
MID - Adam, D.Fletcher, Morrison
FOR - S.Fletcher, Rhodes

3 - Scotland 1-0 (Rhodes)
22 - Tied 1-1 (Slimani)
34 - Algeria 2-1 (Slimani)
36 - Tied 2-2 (Adam)
45 - McCabe replaces D.Fletcher, Kennedy replaces Morrison, May replaces S.Fletcher
62 - Crainey replaces Fox
71 - Hutton injured, replaced by Naismith

League Winners

England - Manchester United 87, Chelsea 85, Liverpool 76
Scotland - Celtic 87, Hibernian 57, Kilmarnock 56
Italy - Napoli 85, Inter 71, Fiorentina 67
Spain - Barcelona 91, Real Madrid 83, Atletico 73

UEFA Winners

Champions League - Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 0
Europa League - Napoli 3 Manchester City 2

Continuing our theme of changing the guard, our squad against Colombia contains 12 players with 10 or fewer caps, including four players with 1 international appearances, and 2 debutantes.



GK - Bell (1)
DEF - Wilson (8), Mulgrew (6), Hanley (10), Taylor-Sinclair (DEBUT), Hutton (35)
MID - Allan (DEBUT), Adam (25), Morrison (32)
FOR - Rhodes (13), S.Fletcher (16)

12 - Colombia 1-0 (Bacca)
44 - Colombia 2-0 (Guarin)
45 - Scotland switch to 4-4-2. Mulgrew replaced by Martin, Allan replaced by McCabe, Adam replaced by Bannan, S.Fletcher replaced by Boyd
67 - Colombia 3-0 (Bacca)
86 - Rhodes replaced by May, Taylor-Sinclair replaced by Fox

[Rawhide]

World Cup in detail

Group A
England 5 Jamaica 0
Brazil 3 Ivory Coast 1
Brazil 2 England 0
Ivory Coast 3 Jamaica 2
Brazil 2 Jamaica 0
England 4 Ivory Coast 0
Brazil 9 England 6 Ivory Coast 3 Jamaica 0

Group B
Chile 1 Spain 1
Russia 4 Iran 0
Iran 3 Chile 2
Spain 2 Russia 0
Spain 3 Iran 1
Russia 3 Chile 1
Spain 7 Russia 6 Iran 3 Chile 1

Group C
Bosnia and Herzegovina 2 Ghana 2
Mexico 4 Japan 0
Mexico 2 Ghana 1
Bosnia and Herzegovina 1 Japan 1
Japan 0 Ghana 0
Mexico 2 Bosnia and Herzegovina 0
Mexico 9 Ghana 2 (-1) Bosnia and Herzegovina 2 (-2) Japan 2 (-4)

Group D
Holland 3 Australia 1
Egypt 1 Sweden 1
Holland 5 Egypt 0
Australia 1 Sweden 0
Australia 0 Egypt 0
Holland 1 Sweden 0
Holland 9 Australia 4 Egypt 2 Sweden 1

Group E
Portugal 4 Cameroon 1
Colombia 1 Italy 0
Italy 3 Cameroon 0
Portugal 3 Colombia 0
Colombia 1 Cameroon 0
Italy 2 Portugal 1
Portugal 6 (+5) Italy 6 (+3) Colombia 6 (-1) Cameroon 0

Group F
Belgium 0 South Korea 0
France 1 Uruguay 0
France 3 South Korea 0
Uruguay 2 Belgium 2
France 2 Belgium 0
South Korea 2 Uruguay 1
France 9 South Korea 4 Belgium 2 Uruguay 1

Group G
Argentina 1 Saudi Arabia 0
Croatia 4 New Zealand 1
Argentina 2 New Zealand 1
Croatia 3 Saudi Arabia 0
Argentina 2 Croatia 1
New Zealand 2 Saudi Arabia 0
Argentina 9 Croatia 6 New Zealand 3 Saudi Arabia 0

Group H
Germany 6 Norway 0
USA 1 Morocco 0
Germany 1 Morocco 0
Norway 3 USA 1
Morocco 1 Norway 1
USA 2 Germany 1
Germany 6 (+6), USA 6 (0), Norway 4, Morocco 1

Round of 16
Argentina 4 USA 0
Brazil 2 Russia 0
Croatia 3 Germany 2
Spain 1 England 0 (AET)
Holland 2 Ghana 1
France 2 Italy 1 (AET)
Mexico 1 Australia 1 (Mexico wins on shootout)
Portugal 4 South Korea 0

Quarter Finals
Mexico 2 Brazil 0
France 1 Croatia 0
Argentina 3 Portugal 1
Spain 2 Holland 0

Semi Finals
Mexico 1 Argentina 1 (Mexico wins on shootout)
Spain 4 France 0

Playoff for Third
Argentina 2 France 1

World Cup Final
Spain 5 Mexico 1

[Rawhide]

Groups have been drawn for the Euro 2016 qualifying. We are drawn in Group 9 with Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Ukraine....and Spain.

