England 6 Scotland 0: Same Auld story for Scotland who suffer embarrassing loss

Stewart Fisher
Sports Writer
Wednesday 14 August 2013

SCOTLAND has celebrated its fair share of unlikely sporting triumphs against both England and the odds over the years but last night at Bramall Lane they walked into a full-blown footballing Flodden.

England's under-21s might have been missing the likes of Tom Ince and Southampton's Luke Shaw - Jack Wilshere and Phil Jones are also theoretically still eligible - but Roy Hodgson last night could call upon massive reinforcements and the first 'friendly' meeting at this level for 20 years quickly turned into a massacre.

Although the six-goal margin of victory, which didn't flatter the hosts at all, was Scotland's heaviest-ever defeat at this level and marked a depressing departure from the norm, this was also the same Auld story for the Scots, who remain without a win in this fixture from nine attempts. It hardly provides the greatest of portents for the full-team as they prepare to do battle at Wembley this evening.

"We owe the Tartan Army an apology," said captain Stuart Armstrong last night. "The fans who came down here to watch us deserved better than that performance. It was embarrassing, 6-0 is a terrible score and one we should be ashamed of. We have to make sure it never happens again."

A crowd of 26,942 thronged Bramall Lane, only 300 of which were Scots, a venue ripe with symbolism for the first meeting between these two teams at this level since 1993. The stadium had also been the site of Scotland's first ever under-21 match against the Auld Enemy, when a strike from Laurie Cunningham, as he became the first-ever black scorer in England colours, settled the outcome. Billy Stark had been on the bench for Scotland that day, and he threw in something of curve ball by including 17-year-old Islam Feruz up front, and pushing Celtic's Tony Watt wide left.

England named a starting XI almost entirely composed of Premier League players but much as Stark was desperate for the Scots to keep things tight in the opening skirmishes, before the first five minutes were out two men, who moved for a combined £8m this summer, had given England the lead. Jonjo Shelvey, newly of Swansea City, showed off his formidable range of passing with a long ball which caught Scotland's central defensive duo of Brad McKay and Clark Robertson napping, and Nathan Redmond, a £3m signing for Norwich City from Birmingham, tamed the ball at pace to finish comfortably beyond Jordan Archer.

The Scots, who are back in qualifying action in September in the Netherlands, briefly re-gathered themselves and began to retain possession, and they might even have had an equaliser when Clark Robertson headed wide following Stuart Armstrong's deflected drive. But the rapier thrusts of Remond and Raheem Sterling were causing consternation at the other end and it was little surprise when the two of them worked a 1-2 on the edge of the box, Sterling keeping his cool to finish well.

Frustration began to weigh on the Scots' minds, and nowhere more so than in the cranium of Tony Watt, whose body language was beginning to betray his discontent over his inability to influence the game as he might have hoped. His body language was far better than that of Nathaniel Chalobah, however, who soon required to be stretchered off after a two-footed lunge from the Celtic striker that in a more properly competitive game would surely have resulted in a red card.

Archer had the misfortune for the night to be cast for the night in the unfortunate role of Frank Haffey, who shipped nine goals against England in a 9-3 loss at Wembley back in 1961. While the Tottenham goalkeeper had looked nervous during the opening period, he must have wished the Bramall Lane penalty box would open up and swallow him when he miskicked a clearance directly to Connor Wickham; the big Sunderland striker had the presence of mind to clip the ball back over his head and into the unguarded net.

England sensed blood and they got it. With no let up from the bench, as a stream of future Premier League superstars entered the proceedings, next up was substitute Ross Barkley, the Everton forward pouncing on another Scottish error to slip a shot beneath the body of Archer. Within seconds, Jonjo Shelvey - who actually qualifies for Scotland - was showing no mercy with a vicious 30-yard curler which unerringly found Archer's top corner, and the rout was complete when Tom Carroll, of Tottenham Hotspur, got on the end of some more fabulous work from Redmond.

Unsurprisingly, there were differing emotions from the respective managers. "It was a chastening experience to be honest with you," said Stark. "I never saw that coming. I won't go overboard, but we were like rabbits caught in the headlights."

"I enjoyed it," said Hodgson. "It took me back to my Malmo days, when they had what you call a self-playing piano, and I sat on the bench with a cigar out. These guys have made a rod for the seniors but maybe that is not a bad thing. I think it will be tougher in the full game, I certainly expect it to be."

Taken from the Herald