And yet, the first save of the game belonged to Marshall, 16 minutes in. Given the raucous backdrop, it was no surprise to see those in navy blue on the front foot. As men and women of all shapes, sizes and ages leapt about to Baccara, Scotland’s value to competitions such as these was fully evident. ![]() Some 10,000 supporters made such an almighty pre-match racket that the official attendance was worthy of question. There is at least a degree of merit in that claim, even if Clarke is due slack on the basis of being the man to break his country’s barren tournament run.Įven confirmation of Tierney’s injury, a secret before the teams were announced, did not douse a tremendous Hampden atmosphere. Clarke stands accused by his detractors of being overly loyal to the players who took Scotland to the European Championship. There will be pressure on Clarke to rip up his team for the trip to Wembley on Friday when the Scots will find themselves in the unenviable position of needing something, anything, by way of points. Bluntly, and it was demonstrated again here, Dykes’s chance conversation rate is nowhere near good enough for international football. The Scotland manager was without Kieran Tierney, arguably his best player of recent times, but surprisingly opted to deploy Lyndon Dykes rather than Che Adams in attack. Nonetheless, there is already criticism wafting Clarke’s way. The image of Marshall leaping helplessly as Schick celebrated will inevitably feature in an already lengthy list of Scottish tournament calamities. Scotland had been reminded of the brutality of this environment, 23 years after they last featured at international football’s top table. The reality is that Schick produced a moment of outrageous skill, the like of which is unlikely to be repeated in the remainder of Euro 2020. Marshall attracted blame for his starting position, some 35 yards from his goal. Hendry was widely criticised for shooting. ![]() ![]() No sooner had the ball hit the back of the net, three seconds after it departed Schick’s left boot, than the Scottish inquest started. Schick ran towards the tiny contingent of Czech supporters, who had witnessed a moment of history. Schick’s goal was from precisely 49.7 yards – unsurprisingly a tournament record – in the kind of breeze that would make the world’s leading golfers adjust their target line. As the ball broke to him on the halfway line, he lofted a shot over the despairing David Marshall. There appeared no real danger to Scotland – who were already a goal behind – when Jack Hendry saw a goal attempt from distance charged down.
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