Alan Pattullo: Craig Levein's gritty labourers lay foundations to build upon

Published on Thursday 4 March 2010 22:03

IT WAS not, conceded Craig Levein, a night of nights; one, say, to compare with the epic match against Czechoslovakia in September 1973 which saw Scotland qualify for the World Cup.

• Craig Levein

But just like the country they played that night, Scotland have undergone some significant changes in the time since Joe Jordan scored a famous header to end his team's 16-year exile from a major finals. Czech Republic, as they are now known, will likely stand in the way of Scotland's ambition to end another long exile in the forthcoming qualifiers for the European Championships in Poland and Ukraine.

In what is uncommon practice, the sides staged a preliminary match on Wednesday prior to the more serious business getting underway, and it is possible to reach the conclusion Scotland gained more from the exercise than their clearly formidable opponents. As someone remarked on the way out of the stadium, it was a refreshing return to a Scotland of old – clearly inferior, but not to such an extent they were unable to close out the game.

Hampden did not catch light, but it rumbled with a deep sense of satisfaction at the end of a match which earned Levein the win which, unusually for a friendly match, actually mattered more than the performance. In direct contrast to the last outing at Hampden Park, when George Burley's side gave a showing against the Netherlands which redeemed the team in the eyes of many but failed to yield the required points, Scotland seized the win, if not yet the authority to claim they are a much improved outfit.

If we cannot yet say Levein has blown a breath of magic on events then he seems to have at least created the platform on which the international team can build. There was evidence of method being applied, perhaps too rigidly at first. Levein blamed himself for the desperate start made by Scotland, reflecting, with the benefit of hindsight, perhaps he had impressed too heavily upon his players the need to defend.

When the ball was at their feet in the opening half, they looked almost startled. Levein noted that full-backs Alan Hutton and Lee Wallace barely crossed the half-way line in the opening 25 minutes. "When they started to progress down the flanks, the game turned for us," he reflected. Strong, adventurous performances from at least one full-back is usually a feature of a good Scottish performance, and Levein sensed their inhibition in the opening stages.

Although Scotland's first instinct might have been to defend their goal, even in this basic aim they did not look altogether comfortable. Andy Webster, who has only started one game since the end of January for Dundee United, will need a few further run-outs for both club and country to be restored to the form which has elevated him to the position of what appears to be one of Levein's first-choice centre-halves. He, like Scotland, will improve on his efforts on Wednesday, when the Czech Republic galloped into early command of the match, and could and perhaps should have scored two or three times during a disjointed opening half from the Scots.

It was too much to expect that Scotland might glide into this match, and perhaps it is helpful they didn't. Levein was uncomfortable with the identity of these friendly opponents, with competitive fixtures against the same side looming so close. But, on reflection, he had to label it a "positive experience". Not too many secrets were given away by the hosts, who instead showcased their old, dependable attributes. Levein listed them afterwards, although he also detected a late flourish after Scott Brown had handed Scotland some relief with what proved a perfectly-timed winner.

"For me the significant factor in the game is that we worked extremely hard," said Levein, for whom teams have been applying these principle since he began his managerial ascent at Cowdenbeath. "That was the important thing. We had to show the supporters that we are all fighting for the same cause, that we are about grit, determination and attitude. And we got that by the bucket-load. The pleasing thing is that once we got in front we started to see a couple of players trying a thing or two, maybe even over-elaborating at times. But for me that's a sign that the players are gaining confidence.

"There was enough there for me to say that this has been a good experience for the players," he added. "We just have to try and replicate it next time we get together."

Consistency, of course, remains the goal for which Levein must aim and yesterday's confirmation of a further friendly, against Sweden in August, is another target for the manager, with talk yesterday of "rejuvenation" in a statement made by the Scottish Football Association.

There was certainly evidence of Kris Boyd having staged a recovery in the eyes of the Scottish supporters, who moved from an uneasy acceptance of his place on the substitutes' bench to cheering his reappearance in the second-half to the rafters. This, of course, was helped by the matter of a goal having rattled into the net via Brown's boot just prior to the player's introduction for Kenny Miller.

But it emphasised a corner having been turned, and meant the friendly which Levein was not convinced would fit Scotland's needs has been proved to have been of immeasurable worth. The new manager has eliminated the need for negative talk of so-many-years having passed without a friendly win at Hampden Park, while at the same time beginning the process of a player such as Boyd's rehabilitation in the eyes of the support.

There are other hurdles to cross. Allan McGregor still has to be reinstated, while former captain Barry Ferguson has yet to commit himself. But Levein has got off the mark with Scotland with his reputation in tact. Most of the positives promised by his appointment were delivered in midweek.