Wales 2 Scotland 1

Roddy Forsyth

On a Baleful night in Cardiff the Tottenham forward ended Chris Coleman’s four-game losing streak and plunged Craig Levein deep into the pressure zone as Scotland’s hopes of qualifying for Brazil 2014 receded almost to the point of invisibility.

With Wales trailing 1-0 to a James Morrison strike midway through the first half, Bale tired of creating opportunities for others to miss and seized the contest by the collar with a dazzling finale in which he earned a penalty, converted it and went on to unleash a breathtaking winner which banished the recollection of last month’s 6-1 humiliation in Serbia.

The paradox was that this was the Scots’ best performance of the campaign – although they were afflicted by nerves as the contest wore on – and they claimed, with some plausibility, to be the victims of a degree of injustice when a Steven Fletcher header found the net at 1-0. The goal was voided when the assistant referee flagged that Charlie Adam’s cross had gone out of play en route – a decision not clearly supported by TV replays. There was also some suggestion that Bale did as much to trip himself when he went down under a Shaun Maloney challenge 10 minutes from time.

Such pleading should not be made inside the Principality. Welsh supporters still bridle at the memory of the penalties awarded to Scotland at Anfield in 1977 and at Ninian Park eight years later, both of which sent the Scots on to World Cup finals. In any case, Bale quelled the arguments, first by converting the kick himself in icy fashion.

Those with a taste for the cycles of history noted that it was exactly 35 years to the day since Joe Jordan’s fist – mistaken for a Welsh hand – won Scotland an equally crucial spot kick in Liverpool.

By contrast, his decisive contribution, in the final minute of normal time, was volcanic. Shrugging off a challenge by Adam – and how that must have added to Bale’s pleasure, given previous bad blood between the pair – he dispatched the ball in a lightning arc from his left boot and into the top corner beyond Allan McGregor.

Bale’s decision to excise the middleman and finish his own supply will surely be unforgettable to those who witnessed it, exultant Welsh and despondent Scots alike. It was he who threatened to skewer Scotland in the early stages.

Nine minutes into the contest the Spurs forward swept past Danny Fox and cut into the box to direct a curling shot around McGregor but also just beyond the far post.

Fox was left chasing shadows again shortly after the midway point of the first half when Bale went for the dead-ball line and struck a cross that begged to be turned into the net. The Welsh fans rose in expectation as Steve Morison rose unopposed at the back of the six-yard box to meet the delivery with a full-blooded header.

McGregor was beaten but both he and the Norwich striker watched with visibly contrasting emotions as the ball swirled across the goalmouth and out of play.

Welsh disappointment turned into anguish instantly as, from the goal kick, Scotland went straight upfield, Fletcher nodded down and the Scottish Morrison drove hard and low between Lewis Price – who had replaced the injured Boaz Myhill – and his left-hand post.

Those who had wondered how Wales would respond if their 6-1 hammering in Serbia was followed by the loss of the opening goal in this game had their answer in the resolve of Coleman’s players. The manager, reprieved from immediate threat, was, nevertheless, drained by the twists and turns of fortune that finally favoured him.

“It’s good finally to savour success,” he said. “We’d lost four games yet I felt we were making progress and I thought the players were absolutely brilliant tonight.”

For his part, Levein was bemused. “How we came off this pitch tonight and were beaten, I just don’t know. I thought we were comfortable in the second half although I thought we could have played a bit better – we resorted to long high balls, which is not our style.”

The Scots now face Belgium in Brussels on Tuesday, when the Welsh travel to Croatia. It is abundantly clear which team will scarcely need jet engines to lift them.

If there is consolation for Scotland, it is that by recalling Fletcher after a two-year exile, they looked distinctly sharper than they had in their outings at home to Serbia and Macedonia. On the other hand, Fletcher’s return was vastly less significant than Bale’s demonstration that, for Wales and Scotland, what goes around, comes around.

Team details

Wales: Price, Gunter, Blake, Williams, Ben Davies, Bale, Allen, Vaughan, Ramsey, Ledley (Robson-Kanu 71), Morison (Craig Davies 64). Subs: Brown, Ricketts, King, Richards, Church, Vokes, Wilson, Fon Williams. Booked: Bale, Ramsey, Allen. Goals: Bale 81 pen, 89.

Scotland: McGregor, Hutton, Caldwell, Berra, Fox, Maloney, Morrison (Miller 84), Darren Fletcher, Brown (Adam 45), Commons (Mackie 84), Steven Fletcher. Subs: Gilks, Mulgrew, McArthur, Martin, Phillips, Webster, Forrest, Marshall. Booked: Caldwell. Goals: Morrison 27.

Att: 23,249
Referee: F Meyer (Germany).

Taken from telegraph.co.uk