Group 9 is the only group with 5 teams; the other eight groups have six teams each. Hosts France have qualified automatically.

Euro 2016 Qualification Schedule
09/09/14 - v Spain
10/10/14 - @ Ukraine
14/10/14 - @ Kazakhstan
27/03/15 - v Ukraine
05/06/15 - @ Bulgaria
08/09/15 - @ Spain
09/10/15 - v Bulgaria
13/10/15 - v Kazakhstan

Firstly though, we have a friendly against Senegal to get through.



GK - McGregor
DEF - Taylor-Sinclair, Martin, McManus, Wilson
MID - Adam, Morrison, Boyd, Snodgrass
FOR - S.Fletcher, Rhodes

4 - Senegal 1-0 (Diame)
6 - Senegal 2-0 (Sow)
33 - Senegal 2-1 (Adam)
45 - Bell replaces McGregor, McCabe replaces Adam
49 - Senegal 3-1 (Ba)
57 - Senegal 4-1 (Konate)

[Rawhide]

Time to take our medicine in the hardest game of our Euro 2016 qualifying campaign. Double World Cup defending champions Spain. Aye.



GK - McGregor
DEF - Fox, Whittaker, Wilson, Hanley
MID - Adam, D.Fletcher, Boyd, Snodgrass
FOR - S.Fletcher, Watt

62 - Bannan replaced S.Fletcher
68 - Scotland 1-0 (Boyd)

A brilliant win! We only had 2 shots on goal, and were swamped in possession, but we get our group off to the best possible start.

Other Group 9 Results
Includes earlier fixtures

Ukraine 1 Kazakhstan 0
Spain 3 Bulgaria 0
Bulgaria 1 Kazakhstan 1

Group 9 Standings
Teams marked with * have played 1 game; all others have played 2
Spain 3 (+2)
*Scotland 3 (+1)
*Ukraine 3 (+1)
Kazakhstan 1 (-1)
Bulgaria 1 (-3)

[Rawhide]

Now for a swing through the former Soviet nations of Ukraine and Kazakhstan. This will be critical to our chances of qualifying, as after these games we will have played 3 of our 8 games in this phase.



GK - McGregor
DEF - Fox, Whittaker, McManus, Hanley
MID - D.Fletcher, McArthur, Naismith, Morrison
FOR - Watt, Rhodes

26 - Scotland 1-0 (D.Fletcher)
45 - S.Fletcher replaces Rhodes
57 - Scotland 2-0 (S.Fletcher)
75 - Mulgrew replaces Naismith
89 - Scotland 2-1 (Konoplyanka)
90 - McArthur redcarded

We hold on for an important three points! McArthur and D.Fletcher are suspended for the next game.



GK - McGregor
DEF - Fox, Whittaker, McManus, Hanley
MID - Mulgrew, Hutton, Snodgrass, Morrison
FOR - Watt, Rhodes

45 - Naismith replaces Hutton, S.Fletcher replaces Watt
70 - Scotland 1-0 (Snodgrass)
87 - Tied 1-1 (Potapov)

I think we threw away two points here....time will tell.

Other Group 9 Results
Includes earlier fixtures

Spain 3 Kazakhstan 0
Ukraine 1 Bulgaria 1

Group 9 Standings
All teams have played 3 games; Kazakhstan have played 4

Scotland 7 (+2)
Spain 6 (+5)
Ukraine 4 (0)
Bulgaria 2 (-3)
Kazakhstan 2 (-4)

[Rawhide]

There is but one more fixture to close out 2014, and that's another friendly against our pals from Colombia on November 19. We'll be looking for a better showing than last time.



GK - McGregor
DEF - Fox, Whittaker, Wilson, Hanley
MID - Adam, D.Fletcher, Kennedy, Brown
FOR - S.Fletcher, Watt

44 - Scotland 1-0 (S.Fletcher)
50 - Colombia goal disallowed
51 - Kennedy replaced by Bannan, Watt replaced by Griffiths
62 - S.Fletcher replaced by Naismith
86 - Fox replaced by Martin

What a turnaround! We defend grimly and come through with the points. Pity they don't count towards anything.

One more friendly before we resume our qualifying campaign, and that's at home against the only country in the world with love in its name: Slovenia.



