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It only took half an hour for Andy Brown to resemble Ally MacLeod, hands in head, forlorn. Thirty minutes, doesn't seem much, but enough. Christian Dailly's red card seemed to herald a disappointing start to Brown's run as Scotland boss, but a second half penalty from substitute Andy Gray left Austria reflecting on a 1-0 shellacking from ten men and Brown a little more chipper. Sure, it was a friendly, and sure Scotland were bound to crash and burn eventually, but as starts go it wasn't half bad.
Brown was far from the impressionable rookie who began his career at Dunfermline before going on to manage Sunderland and Blackburn in the Premiership. He wasn't unknown internationally as the addition of Srecko Katanec as Assistant proved. He wasn't an idiot, snapping up experts Jim Duffy and Eddie Gray to work with the u21 and u19 squads, and he wasn't resented, with Walter Smith gladly accepting a coaching role alongside Ally McCoist, Gianpiero Ventrone and Alain Sutter. With Jim Leighton coaching the keepers and health and physiotherapy handled by David Wylie and Augusto Terzi, Brown had the staff in place to free himself to plan for opponents and create mismatches.
His first squad was fairly predictable. Goalkeepers Craig Gordon, the first choice, and David Marshall, the second, were supported by Paul Gallacher who's experience could prove useful.
In defence the starting four were, in the absence of the injured Gary Naysmith, left back Ian Murray, right back Jackie McNamara and central pairing Andy Webster and Christian Dailly. Depth and versatility was included in the shape of Adam Virgo and David Weir.
Nigel Quashie was Brown's preferred choice to anchor the midfield, with playmaking chores handed to Darren Fletcher and Barry Ferguson. Richard Hughes provided an option for the stay-at-home role, whilst Gary Teale, Sephen Pearson, Chris Burke, Paul Hartley and Kevin Thomson filled out the numbers, each bringing his own unique skills package to the table.
In attack Brown preferred a three-pronged approach, with Kenny Miller as the spearhead. James McFadden and Scott Brown were his initial choices to support, but Andy Gray and Shaun Maloney did well in the second half against Austria. With Gary O'Connor pulling out, David Clarkson made the 26, but he, Paul Dickov and Paul Gallagher did not feature in the match.
Competitive games loomed now for Andy Brown, the true test of his capabilities. Arrogant and optimistic outside of the matchday environment, he was certain his side would rise to the challenge.
An unchanged squad named for the games with Italy and Norway meant no place for Clarkson in the 26. Shaun Maloney came in for Scott Brown, halting any charges of nepotism from the boss, but there were no further changes.
Craig Gordon's flying save prevented Alessandro Del Piero netting a ninth minute penalty as the game began in a surprisingly open, end-to-end manner. Both Gordon and Morgan De Sanctis had saves to make before Stefano Fiore opened the scoring 12 minutes before the interval. Mauro Camoranesi doubled the advantage in first half injury time, and anyone following on teletext would feel the Scots had been battered into submission.
A much better second half performance meant the scoreline remained unaltered to the whistle, but defeat more or less ended any hopes Scotland had of qualification.
Andy Gray replaced Maloney in Oslo, but it was McFadden and Kenny Miller who combined to put the Scots ahead ten minutes before the break, the Wolves man firing home from close range before being denied from the same position moments before the break.
With Christian Dailly unable to play after the interval, Adam Virgo came on with Barry Ferguson assuming the captaincy. Six minutes later Miller struck again to send the Scots into raptures and raise Slovenian hopes for qualification. Maloney and Brown came on for the final fifteen minutes, but it was Miller who came closest to adding to the scoring, flashing a header over the bar. Still, the 2-0 victory gave Scotland the tie breaker over their rivals and kept a glimmer of hope alive.
The press had noticed, and so had the Tartan Army. Scotland were almost unbelievably one win away from a virtual playoff-for-the-playoffs. Victory at home to Belarus coupled with a win for Italy over Slovenia would send the Scots to Ljubljana needing any win to finish second in the group. Probably. Precisely what happened if Norway also finished on 15 points was not clear. Time would tell.
