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Although this was the first game of the season for Scottish, it was already the third for their opponents in red - English tied Hungarians a week earlier and they posted a win over Bosnia the week before that.  Scottish head coach Keith Berry was stating the obvious in saying that comparative levels of on-field conditioning would be a factor in the game, as well as the fact that they had no less than eight new players on their '09 squad.  He nonetheless remained hopeful in that Scottish finished reasonably well in '08, and also in that the Scottish under 18 team continued to contribute meaningfully to the ongoing strength of the club.
With the opening whistle it was indeed English who came out in characteristic form, using strong headers and forward movement in the midfield areas to move the ball rapidly up field.  Their advantage in conditioning was quite apparent throughout the first half of the game.  Scottish defenders (in blue) did prove effective however in breaking up many English plays once they entered their defensive zone.  The ball was eventually cleared in varying degrees of effectiveness, only to return moments later with English challenging again.  English came close at 24 minutes as a result of a well placed corner kick, and at 27 minutes Scottish returned fire with a shot deflecting off the post that appeared to have the English keeper fooled.  During the first half it was English coming out ahead in most one-on-one contests for possession, however Scottish replied with their own style of close passing plays and perhaps on-field maturity (likely gained through playing the previous year among First Division ranks) that helped them work the ball patiently up field on many occasions.  At 44 minutes English came close again with a dangerous shot along the ground that the Scottish keeper just barely got a handle on.  The first half would come to a close scoreless.
With the opening of the second half it appeared English was possessed with the conviction to get the job done.  In at least the first five minutes of play, Scottish could barely get the ball out of their own end.  However things slowly started to change as time pressed on.  Scottish began engaging English far more effectively in one-on-one contests of various sorts, and also began moving the ball up field more quickly through the English mid-field.  It also became apparent with several shots taken net by the English strikers, that although provided with ample opportunity, they somehow found it difficult to make accurate shots on net.  This state of affairs went on just long enough to provide #20 (Blue) with a chance to put his skill, drive and determination on display as he dribbled or forced the ball around two if not three English defenders (while rushing in on the left wing), and then feeding #10 (Blue) with an excellent pass out front that he made no mistake in burying high and hard into the English goal.  At 62 minutes in it was somehow 1-0 favouring the Scottish.  Much of the same play continued after this point, with each side trading missed opportunities as the ball moved rapidly up and down the field.  After the eighty minute mark it was nearly all English again (as they were awarded a number of corner kicks and kept the Scottish defenders pinned down inside their zone), however Scottish held on tightly to their one goal advantage and with the closing whistle came out on top with the win and the game.  JHS

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