GK - McGregor
DEF - Whittaker, Martin, Wilson, Hanley
MID - D.Fletcher, Bridcutt, Maloney, Snodgrass
FOR - Watt, S.Fletcher

45 - Morrison replaced D.Fletcher, Fox replaced Whittaker
63 - Naismith replaced Bridcutt
78 - Scotland 1-0 (S.Fletcher)
90 - Scotland 2-0 (Watt)

Better late than never, I suppose

[Rawhide]

So back to our Euro 2016 qualifying, with one game in March against Ukraine. They sorely need a win or risk losing touch with Spain and ourselves in this pool.



Goalkeeper Allan McGregor is injured, and Cammy Bell gets another game at the back. Jack Grimmer (21yo defender from Fulham, loaned out to Blackpool) is named to make his debut, while Liam Palmer (23yo defender from Sheffield Wednesday) and Callum Paterson (20yo winger from Aston Villa) could also see their first international action if they take the field.

GK - Bell
DEF - Crainey, Whittaker, Wilson, Grimmer
MID - Adam, D.Fletcher, Snodgrass, Brown
FOR - Watt, Rhodes

31 - Scotland 1-0 (Rhodes)
58 - Palmer replaces Brown, Paterson replaces Watt

We hold on for a very, very, very important win! Spain beat Kazakhstan 3-0 and all of our sudden we have ourselves a box seat in a qualification berth.

Scotland 10 (+3)
Spain 9 (+8)
Ukraine 4 (-1)
Bulgaria 2 (-3) (3 games)
Kazakhstan 2 (-7) (5 games)

Four games to go, and we'll possibly only need another 4 points to be sure of qualifying for our first major tournament since the 1998 World Cup.

[Rawhide]

European League Champions

England - Chelsea 94, Manchester Utd 93, Manchester City 74
Scotland - Celtic 86, Hibernian 63, Hearts 59
Italy - Juventus 82, Udinese 70, Cagliari 68
Spain - Real Madrid 81, Barcelona 78, Athletic 76

Continental Competitions

Champions League - Sporting (POR) 2 Manchester United 1
Europa League - Juventus 2 Arsenal 1

Now for the first of two games against the Bulgarians this year. They'll need a win to keep themselves in contention.



GK - Bell
DEF - Whittaker, Martin, Wilson, Grimmer
MID - Dorrans, D.Fletcher, Maloney, Snodgrass
FOR - Naismith, Rhodes

26 - Scotland 1-0 (D.Fletcher)
28 - Scotland 2-0 (Rhodes)

A very comfortable win for the Scots. Spain beat Ukraine 3-0 and we can nearly touch a berth in Euro 2016! We just need a single point in our last three games.

All teams have played five games, apart from Bulgaria (4).

Scotland 13 (+5)
Spain 12 (+11)
Ukraine 4 (-4)
Bulgaria 2 (-5)
Kazakhstan 2 (-7)

[Rawhide]

We can seal qualification in our first tournament in 18 years with a draw or better against Spain, but first we have a friendly against Uruguay to tune up.



GK - Gilks
DEF - Fox, Whittaker, Wilson, Martin
MID - Adam, McArthur, Kennedy, Morrison
FOR - S.Fletcher, Rhodes

9 - Uruguay 1-0 (Fernandez)
45 - Wilson replaced by Grimmer
57 - Tied 1-1 (S.Fletcher)
70 - Scotland 2-1 (McArthur)

A great, gritty, determined win. We score on our only two shots on goal. Elsewhere, Spain and Bulgaria draw 0-0 and Ukraine wallop Kazakhstan 5-0.

So now we travel to Spain in search of a point to send us to Euro 2016. Even a loss will get us there, depending on other results. We give Jamie Ness (24yo midfielder from Stoke) his Scottish international debut in this vital game.



GK - Bell
DEF - Fox, Martin, Wilson, Grimmer
MID - Ness, McArthur, Kennedy, Brown
FOR - S.Fletcher, Rhodes

2 - Spain 1-0 (Negredo)
12 - Spain 2-0 (Negredo)
30 - Spain 3-0 (Negredo)
45 - Snodgrass replaces Kennedy
77 - Spain 4-0 (Costa)

A poor result. We were suffocated out of the contest with just 38% of possession. Elsewhere, Kazakhstan beat Bulgaria 1-0. That means we lead Ukraine by six points with two games to play. We still need just one point from our final two games - and both will be played on home soil!

Spain and Kazakhstan have played 7 games, the rest 6.

Spain 16 (+15)
Scotland 13 (+1)
Ukraine 7 (+1)
Kazakhstan 5 (-11)
Bulgaria 3 (-6)

[Rawhide]

So it comes to this. Two games in Glasgow, one point required. Two easy games on paper, but you never know.



