Harper seizes his chance and snaps up a hat trick.

Young Scots break Finnish resistance

IAN PAUL

7 Sep 1995

Scotland Under-21 5,

Finland Under-21 0

MAYBE you should read that scoreline again.

It rolls off the tongue splendidly, does it not?

Five goals against a team that had gone six games without defeat is stirring enough, but in the process the lads not only virtually guaranteed their place in the European Championship quarter-finals but set a new record winning margin for any Scottish Under-21 team.

That seems a fair day's work for a side that had five changes from the one that had trimmed the Greeks last time out.

One of the alterations brought in Kevin Harper, the Hibs striker, who was grateful enough to pop a in a hat trick.

He might have scored a fourth if he had been able to nudge team-mate Jim Hamilton off the ball late on, but in true Scottish style the Dens Park man was having none of it and scored himself.

The other scorer was the man second only to Harper in a day of excellent performances, Gary Locke of Hearts.

Tommy Craig, the man in charge of this squad which has now strung together six winning games in succession (and that must be another record), might have gone on talking all night had he not to leave Broadwood Stadium for Hampden.

"I just feel lucky to be in charge of a squad like this," he said.

"They've gone and done us proud again.

Right now this is a squad who believe they can take on anybody at any time.

We can guarantee a performance, if not a victory."

This one puts the young Scots top of Group 8 with a superior goal difference to the Finns, and a draw in their last game against San Marino at Firhill next month would be enough to see them through to the last eight.

They will not pay much attention to thoughts of a draw against the weakest team in the section, however, and once they have disposed of them, the prospect of emulating the Under-21s of 1992, who reached the semi-finals of this competition, will beckon.

By the end of a fascinating 90 minutes in Cumbernauld the Finnish side, who had held high hopes of making it to the Olympic games through this tournament, were in complete disarray.

For 20 minutes they looked classy, clever and strong, giving the impression that they were about to deliver the kind of thrashing they themselves suffered in the end.

Much of the credit for that must go to the Scots' grit and old-fashioned ability to hang on in there, but maybe even more should go to Harper.

It was his magnificent strike in 21 minutes which altered the pattern, lifted his mates and brought the Finns back to reality.

That goal was protected until half-time, after which the superbly fit home lads gradually overwhelmed the Finnish side, and once Harper had had added his second and third it was no contest.

"Definitely one of the best days I have had yet," said master Harper.

"I scored three in an East of Scotland reserve match once, but you could say this was a bit different, scoring in my first start for the Under-21s." In fact, it was only his second appearance in total at this level, having been put on as a late substitute against Greece.

Even so, he was not prepared to rate his opening goal as his finest to date.

"I think I have scored better than that."

'That' was still worth seeing, as should be the ones that put it into the shade.

It came after a bout of head tennis, when the ball came in and out of the Finnish penalty area at least three times before Jackie McNamara intelligently nodded it over a defender to Harper, who, with the ball dropping over his shoulder, met it on the drop and volleyed it high into the net.

His second goal, 13 minutes after the break, was pretty decent, too.

Jamie Fullarton sent a fine pass to Neil McCann on the left and when his cross came over Harper headed it down and saw it bounce up into the roof of the net.

The third was also down to a Fullarton pass, this time a flick over a defender to the striker, who calmly chipped it over the keeper.

Hamilton, who replaced Liddell in 62 minutes, made it four after he and Harper chased a through ball from McCann, and Locke smacked in the fifth when the referee allowed advantage after McNamara had been pulled down inside the box.

The hero of the day, Harper, was replaced by Steve Crawford four minutes from the end, perhaps to have him bathed and dried in good time to meet the media gang.

Tommy Craig is much too articulate to say it, but one or two of his predecessors might have used the phrase which sums up the day: The boy done good.

SCOTLAND -- Stillie (Aberdeen), Murray (Rangers), Fullarton (St Mirren), Locke (Hearts), Handyside (Grimsby), Dailly (Dundee United), McNamara (Dunfermline), Glass (Aberdeen), Liddell (Barnsley), Harper (Hibs), McCann (Dundee).

Substitutes -- Gardiner (Hibs), Hamilton (Dundee), Donnelly (Celtic), Crawford (Raith Rovers), McLaughlin (Celtic).

FINLAND -- Moilanen, Keula, Oinas, Heinola, Nuorela, Hyypia, Javaja, Karjalainen, Sumiala, Kottila, Vaisanen.

Substitutes -- Kainulainen, Huttunen, Koskinen, Jalonen, Pylkas.

Referee -- R Philippi (Luxembourg).

Taken from the Herald