The key task for Brown and his staff was to ensure the team remained focussed on the next match. Belarus were an undoubtedly talented side and victory was in no way guaranteed. Injury to Harchester United's Steven Pearson meant a first call up for Craig Beattie of Celtic. The forward is on his way back from injury, but will likely not feature.
It was an unchanged XI and bench that took the field at Hampden looking to avoid a costly slip-up and perpetuate the nation's World Cup dream. An injury to Gray after just six minutes saw Brown thrown into the fracas, but it was clearly the visitors who had started brighter until a stunning 25th minute goal from Barry Ferguson. Collecting the ball wide right, the Rangers player cut inside, driving forward before unleashing a 20-yard strike that nearly burst the net.
It was to prove the only goal of a tense first half, but Scotland came out fired up in the second, looking to kill off their plucky opponents. Miller twice drew saves from Khomutovskyi before sealing the win fifteen minutes from time when Brown laid the ball on a plate for him five yards out. All eyes now turned to Italy as the dream was passed on to Scotland's friends to the south.
Italy's 3-0 win and Norway's failure to break down a stubbnorn Moldovan defence in Oslo made everything crystal clear - win in Slovenia and Scotland were going to the playoffs, lose or draw and it would be the home side who would advance.
With Andy Gray facing four months on the sidelines, Scotland turned to Kris Boyd to make up the numbers, the Kilmarnock striker keen to gain experience around the international setup, but it was Scott Brown who slotted into the lineup and Paul Gallagher who filled the vacated spot on the bench as the action got underway.
With Slovenia's pevious manager as Assistant, Brown felt he had the inside track on what to expect, and a couple of early chances indicated Scotland's opportunity was in no way marginal. Still, a nervy, goalless first half meant that somehow the Scots had to find a goal in the final 45 minutes, or face a summer at home whilst the big nations had their fun.
Three minutes later James McFadden was wheeling away in triumph and Scotland had their goal. Now it was a case of rejecting Slovenian advances and ensuring the lead remained intact. All three strikers were replaced late on to provide fresh legs and it looked to have done the trick as Slovenia failed to find the key to Brown's defence. Time ticked away and his side had done the impossible. All they were waiting on was UEFA confirmation that the sums were correct and a playoff awaited.
<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre"> P W D L F A Pts1. Italy 10 8 1 1 22 6 252. Scotland 10 4 3 3 8 6 153. Slovenia 10 4 3 3 10 9 154. Belarus 10 2 5 3 15 15 115. Norway 10 2 4 4 8 10 106. Moldova 10 0 4 6 2 19 4</pre>
The playoff draw paired Scotland with Switzerland and real, genuine, realistic hopes of actual, physical qualification were raised. Andy Brown had brought his team to the brink of a miracle revival.
Rangers' win over Basel in qualification for the Champions League guaranteed Scotland's progress to the World Cup, or so you'd be led to believe by the tabloid press.
With Ian Murray and Paul Hartley injured, Gary Naysmith and Kevin McNaughton were drafted in to the squad, the former making the starting XI for the match, the latter the bench. Beattie and Boyd remained in the 26, but it was only Naysmith who disrupted the XI that had won in Slovenia.
With Hampden filled to the rafters and the Hampden Roar deafening, play began positively for Brown's side. Then disaster struck - just eight minutes in an innocent looking challenge left Barry Ferguson writhing in agony, and the task was handed to Gary Teale - give us a chance to win was all Brown asked of him, and one thing he knew was that Teale would not lack for effort.
Half time was reached without the scoreboard ticking over and Brown was reasonably satisfied. Not conceding an away goal was ultimately the challenge for the players. Anything tallied in Scotland's favour would be seen as a bonus by Brown. As it was the final scoreline represented an hour-and-a-half of graft, determination and fight. The goalless draw had been earned and Scotland now looked to Berne for a glory day, or a glorious failure. The dream lived.
Martyn Corrigan joined up with the squad in Ferguson's place, and Steven Caldwell replaced the hurt Kevin Thomson but it was Richard Hughes who got the nod for the second leg.