GK - Marshall
DEF - Fox, Whittaker, Wilson, Martin
MID - D.Fletcher, McArthur, Kennedy, Brown
FOR - Watt, Rhodes

5 - Scotland 1-0 (Rhodes)
34 - Scotland 2-0 (D.Fletcher)
45 - Grimmer replaces Wilson
54 - Scotland 3-0 (D.Fletcher)
65 - Morrison replaces Kennedy

SCOTLAND QUALIFIES FOR EURO 2016

Pretty happy with that!

We field an experimental side for our final clash with Kazakhstan. Tom Cairney (24yo midfielder from Hull) and Andrew Robertson (21yo defender from Dundee United) are given their maiden Scots caps.



GK - McGregor
DEF - Robertson, Grimmer, Wilson, Hanley
MID - D.Fletcher, Cairney, Ness, Snodgrass
FOR - Watt, Rhodes

4 - Scotland 1-0 (D.Fletcher)
20 - Scotland 2-0 (Wilson)
56 - Scotland 3-0 (Watt)
57 - McArthur replaces Cairney, Kennedy replaces Ness
79 - Scotland 4-0 (Rhodes)

Fantastic scoreline, although I expected no less.

Group 9 Final Standings
Spain 19 (+20)
Scotland 19 (+8)
Ukraine 10 (-3)
Kazakhstan 5 (-15)
Bulgaria 3 (-10)

18 teams have directly qualified for Euro 2016. They are:
Group 1 - Belgium, Sweden
Group 2 - Slovenia, Switzerland
Group 3 - Italy, Greece
Group 4 - Portugal, Norway
Group 5 - Germany, Turkey
Group 6 - England, Czech Republic
Group 7 - Serbia, Russia
Group 8 - Holland, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Group 9 - Spain, Scotland

Croatia have also qualified, by virtue of being the third-placed team in the pools with the best result. Eight more teams have qualified for the playoffs for the final four spots.

Denmark v Austria - 1-0, 0-1 - Austria qualifies by penalty shootout
Poland v Israel - 1-0, 1-2 - Israel qualifies by penalty shootout
Ireland v Slovakia - 0-0, 2-1 - Ireland qualifies
Romania v Ukraine - 2-1, 1-3 - Ukraine qualifies

One more friendly before we go to the Euro 2016 pool draw.



GK - Bell
DEF - Fox, Wilson, Hanley, Whittaker
MID - McArthur, Kennedy, Brown, Ness
FOR - Griffith, S.Fletcher

45 - Palmer replaces Ness
58 - Belgium 1-0 (Kompany)
62 - Watt replaces Fletcher
64 - Belgium 2-0 (Benteke)

Not the best way to end our best year in results, but it will have to do.

[Rawhide]

POOL A


POOL B


POOL C


POOL D


POOL E



POOL F

[Rawhide]

We have two more friendly games before we embark on the Euro 2016 adventure.



GK - Marshall
DEF - McHattie, Grimmer, Wilson, Martin
MID - Bridcutt, McArthur, Maloney, Morrison
FOR - May, Watt

45 - Paterson replaces May, Ness replaces McArthur
89 - Scotland 1-0 (Paterson)

We'll need to be a bit more convincing than this in a few months time!

Europe League Winners
England - Arsenal 79 Manchester City 75 Chelsea 72
Scotland - Celtic 94 Rangers 83 Hibernian 57
Italy - Juventus 81 Udinese 71 Napoli 66
Spain - Barcelona 83 Real Madrid 80 Atletico 75

Champions League - Real Madrid 3 Chelsea 2 (after extra time)
Europa League - AS Monaco FC 2 Arsenal 0

Our last friendly is a week before Euro 2016 starts, against Honduras.



GK - Bell
DEF - Robertson, Grimmer, Wilson, Hanley
MID - McArthur, Brown, Kennedy, Snodgrass
FOR - Watt, Rhodes

45 - Martin replaces Brown, Maloney replaces McArthur
67 - Fox replaces Robertson, Paterson replaces Rhodes

A bore 0-0 draw. While we defended well, we couldn't create any quality chances!

