THREE points and job done was the general assessment following Scotland’s 3-0 win over Albania on Friday night. If the performance didn’t live up to expectations, better for it to happen in Edinburgh than Helsinki on Tuesday night.
That game, against Anna Signeul’s Finland, is now the most important since last year’s World Cup. A win at the Bolt Arena would put Scotland in the driving seat to win Group E and secure the automatic qualifying place for the delayed Euros in England.
While Germany and the Netherlands have already qualified to join the hosts in 2022, the serious work hasn’t even started for the Scots. It will do so on Tuesday – the home game against the Finns on December 1 and the double header against Portugal being the other decisive matches.
It’s going to be a very strange experience, in an already surreal year, for Scotland to play a team managed by Signeul. All the long-term personnel played for her – and that includes head coach Shelley Kerr.
The former central defender’s last cap was against Russia in 2008, three years after her predecessor started her momentous 12-year stint in charge of Scotland. Kerr was also a member of Signeul’s coaching team at the Scottish FA.
Against Albania, Caroline Weir’s two second-half goals and her free-kick which led to Rachel Corsie heading the opener before half time, ensured there wouldn’t be a costly slip up before the team’s chartered flight to Helsinki tomorrow. As with many of her team-mates the midfielder was given her first cap by the Swede.
It came in a friendly against Iceland in Reykjavik in 2013 when Weir, who was about to join Arsenal (manager S Kerr) the following month, came on as a substitute for Leanne Crichton after 78 minutes. It was a notable game, with Claire Emslie also making her Scotland debut.
“Anna gave me a chance when I was 17 and kept me in the squad, so I’ve got a lot to thank her for,” Weir said after Friday’s win. “She exposed me to international football from an early age, so she did have a big influence and obviously I’m grateful to her for that.
“It will be nice to see her again, but it’s a huge game and we’re going to Finland to do a job. We’ve got a few things to work on and tighten up because we will need to be better on Tuesday.”
SAM KERR was very unfortunate to be on the wrong end of the Covid-19 guidelines when, despite testing negative before the Scotland squad met up in Edinburgh, and twice more in camp, she was showing some symptoms.
The coaching and medical staff had no option but to send her home to protect the squad environment.
The 21-year-old was very impressive in Glasgow City’s emphatic 2-0 win over Celtic last Sunday. There has always been an elegance to her play and movement, but Kerr seems to have added a stamp of authority despite having played only one game – the Champions League quarter- final against Wolfsburg – since coming on as a substitute against Ukraine in March for her Scotland debut.
As Scott Booth admitted, the midfielder is going to be a huge loss when she moves to Rangers at the end of next month.
Rachel McLauchlan and Kirsty Howat are also departing and it now appears that all three can play for Rangers against City in the SWPL1 game on December 13.
They won’t be officially signed until the new transfer window opens in January, but according to the Scottish FA the trio can all play three games as trialists before then. Barring postponements, Rangers only have two fixtures in December.
ALTHOUGH there are no Scottish Building Society SWPL1 games today because of the international break, five fixtures go ahead in the second tier. They include Kilmarnock v Hamilton at Rugby Park.
It will be the hosts’ first game of the season, last week’s trip to St Johnstone having been postponed following positive Covid-19 tests and other players self-isolating.
Hamilton’s case that today’s game should go ahead to keep a season fraught with future potential postponements on track was accepted by the league management committee.
Kilmarnock will have to field a weakened, and possibly very young, side – and inevitably, in these circumstances there are going to be grievances. The reality, however, is that the football authorities are having to weave their way through a protocol minefield.
The weeks ahead are only likely to present fresh, and possibly even bigger, challenges.
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