The Swiss twice went close in the opening ten minutes of the second leg, but the next ten belonged to Scotland, neither side finding a breakthrough thanks in part to some decent goalkeeping. With Hughes struggling against a leg knock, Corrigan came on for the second half in an effort to drive Brown's side on.
Genuine opportunities to score were at a premium, so it seemed the first goal could win the tie. With ten minutes to go a long clearance put Kenny Miller through on Jorg Stiel, but the striker whiffed and the chance was gone. Paul Gallagher replaced the front man moments later and a big finalé seemed inevitable.
There was no glorious chance missed as time expired, both sides clearly nervous, and extra time ensued. Both sides had half chances in the first period, but neither scored. Then it happened, Switzerland struck through Alex Geijo and the dream was done.
Four months later an experimental side faced South Korea at Hampden, but it was a lacklustre affair punctuated by only occasional chances and few moments of excitement. The game ended nothing each and few would have noticed if Brown hadn't bothered sending a team out for this match. It was a complete waste of everybody's time, still the defensive system looks solid, so that's nice.
Although the next fixture was a friendly with Switzerland, even victory would bring no measure of revenge. Still, Brown selected his strongest squad, with Iain Turner joining Marshall and Gordon as keepers, Anderson, Gary Caldwell, Dailly, Alan Hutton, John Kennedy, McNamara, McNaughton, Naysmith, Virgo and Webster competing for defensive roles, Ferguson, Fletcher, Hartley, Hughes, Murray, Quashie and Teale in midfield and the usual suspects Brown, Maloney, Gallagher, Gray, McFadden and Miller in attack.
Sean Mackle was summoned to replace the injured Scott Brown, but only after Paul Dickov shocked the nation by rejecting the call. Andy Brown would perhaps have been lenient had Dickov not been such a fringe member of the squad and aging rapidly. As it is, the wee striker can expect to never play for his country again.
After Switzerland thoughts will turn to a tough qualification group for Euro 2008. With only the top two qualifying it is hard to see Brown steering his side past Spain and Germany, though with Russia, Latvia, Northern Ireland and Luxembourg rounding out the group third place is a real possibility.
Brown's selection showed a real determination to beat the Swiss. Gordon in goals is a no-brainer, but the rest of the team was solid. McNamara-Webster-Kennedy-Naysmith across the back, Murray, Ferguson and Fletcher in the midfield and an attack featuring Miller, Gray and McFadden. The shackles were off and it was time to show how they should have done it.
At least that was the plan.
And so it proved. Miller struck in each half and Darren Fletcher scored in between to give Brown's men a comfortable win. Just for good measure Paul Gallagher added a late fourth. If only it had been the last time. If only, if only, if only...
The SFA had taken the unusual step of setting up a friendly at home to Cameroon just four days ahead of the European Championship Qualifying opener against Germany, also at Hampden. As a result, Brown opted to play his strongest side in both games and take his chances - since it had been six months between the Swiss friendly and this game, the practice was necessary.
The 26 had a familiar look - Craig Gordon, David Marshall and new Rangers #1 Iain Turner in goals, Gary Caldwell, Christian Dailly, Alan Hutton, John Kennedy, Jackie McNamara, Kevin McNaughton, Gary Naysmith, Adam Virgo and Andy Webster in defence, Barry Ferguson, Darren Fletcher, Paul Hartley, Richard Hughes, Ian Murray, Nigel Quashie and Gary Teale in midfield with Scott Broen, Shaun Maloney, Paul Gallagher, Andy Gray, James McFadden, Kenny Miller and Newcastle new boy Derek Riordan competing for places in attack.
The starting XI was even less surprising as Gordon, McNamara, Naysmith, Webster, Kennedy, Murray, Ferguson, Fletcher, McFadden, Miller and Gray took to the field to face the unpredictable Africans.
Though Cameroon managed the only goal, it was the offside flag they had to thank as Scotland dominated the second half. The stage now was set for Germany, and few expected anything but a highly competitive encounter, though Germany's 3-0 win over Spain had a few of the more pessimistic columnists forecasting doom and gloom.
Dream the Impossible Dream 
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