[Rawhide]

Scotland Euro 2016 Squad

Goalkeepers
Cammy Bell - Rangers (SCO) - 8 caps, 0 goals - 29 yo
Allan McGregor - Hull (ENG) - 39 caps, 0 goals - 34 yo

Defenders
Danny Fox - Southampton (ENG) - 17 caps, 0 goals - 30 yo
Jack Grimmer - Fulham (ENG) - 8 caps, 0 goals - 22 yo
Grant Hanley - Blackburn (ENG) - 19 caps, 1 goal - 24 yo
Russell Martin - Norwich (ENG) - 17 caps, 0 goals - 30 yo
Charlie Mulgrew - Celtic (SCO) - 9 caps, 0 goals - 30 yo
Liam Palmer - Stoke (ENG) - 2 caps, 0 goals - 24 yo
Andrew Robertson - Dundee Utd (SCO) - 2 caps, 0 goals - 22 yo
Steven Whittaker - Norwich (ENG) - 32 caps, 0 goals - 31 yo
Danny Wilson - Hearts (SCO) - 22 caps, 2 goals - 24 yo

Midfielders
Charlie Adam - Stoke (ENG) - 31 caps, 2 goals - 30 yo
Scott Brown - Celtic (SCO) - 36 caps, 2 goals - 30 yo
Matthew Kennedy - Everton (ENG) - 8 caps, 0 goals - 21 yo
Shaun Maloney - Wigan (ENG) - 33 caps, 1 goal - 33 yo
James McArthur - Wigan (ENG) - 20 caps, 2 goals - 28 yo
James Morrison - West Brom (ENG) - 40 caps, 4 goals - 30 yo
Robert Snodgrass - Norwich (ENG) - 22 caps, 3 goals - 28 yo

Attackers
Steven Fletcher - Sunderland (ENG) - 26 caps, 9 goals - 29 yo
Stevie May - St Johnstone (SCO) - 3 caps, 0 goals - 23 yo
Callum Paterson - Aston Villa (ENG) - 3 caps, 1 goal - 21 yo
Jordan Rhodes - Blackburn (ENG) - 24 caps, 10 goals - 26 yo
Tony Watt - Celtic (SCO) - 13 caps, 3 goals - 22 yo


Scottish Captain - Scott Brown


Scottish Vice Captains - Charlie Adam and Jack Grimmer

[Rawhide]

Euro 2016 Pool A Match



GK - Bell
DEF - Fox, Martin, Mulgrew, Grimmer
MID - Adam, McArthur, Snodgrass, Brown
FOR - Watt, Rhodes

8 - Turkey 1-0 (Sari)
36 - Turkey 2-0 (Saglik)
45 - S.Fletcher replaces Watt
62 - Paterson replaces Rhodes, Whittaker replaces Fox
71 - Turkey 3-0 (Sari)
86 - Turkey 4-0 (Saglik)

It's a massacre. Even though four of the six teams that finish in third place in their pools still advance, our goals difference has taken a big hit.

Other Scores
Portugal 0 Norway 0
Croatia 1 Slovenia 0
Spain 2 Russia 1
Holland 3 Belgium 0
Czech Republic 2 Ukraine 0
France 5 Switzerland 0
Italy 3 Israel 0
England 5 Bosnia and Herzegovina 0
Serbia 0 Ireland 0
Germany 2 Sweden 0
Greece 1 Austria 0

[Rawhide]

A must-win game for us, and I make four changes.

GK - McGregor
DEF - Robertson, Martin, Mulgrew, Grimmer
MID - Morrison, McArthur, Snodgrass, Brown
FOR - Rhodes, S.Fletcher

24 - Scotland 1-0 (Morrison)
60 - Wilson replaces McArthur
68 - Tied 1-1 (Konradsen)
72 - Paterson replaces Morrison

I don't think a draw will be enough, given we face Portugal next!

Other scores
Turkey 4 Portugal 1
Slovenia 2 Russia 2
Spain 4 Croatia 1
Belgium 2 Ukraine 0
Holland 2 Czech Republic 1
Italy 3 France 1
Switzerland 2 Israel 0
England 6 Serbia 0
Bosnia and Herzegovina 2 Ireland 0
Germany 1 Austria 0
Sweden 3 Greece 0

[Rawhide]

We need a repeat of our effort against Spain in the qualifying rounds, and I pick a side that will try to contain Portugal whilst making chances at the other end.

GK - Bell
DEF - Wilson, Fox, Mulgrew, Hanley, Grimmer, Martin
MID - Morrison, McArthur, Brown
FOR - Rhodes

17 - Portugal 1-0 (Eder)
45 - Wilson replaced by Palmer, Morrison replaced by Maloney
78 - Brown replaced by Snodgrass

It is a gallant effort but we exit at the hands of the Portugeuse.

