Under-19s: Chalmers keen to avoid being left on the sidelines

Sports Writer

Thursday 11 October 2012

Charlie Mulgrew clearly isn't the only left-sided player at Parkhead with a talent for striking a fine set piece, Joe Chalmers having curled in a sweet free-kick as Scotland's Under-19 side made a flying start to 2013 European Championship group nine at New Douglas Park on Thursday night.

Joe Chalmers scored a fine free-kick against Armenia

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Stewart Fisher

Ricky Sbragia's side go into this evening's meeting with Romania in Falkirk knowing a victory would guarantee them a place in next year's elite round as they attempt to reach the continental finals in Lithuania next summer and emulate the 2006 crop, who were eventual runners-up in this competition.

One of four Celtic players – three of whom were part of the back four – in Tuesday's XI, Chalmers has been a regular in the club's NextGen series matches for the last couple of seasons and made his senior debut from the bench against Inverness Caledonian Thistle earlier in this campaign. He said such free-kicks were a regular occurrence in training but he still had some way to go before he can claim to be as consistent a ball striker as his club-mate. "I have trained with Charlie a few times now and he has got a great left foot but I have still got a long way to go before I reach his standards," said Chalmers, pictured. "My job is defending but anything I can do going forward or from set pieces is a bonus."Chalmers signed a new contract last January but knows he still has work to do to convince Neil Lennon that he deserves a chance. "Against Inverness, I got a wee spell and that makes me want it more, but we have a big squad so nothing is easy," he said. "Hopefully if I keep the head down and put in more performances I will get a wee bit closer. Neil's priority is the first team so any chance he can come to watch I just need to impress him and see how far it takes me."The group concludes for the Scots with a meeting with Switzerland on Sunday, but three games in six days can be tough for youngsters. Sbragia and this squad also made a flying start to an under-17 group a few years back, only to be running on empty by the third match, but the coach will keep changes to a minimum, with Aberdeen's Ryan Fraser, the SPL young player of the month yet an unused substitute on Tuesday, the main contender for inclusion. "Maybe we underestimate how good we can be," Sbragia said. "I will stick with much of the team, but Ryan Fraser could come in. We have to be careful with him because he has played a lot of football, but he might surprise Romania because they haven't seen him before."

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Under-19s: Chalmers keen to avoid being left on the sidelines

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