Billy Stark takes heart from Under-21s' shows on the road

SCOTLAND Under-21 coach Billy Stark will take encouragement from previous away trips when his side face Belarus in Borisov this evening in their penultimate UEFA Championship qualifier.

Scotland have won in both Albania and Azerbaijan to keep alive their qualifying hopes ahead of the double header against Belarus and Austria.

A 1-0 defeat against current group leaders Austria has been their only blip on the road and Stark feels their performance that day deserved more.

The Scots will top their group and qualify for the play-offs if they collect four points in the coming days and Stark is sure his side can start off well tonight.

"Belarus are a real good side," Stark said. "They have the pedigree over the last few years - they qualified for the last finals and will expect to beat us. But our boys have shown by going to Azerbaijan and Albania that they can get results away from home.

"Austria was one that went against us with a narrow defeat but you could make a case for even having won that game so that suggests it was a decent performance there.

"We are going to have to defend properly but we need to find a threat at the other end of the pitch because you can't defend for 90 minutes. I feel we have a squad capable of doing that but it's just a case of whether they can perform on the night."

Stark has been able to recall Preston's Paul Coutts, Watford player Stephen McGinn and Scott Arfield of Huddersfield in a likely midfield four that also contains Barry Bannan, who recently scored his first goal for Aston Villa.

The former three all missed the 1-1 friendly draw against Sweden last month because of club commitments and Stark feels their inclusion will make a significant difference.

Stark, who called Hearts winger David Templeton into the squad this week, said: "The midfield area has been the backbone of our team. Last month we had a very difficult first half hour and the Swedes dominated us but we got into the game and the lads who played in there did a lot better as the game went on. But it's good to have that experience back. Those three have all started with their clubs down south and they are doing quite well, so that's a bonus for us."