Other scores
Turkey 4 Norway 1
Russia 3 Croatia 0
Spain 3 Slovenia 1
Belgium 4 Czech Republic 0
Ukraine 0 Holland 0
France 1 Israel 0
Italy 2 Switzerland 0
Bosnia and Herzegovina 0 Serbia 0
England 5 Ireland 0
Sweden 2 Austria 1
Greece 1 Germany 1

Round of 16
England 2 France 0 (extra time)
Germany 2 Bosnia and Herzegovina 0
Holland 4 Czech Republic 0
Italy 4 Greece 0
Belgium 2 Portugal 0 (extra time)
Sweden 2 Russia 0
Spain 2 Croatia 0
Turkey 2 Switzerland 0 (extra time)

Quarter Finals
Holland 2 England 0
Germany 2 Spain 1 (extra time)
Italy 4 Belgium 0
Sweden 3 Turkey 0

Semi Finals
Germany 3 Italy 0
Holland 2 Sweden 1

Euro 2016 Final
Holland 3 Germany 1 (extra time)

[Rawhide]

The European 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying pools have been drawn, and it looks favourable for Scotland, with a second-place finish a realistic possibility.

Armenia - Lithuania - San Marino - Ukraine - France

With the qualifying rounds starting in August, I decide to stay on as Scottish manager, shelving my plans to quietly go after the end of Euro 2016.

After going ultra-defensive with the squad chosen last month, I decide to free up the shackles somewhat for our first few games, and see what effect a more positive approach could bring. John Fleck from Nottingham Forest was given his debut cap, while Lee Wallace from Rangers returns to the Scotland team after a two year hiatus. Michael O'Hallaran from Crewe is another new addition to the squad.



GK - Bell
DEF - Wallace, Martin, Wilson, Hanley
MID - McArthur, Kennedy, Snodgrass, Fleck
FOR - S.Fletcher, Rhodes

25 - Scotland 1-0 (S.Fletcher)
29 - Tied 1-1 (Volodin)
42 - Scotland 2-1 (Fleck)
47 - Tied 2-2 (Volodin)
76 - Kennedy replaced by Ness, Rhodes replaced by O'Halloran

A disappointing result. I think we took Armenia too lightly.

I set myself the target of the maximum six points from our next two games, otherwise my position may well become untenable.



GK - Marshall
DEF - Wallace, Martin, Mulgrew, Wilson
MID - McArthur, Kennedy, Palmer, Morrison
FOR - Rhodes, May

2 - Lithuania 1-0 (Galkauskas)
6 - Tied 1-1 (Rhodes)
7 - Scotland 2-1 (Rhodes)
15 - Scotland 3-1 (Morrison)
19 - Scotland 4-1 (Rhodes)
30 - Scotland 5-1 (Rhodes)
36 - Scotland 6-1 (May)
45 - Kennedy replaced by Snodgrass
90 - Scotland 7-1 (Rhodes)

I am just speechless with this scoreline. Wow! And five goals for Rhodes!



GK - Marshall
DEF - Wallace, Martin, Mulgrew, Wilson
MID - McArthur, Kennedy, Snodgrass, Morrison
FOR - May, Rhodes

10 - Scotland 1-0 (May)
22 - Scotland 2-0 (Mulgrew)
37 - Scotland 3-0 (Morrison)
43 - Scotland 4-0 (Rhodes)
45 - Wilson replaced by Grimmer, Morrison replaced by Palmer
55 - Scotland 5-0 (May)
90 - Scotland 6-0 (Rhodes)

Not a bad four days of internationals! Although, we need to take into account the quality of our opposition thus far. France and Ukraine will be far sterner.

World Cup Qualifying
France 9 (+8)
Scotland 7 (+12)
Ukraine 6 (+4)
Armenia 4 (-1)
Lithuania 0 (-9)
San Marino 0 (-14)

[britrock88]

Cliffhanger!

[Rawhide]

After six days off we are back to see this dynasty through to its inevitable conclusion: Scotland being eliminated. But will it happen in the qualifying stage, or in Russia 2018?



A vital game against Ukraine, who lie just one point behind us in third place.

GK - Marshall
DEF - Wallace, Grimmer, Wilson, Hanley
MID - McArthur, Kennedy, Snodgrass, Fleck
FOR - S.Fletcher, Watt

2 - Ukraine 1-0 (Lavrynenko)
59 - Phillips replaces Kennedy, Palmer replaces McArthur
75 - Tied 1-1 (Fleck)
84 - Ukraine 2-1 (Garmash)

We blow an opportunity right on fulltime to draw level, and Ukraine leapfrogs us into second place. That makes the next game against Armenia doubly important now.



GK - Marshall
DEF - Fox, O'Donnell, Hanley, Martin
MID - Ness, McArthur, Fleck
FOR - May, Rhodes, O'Halloran

74 - Rhodes replaces O'Halloran, Grimmer replaces Hanley

An extremely poor result! 0-0 will not do our chances of qualification any good at all!

