| Report Index--> 2006-07--> All for 20060909 | ||||
| <-Page | <-Team | Sat 09 Sep 2006 Hearts 0 St Mirren 1 | Team-> | Page-> |
| <-Srce | <-Type | Herald ------ Report | Type-> | Srce-> |
| Valdas Ivanauskas | <-auth | Mark Wilson | auth-> | Douglas McDonald |
| Bednar Roman | [S Kean 83] | |||
| 5 | of 068 | ----- | L SPL | H |
Brown touting Scotland’s chancesMARK WILSON September 08 2006 Craig Brown had to pay over the odds to see Italy soundly beaten in the Stade de France, but departed harbouring hope that the French will feel fleeced after visiting Hampden Park next month. The former Scotland manager arrived at the Paris venue on Wednesday night to discover that his name was not among those accredited for media entry. Three hours of persuasive efforts failed to buckle the jobsworths and Brown was forced to abandon his planned stint as a summariser on BBC Radio Scotland to buy a stand ticket from a tout instead. The dip into his wallet proved worthwhile as France swept aside the world champions fluently to gain a measure of revenge for their defeat on penalties in Berlin two months previously. Given that 3-1 scoreline, it may surprise some that Brown remains optimistic about Scottish success when the two teams to have collected maximum six points from Group B clash in Glasgow on October 7. He believes, though, that a high-energy approach from Walter Smith's side could gain similar reward to the famous Hampden win over the French during the Italia 90 World Cup qualifiers, when Brown was assistant to Andy Roxburgh. "I got the impression that they might not appreciate it if we get up and at them," said Brown. "I honestly think they could get a fright when they play Scotland because there will be a totally different tempo to the game against Italy. "The Italians were poor. Their domestic season hasn't started and there was a real lack of sharpness about them. There was also no snarl and even wee Rino Gattuso wasn't snapping into tackles. I really don't think France will fancy coming to Hampden. "Let's not be daft, they are without doubt one of the very best sides in the world at the moment and Thierry Henry is almost given a free role to pick holes in defences. Watching them, though, I felt they looked like a home team. By that I mean they were happy to enjoy pretty possession and all the 'Ole, Ole' stuff. That will be a lot tougher to do in Glasgow." Kenny Miller's suspension will, of course, rob Scotland of one of their prime means of accelerating the play. Brown admitted the Celtic striker will be a loss but he feels Smith's side could unsettle the French in the centre of the pitch. "Whoever plays up front will have it tough because William Gallas and Lilian Thuram are cool, calm and, obviously, extremely good," he said. "I think that it's in midfield where we might get a bit of joy. Patrick Vieira seemed to have lost a little bit of zip the other night; of all the French players he was the one who didn't seem quite at the pace of the game. "Also, if you give Franck Ribery time and space then he will roast defenders time and again, but he might be a different proposition after a couple of early tackles. "Back in 1989, we knew we had to be straight into them from the kick-off. You never know what could happen this time because I'm positive Walter will have the team in exactly the right frame of mind. "He wanted points on the board early on to get confidence going and it's worked out perfectly. "He's done a superb job and it is fantastic that we can look forward to the rest of the group from this position." Brown could afford a smile about being barred from entering the ground where he once led out Scotland in the opening match of the 1998 World Cup against Brazil. No matter what tack was taken, the door would not open for the 66-year-old. "The BBC had sent through two names, John Barnes and Murdo MacLeod, as their commentary team but they were never going to the game," said Brown. "A fax was sent to change the names, but it never reached the media gate, so that was that. Paul Mitchell [the commentator] managed to get in with his BBC press card but, of course, I didn't have such a thing. "They told me only journalists could get in and I was arguing that Gerard Houllier was in there. I think Paul Le Guen was working for Canal Plus, also. "There was no budging them. The guy told me that if the president or the Pope had turned up without the right accreditation then they would not be allowed in, and he stuck to his word. "I waited about three hours to see if they would relent at the end but then had to go and get a ticket from a tout. "I'm not revealing any figures but it was a cheap one that I paid a wee bit over the odds for. Great view from up in the gods, though."  Taken from the Herald |
||||
| <-Page | <-Team | Sat 09 Sep 2006 Hearts 0 St Mirren 1 | Team-> | Page-> |
| 