Dykes shows glimpses of promise to suggest Clarke’s pursuit was worthwhile
It won’t go down in the annals of the Scottish national team as a dream debut by any stretch of the imagination. But in his 74 minutes on the Hampden pitch, Lyndon Dykes did just about enough to suggest this could be the start of a productive career in the dark blue jersey for the Australian- born striker.
The 24- year- old had to feed off meagre rations and wasn’t presented with even the sniff of a chance to mark his first cap with a goal.
As Scotland’s Uefa Nations League Group B2 campaign began with an underwhelming 1- 1 draw against Israel, however, Dykes had nothing to reproach himself for on an evening when he displayed glimpses of the attributes which prompted Steve Clarke to go to considerable lengths to persuade him to commit his international future to his parental home.
With Steven Fletcher having effectively – if not yet formally – retired from international football, while Leigh Griffiths’ personal and fitness issues have absented him from the Scotland setup for two years now, Clarke has tried various options in a bid to solve the No 9 conundrum.
Eamonn Brophy, who excelled at Kilmarnock under Clarke, was given his chance in the manager’s first Scotland game against Cyprus in June 2019 but has not added to that solitary cap since.
Oliver Burke and Matt Phillips, more naturally wide players, have both been tried through the middle but neither offers a convincing solution in that role. Oli Mcburnie, a more orthodox target man, has yet to score in nine appearances for Scotland for whom he has struggled to replicate the kind of club form which earned him his £ 20 million move to Sheffield United.
Lawrence Shankland scored in the 6- 0 rout of San Marino last October but the Dundee United man, a prolific scorer in the Scottish Championship, remains unproven at a higher level.
Steven Naismith led the line admirably for Clarke when he was recalled for the games against Cyprus and Kazakhstan in November, scoring in the latter fixture, but the Hearts forward will be 34 in nine days’ time and will be playing his club football in the second tier this season. So the opportunity is there for Dykes and the 24- year- old made a decent first impression. If he hopes to enjoy lengthy service as a Scotland striker, he will have to become accustomed to lengthy spells of solitude in what can often look like the very definition of a thankless task.
Tight- lipped and pensive during the national anthem, which he may or may not be fully familiar with just yet, there were precious few opportunities for him to make his presence felt.
He offered an inviting target for Andy Robertson and James Forrest, who provided the width in Clarke’s formation which had been revamped to accommodate
Kieran Tierney’s return on the left side of a three- man defence, but the supply of crosses was poor.
Dykes’ hold- up play was neat and composed, typified by a fine lay- off to send Ryan Christie clear on a counterattack in the 28th minute. It was a contribution which saw Dykes clattered from behind in the process by Dor Peretz, earning the Israeli a booking and illustrating how troublesome a presence the man from Queensland was for his markers.
While the Scots were fortunate not to fall behind when David Marshall saved at point- blank range from Munas Dabbur three minutes from the interval, they weren’t about to feel embarrassed at snatching the lead on the stroke of half- time from the spot.
It was a penalty kick which owed much to Dykes. A cute nudge in the back of Peretz helped him win the aerial battle to knock down a Christie corner, leading to John Mcginn’s tumble under Eytan Tibi’s challenge which left Slovenian referee Slavko Vincic in no doubt. Christie’s conversion was just as certain.
It should have been the platform for a psychologically significant win ahead of next month’s Euro 2020 play- off semi- final between the teams back at Hampden. But Eran Zahavi’s equaliser, just before Dykes was replaced by Burke, put a dampener on an already flat occasion.
Dykes had to feed off meagre rations and wasn’t presented with even the sniff of a chance