1. France - 15 points (+16)
2. Ukraine - 12 points (+9)
3. Scotland - 8 points (+11)
4. Armenia - 8 points (+2)
5. Lithuania - 0 points (-19)
6. San Marino - 0 points (-20)

[Rawhide]

Two friendlies bridge the gap between 2016 and 2017, and we use the opportunity to trial a new defensive tactic, which will be needed if we are to make up ground on Ukraine.



GK - Bell
DEF - Bardsley, Grimmer, Wilson, Martin
MID - Dorrans, McArthur, Kennedy, Phillips
FOR - May, Rhodes

15 - Scotland 1-0 (May)
23 - Scotland 2-0 (May)
45 - Paterson replaces May, Whittaker replaces Bardsley
72 - Scotland 3-0 (Wilson)

A decent, if somewhat pedestrian, performance.



Liam Thomson (20yo defender from Hibs) is making his debut for Scotland.

GK - Marshall
DEF - Whittaker, Thomson, Wilson, Hanley
MID - Ness, D.Fletcher, Kennedy, Snodgrass
ATT - Paterson, Rhodes

15 - Slovenia 1-0 (Vuckic)
45 - Slovenia 2-0 (Matavz)
45 - S.Fletcher replaces Rhodes, Brown replaces Ness
55 - Slovenia 3-0 (Matavz penalty)
70 - Rhodes goal for Scotland is overturned
82 - Slovenia 4-0 (Matavz)

A crushing loss, although it's only a friendly. We don't seem to have any cohesion or confidence!

[Rawhide]

I decide to go completely on the defensive for our French encounter, in the hope that we can salvage a point for our qualifying stage.

Two players are given their debut in a baptism of fire. Fraser Fyvie (23yo midfielder from Wigan) and Johnny Russell (26yo forward from Derby)

GK - Bell
DEF - Wilson, Hanley, Martin
MID - Wallace, Thomson, McArthur, D.Fletcher, Fyvie
FOR - Rhodes, Russell

19 - France 1-0 (Armand)
61 - France 2-0 (Benzema)
62 - Russell replaced by S.Fletcher
79 - France 3-0 (Didot)

That went as well as could be expected. Armenia steal a 3-3 draw with the Ukraine, and we slip five points behind second place.

With four games remaining, we are nearly at the must-win-every-single game stage. We still have a game against France and Ukraine each left to go, so we control our own destiny to a degree.



GK - Bell
DEF - Mulgrew, Martin, Wilson
MID - Wallace, Whittaker, McArthur, Fleck, Brown
ATT - Rhodes, Goodwillie

57 - Scotland 1-0 (Rhodes)
60 - Mulgrew replaced by Thomson
83 - Scotland 2-0 (Rhodes)

A badly-needed three points, even if we left it late in the game to seal the result.

Miracle of miracles: San Marino 1 Ukraine 1. We are back in the hunt for the World Cup with three games remaining!

1. France - 21 points (+22)
2. Ukraine - 14 points (+9)
3. Scotland - 11 points (+10)
4. Armenia - 9 points (-1)
5. Lithuania - 3 points (-18)
6. San Marino - 1 point (-22)

Our last three games are against France, San Marino and Ukraine. All of them will be at home. Ukraine hosts France in the penultimate round of qualifying, which means that our final game could be a winner-takes-all scenario.

[Rawhide]

The last hurrah?



We begin our last trio of games with the hardest one of all - against France, who need just a single point to confirm qualification to the 2018 World Cup.

Ryan Jack (25yo midfielder from West Brom) is handed his debut. Good luck lad.

GK - Marshall
DEF - Wilson, Martin, Hanley
MID - Taylor-Sinclair, Whittaker, Brown, Fleck, Jack
FOR - Russell, Rhodes

3 - Scotland 1-0 (Rhodes)
28 - Tied 1-1 (Armand)
45 - Russell replaced by Watt
53 - France 2-1 (Lacazette)
81 - Brown replaced by Paterson

After the greatest of starts, we end up with no points. But at least it wasn't a mauling. With two games left, we are counting on Ukraine losing to France, otherwise we can't mathematically make it.

France have qualified for the World Cup, along with Belgium and Spain so far.

1. France - 24 points (+23)
2. Ukraine - 17 points (+12)
3. Scotland - 11 points (+9)
4. Armenia - 9 points (-4)
5. San Marino - 4 points (-19)
6. Lithuania - 3 points (-21)



We need to improve our goal difference compared to Ukraine, so we only need to focus on a win, rather than a win by a certain number of goals.

Jordan McGhee (21yo defender from Hearts) and Alan Martin (28yo keeper from Crewe) are the latest to be given a debut for Scotland.

GK - Martin
DEF - Wilson, Hanley, McGhee
MID - Kennedy, Snodgrass, Ness, Jack, Fleck
FOR - Watt, Rhodes

We pump in the goals, while keeping more than one eye on the Ukraine-France game.

