The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Few positives as Scotland held by lowly Canada
SCOTLAND 1 CANADA 1: Naismith goal spares Strachan’s blushes
Scotland manager Gordon Strachan accepted his side will have to play much better against Slovenia on Sunday after being held to a 1-1 draw by Canada in a poorly attended friendly at Easter Road last night.
Anything other than a victory against the Slovenians at Hampden on Sunday would all but end Scotland’s hopes of progressing from their World Cup qualifying group and could prompt the conclusion of Strachan’s time in charge of the national team.
Last night’s friendly at Easter Road – in front of a crowd of 9,150 – was supposed to warm up the Scots for the upcoming qualifier but there were few positives for Strachan to take from a poor display.
Falkirk midfielder Fraser Aird gave the Canadians – ranked 117th in the world – a surprise lead after only 11 minutes of play but Norwich City midfielder Steven Naismith restored parity 10 minutes before half-time.
Strachan said: “We will need to be better unless we are very lucky.
“We are not going to try to depend on luck – we will try to be better.
“That game helped me a lot. I’m sure a lot of players would have wanted to have played a lot better but that is the way it is.
“We just have to deal with it and use this information for the game on Sunday.
“It is difficult to play on the international level when you aren’t firing on all cylinders at club level but we needed to find that out.”
Ikechi Anya heard the boos from the Tartan Army at the final whistle but is confident Scotland will get it right when it matters against Slovenia.
Anya, who was named man of the match on his 25th appearance, said: “You’re a professional athlete and need to be thick skinned.
“If that’s going to affect you then maybe this isn’t the right sport for you.
“Each player I’ve ever played with at club or international level has always given their best and sometimes it’s not good enough and other times it’s more than good enough.”
Scotland captain Darren Fletcher felt it was difficult for his side in the wet conditions.
He said: “We wanted to win the game but when you go a goal down and you are playing in those conditions it can be difficult.
“It would have been nice to win this game but Sunday is what matters.
“It was a mudbath out there and I’m sure the pitch at Hampden will be better.”