SCOTLAND will not compete in next year’s Cyprus Cup, but unlike 2016 it will cause no rancour. Then, Anna Signeul was incensed by performance director Brian McClair’s decision not to send the squad to the 12-nation tournament. Both have now left the Scottish FA, and Signeul’s successor as head coach, Shelley Kerr, says: “It’s a football decision, not an organisational one.
“After the Euros we looked at implementing a fresh approach and a new philosophy. While I do think Cyprus has been good for us in the past – and I’ve been involved as a player – it’s time to think about how we want to develop. Since we’ve come in, we’ve only had nine training sessions with the team. When you want to develop a new style of play and a more adaptable system, it takes hard work on the training pitch.
“We’ve seen evidence of what we’re trying to achieve in the three games since the Euros, but haven’t had enough time to work with the players.”
There will inevitably be nostalgia for the Cyprus tournament, which was inaugurated by Signeul and the SFA in tandem with their Dutch counterparts. Nevertheless, Scotland are far from the only nation to have moved on.
Kerr has four games lined up to compensate for the four Scotland normally play on the Mediterranean island. As they haven’t been signed off yet, they haven’t been officially announced by the SFA.
But two will be played next month in Spain – against Norway and Russia. Then in late February and early March there will be a
double-header against New Zealand, also in Spain but at a different location.
The games, plus the extra training sessions, will provide Kerr and the players with the preparation they need ahead of the potentially pivotal World Cup qualifier against Group 2 leaders Switzerland on April 5.
There was a boost for all concerned on Wednesday when Scotland moved up to eighth in the Uefa coefficients. It is the first time the Scots have been in the top 10. Switzerland are fourth, somewhat implausibly two places ahead of Germany.
A more interesting barometer might be the next Fifa rankings. Despite qualifying for the Euros, Scotland dropped a place to No 22 in the world in September and Kerr will be hoping this has been turned around.
TWO close friends who came through Hibernian and Scotland youth teams together have been shortlisted for November's goal of the month by the prestigious Women's Soccer United website. Claire Emslie and Siobhan Hunter are among eight players from around Europe whose goals have been chosen with the winner being announced by popular vote this week.
Emslie's strike was for Manchester City, while Hunter's was the stunning 35-yard free kick which sealed Hibs' Scottish Cup final win over Glasgow City a fortnight ago.
It was the second such set-piece screamer by the central defender – the first coming in a Champions League group qualifier against Swansea City in Romania.
Hunter says she gets her combination of power, precision and swerve from watching videos on the internet. A bloke called Ronaldo might have been an influence as well.
“Claire and I started together at Hibs and played all the way through from the under-13s to the first team,” the 23-year-old says.
Continuing the coincidences, both made their full Scotland debuts as substitutes in the same game, a 3-2 friendly win over Iceland in Reykjavik in 2013. It is one of only two caps for Hunter, who has dropped out of international contention, while Emslie only recently became established in the Scotland squad after being overlooked, incredibly, for the Euros.
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