11 - Scotland 1-0 (Rhodes)
15 - Scotland 2-0 (Rhodes)
27 - Scotland 3-0 (Watt)
42 - Scotland 4-0 (Ness)
45 - Ukraine 0-0 France
57 - Scotland 5-0 (Rhodes)
71 - Ukraine 0-1 France
75 - Scotland 6-0 (Snodgrass)
90 - Ukraine 0-1 France

With the vital result going our way in the Ukraine, we are still alive!

1. France - 27 points (+24)
2. Ukraine - 17 points (+11)
3. Scotland - 14 points (+15)
4. Armenia - 12 points (-3)
5. San Marino - 4 points (-25)
6. Lithuania - 3 points (-22)

More of the big guns of the World Cup have qualified: Germany, Italy, Holland, Portugal.

And so it comes to this. All we have to do is win, and we are off to the playoffs!



GK - Martin
DEF - Wilson, Grimmer, McGhee
MID - Kennedy, Snodgrass, Ness, Jack, Fleck
FOR - Watt, Rhodes

18 - Scotland 1-0 (Watt)
29 - Tied 1-1 (Panchenko)
45 - Scotland 2-1 (Kennedy)
54 - Tied 2-2 (Lavrynenko)
59 - Kennedy replaced by Mulgrew
67 - Ness replaced by Paterson
90 - We pepper the Ukraine goal but the whistle goes and we are out!

1. France - 28 points (+24)
2. Ukraine - 18 points (+11)
3. Scotland - 15 points (+15)
4. Armenia - 13 points (-3)
5. San Marino - 5 points (-25)
6. Lithuania - 4 points (-22)

A nation mourns, a dream is in tatters.

A week after the loss, I make my resignation official. A new era will dawn for Scotland, although whether success will come their way is up for debate.

[Rawhide]

Postscript



Pool A
Denmark 3-0 Japan
Holland 1-0 Uruguay
Holland 1-0 Japan
Uruguay 3-2 Denmark
Holland 2-0 Denmark
Uruguay 0-0 Japan
Holland and Uruguay progress

Pool B
Chile 1-0 South Korea
Spain 2-0 England
England 3-1 Chile
South Korea 0-0 Spain
England 4-0 South Korea
Spain 7-0 Chile
Spain and England progress

Pool C
Belgium 2-0 Jamaica
Brazil 4-2 Ghana
Belgium 3-1 Ghana
Jamaica 1-1 Brazil
Brazil 2-0 Belgium
Ghana 3-0 Jamaica
Brazil and Belgium progress

Pool D
Russia 1-0 Algeria
Greece 3-0 Australia
Greece 0-0 Algeria
Russia 3-1 Australia
Algeria 2-0 Australia
Greece 0-0 Russia
Russia and Greece progress

Pool E
Italy 4-0 Saudi Arabia
Portugal 3-0 Cameroon
Cameroon 4-1 Italy
Portugal 3-1 Saudi Arabia
Cameroon 0-0 Saudi Arabia
Portugal 0-0 Italy
Portugal and Italy progress

Pool F
Argentina 2-0 Romania
Iran 1-1 Ivory Coast
Ivory Coast 1-1 Argentina
Romania 3-1 Iran
Iran 0-0 Argentina
Ivory Coast 3-0 Romania
Ivory Coast and Argentina progress

Pool G
Germany 4-0 Mexico
Ukraine 2-1 Nigeria
Mexico 1-0 Ukraine
Germany 3-1 Nigeria
Nigeria 4-3 Mexico
Germany 3-0 Ukraine
Germany and Nigeria progress

Pool H
Croatia 4-3 USA
New Zealand 1-1 France
France 1-1 Croatia
USA 4-0 New Zealand
France 3-1 USA
Croatia 2-1 New Zealand
Croatia and France progress

Round of 16
Belgium 2-1 Russia
Greece 2-0 Brazil
Germany 1-0 France
Holland 1-0 England
Italy 3-0 Ivory Coast
Croatia 2-0 Nigeria
Argentina 1-0 Portugal
Spain 2-1 Uruguay

Quarter Finals
Argentina 1-1 Germany (Argentina progress on penalties)
Holland 4-0 Greece
Italy 1-0 Croatia
Spain 4-1 Belgium

Semi Finals
Holland 2-2 Argentina (Argentina progress on penalties)
Spain 0-0 Italy (Spain progress on penalties)

Third Place Playoff
Italy 2-1 Holland

World Cup Final
Spain 2-0 Argentina (after extra time)

[Young Drachma]

Nice work managing to get it all together, I meant. Too bad Scotland couldn't hold up their end of the bargain, tho.