THERE is the easy way of doing things.

And then there is the Scotland way. Gordon Strachan's players trooped off a sodden Hampden pitch having racked up the nation's biggest win for nine years, a result that keeps alive their prospects of qualifying for Euro 2016.

It was a win, however, achieved following a sizeable thud to the senses along the way in the form of a Gibraltar equaliser midway through the first half.

For 10 scoreless minutes, the home crowd fretted increasingly that another shock could be on the cards to rank alongside previous toe-curling results against Costa Rica and the Faroe Islands. It felt longer.

A second Scotland goal almost tangibly cut the tension and from then on in it was simply a case of how many they would score.

By the end they had six, two more than Germany managed at home against the same opposition, having recovered well from that brief spell on the ropes to eventually ease to a comfortable victory.

It would prove a landmark day for Steven Fletcher. Without an international goal to his name for six years, the Sunderland forward finally delivered for his country, claiming the first Scotland hat-trick since Colin Stein scored four against Cyprus in 1969. It was not Fletcher's most convincing performance - he missed a few other decent chances by always trying to work things on to his favoured left foot - but the statistics will show this as a productive afternoon's work. When he scored his third in the final minute - steering a pass from Barry Bannan low into the corner of the net - he pointed heavenwards by way of poignant celebration. As someone who has not always had the happiest of times as a Scotland player, this was a moment to savour.

A comprehensive scoreline will perhaps mask that this was at times an uncomfortable afternoon for Scotland, some of it of their own making. Where Strachan's predecessor, Craig Levein, often came in for criticism for being too defensive-minded, Strachan took it the other extreme here, sending out a team bursting with attacking purpose but that at times looked unbalanced and awkward. It was ostensibly a 3-2-4-1 formation but the only real defender was Russell Martin, with Alan Hutton and Andy Robertson allowed to pour forward almost like an extra pair of wingers. The intention was honourable but Scotland never really looked entirely comfortable with the set-up, especially with Gibraltar posing more of an attacking threat than had possibly been imagined. It was little surprise when Strachan reverted to more familiar lines at the start of the second half, sending on Gordon Greer to sit alongside Martin and removing Matt Ritchie. Coincidentally or otherwise, Gibraltar never really threatened again, although tired legs no doubt contributed largely to that as well.

By then, they already conjured up their magical moment. Gibraltar, this rocky outpost of some 30,000 inhabitants, had failed to score in any of their previous group games, shipping 21 goals in the process. Nineteen minutes into their fifth ever competitive match, they had their first goal, a proud moment for them if a somewhat embarrassing one for Scotland. It was no sclaffed finish either. Aaron Payas played a nice diagonal ball to the far side of the Scotland box where Lee Casciaro, a policeman to trade, got away from Robertson before striking a low effort beyond David Marshall. It would prove to be no more than consolation by the end but it sent Hampden into a state of shocked silence, apart from the small pocket of Gibraltar fans who celebrated with unbridled glee. Having struck the crossbar in the early phases, and threatened with a couple of other things, they deserved their moment.

In their first four matches, Gibraltar had shipped their first goal by the 11th,sixth, ninth and 12th minutes respectively. They kept Scotland waiting until the 18th minute for their first goal and it took a penalty to break the deadlock. A minute after Fletcher had been denied following a more convincing claim, it was Shaun Maloney who won this one, goalkeeper Jamie Robba sending him tumbling as the pair contested a ball that was dribbling harmlessly over the goal line. Referee Mattias Gestranius went to consult with his assistant before awarding the penalty. Maloney's kick beat the diving goalkeeper to his right.

Following the Gibraltar equaliser, it was Fletcher who eased the tension again around Hampden by scoring Scotland's second. Ikechi Anya sent over a cross, defender Ryan Casciaro could only head it into the air, and Fletcher got in front of his marker to send a header that bounced into the corner beyond Robba's grasp to double his international tally.

That settled the home crowd's nerves and by half-time Scotland had four. The third came again from the penalty spot after 34 minutes. Steven Naismith was bundled over agriculturally by Lee Casciaro, partially undoing his good work for the Gibraltar goal, and Maloney stuck his kick in the same place, only marginally higher. The end result was the same.

Anya was again looking lively and it was he who provided Scotland's fourth, cutting a cross back for the energetic Naismith to convert. Even the most pessimistic Scotland fan by this point was confident that a home win was on the cards.

The second half was less enthralling - Gibraltar seemed happy enough simply to have scored - but there was still time for Fletcher to grab some personal glory. He headed in his second from a Jordan Rhodes cross before completing his hat-trick in injury time. It was the ideal way to end an afternoon that had flirted briefly with disaster.