THE theory that the beliefs of the manager can be demonstrated on the field was given irrefutable proof by explosive events in a vast laboratory in Warsaw on Tuesday night.

The close encounters in the 2-2 draw between Poland an Germany in Group D in an arena that looks as if it is preparing for take-off would suggest that football is all about action. However, it is also about a mental resilience that demands that defeat is resisted, setbacks are merely to be overcome and that hard labour is a prerequisite rather than a choice. It is also about a bravery that owes something to the physical but more to the notion that one has to have faith in one's technique and a belief in the collective.

The spirit that imbued Scotland on a dizzying night watched from the vertiginous slopes of the space-age National Stadium was curiously old-fashioned, even traditionally Scottish. There was much to admire technically and individually in Scotland with Russell Martin, Gordon Greer, James Morrison and Ikechi Anya outstanding. But it was the team's adherence to other values that warmed the cynical heart of the professional football watcher.

At some time around 11pm Warsaw time, Gordon Strachan, the architect of the Scotland side, admitted he had been drained by the evening. This was taken as a joke but it was impossible not to watch him trundle his bag towards a taxi rank at 3am Glasgow time and not be convinced of the truth of his confession.

Group D has and will be hard for Scotland but Strachan has always been a personality who not only thrives on labour but believes totally and absolutely in it with the ardour of a zealot. The day after the Warsaw night before he reflected on the progress of his players and the value of work was never far from his lips. A player of breathtaking talent, he has a philosophy as a manager that has no suspicion of brilliance but is imbued with an insistence that it must be underpinned by a dedication to the team.

"You can only ask, as a manager, for the players to perform and do the things you want them to do," he said of his tenure that began in January of 2013. "You want them to respect each other, trust each other and give everything. Well, we get that from them."

Since beaten 2-0 by Belgium last Septempber, Scotland have lost one match - to the world champions - in the nine subsequent games. Three points against Georgia on Saturday was followed by a point against Poland.

"After these two matches the footballing gods have decreed we got four points," said Strachan, betraying that his belief system encompasses something other than work. "It could have been more, it could have been less had we been unlucky. We could analyse it but what we can't do is ask for more than you asked for in the first place.

"That just wouldn't be right. In terms of effort and commitment, and all the rest of it, we can't ask for any more. We're actually in decent shape right now so I'm pleased for them as a group."

His pleasure is increased by one, simple aspect. "There's nothing better than seeing people get what they deserve. Whether it's me, the coaches or the players, we get back on our planes, trains and automobiles to get home and can say to ourselves 'we competed,' and that's all we can ask for," he said.

"There's nothing wrong with being proud. Whether you win lose or draw you want to feel you performed. You can then go into the next game feeling good about yourself. It's when you come away from games thinking 'oh, that wasn't great,' that it's not great.

"It's when you're trying to sneak out of stadiums. Trust me, I've been there. I've done that with other teams and it's not good."

The players speak privately but warmly of focused and intense training sessions, sometimes twice a day. "I like watching these boys train and play, it's wonderful," said Strachan. "I wondered if they could take it on to the pitch but they got better. Over the three games I think everyone has done themselves proud, nobody can look back thinking they could have done better. Even the ones who technically may not have been at their best, they brought a standard commitment to make sure they didn't let down their team-mates. That's what we need to keep going."

He can be splendidly, idiosyncratically Strachan when discussing players. But even his most outlandish statements come back to the home ground of hard labour. For example, he is almost florid on Gordon Greer, the 33-year-old Brighton and Hove Albion defender, who came into the side in Warsaw and played strongly and surely at centre-back. "He's not arrogant but when he walks about he has that look to him with the gear he wears and the shape of his legs. He looks like he's a rock star who has just turned up. But I thought he read the game brilliantly," he said.

"The funny thing about our squad is that there isn't a defined identikit of what you get in," he said of the shapes, ages and sizes that populate a motley crew.

"I talk about being a good team-mate and that's what he is. He wants to work, is able to pass the ball and fits into the system. If you can do that you've got a chance no matter what age you are."

But how can this improvement be achieved, how can this progress be made at such a late age in football terms? "Listen, I hear people talk about certain players and coaches ask 'but can they go to the top?' But it's all down to themselves. Gordon Greer has been around the block but he can't say someone has helped him get where he is now: it's all down to him, himself.

"He's the reason he's playing for Scotland, no-one else. Players make all sorts of excuses. The number of times I've heard players say: 'The coach doesn't like me, that's why I'm not playing'. And I've never heard so much nonsense in all my life. The coach doesn't pick you because you're not very good.

"Another thing people talk about it how players need an arm around them. Do me a favour. It's a kick up the backside he needs. That'll help even better."

The last sentiment will prompt a smile. But Strachan isn't kidding. The laughs may be easy but the work is hard.