DISAPPOINTING DRAW FOR SCOTS
 

SCOTLAND’S chances of winning this round-robin Future Team tournament evaporated when the visiting Turkish side came away with a draw, but manager Berti Vogts saw it as a learning experience - on dealing with eccentric referees. In a match which had everything except a decent crowd, Steven Caldwell headed the Scots in front but a second-half penalty - saved by substitute keeper Scott Shearer - was scored on the rebound by Necati Ates.

The man who stood out the most, though, was English whistler Mike Riley, who will have won few friends with a series of puzzling decisions, including his red cards for Yusef Simsek and Stephen Pearson. Vogts was convinced that the sending-off of Pearson just before half-time was Riley’s biggest mistake, with the Motherwell man being dismissed for nothing more vicious than a shoulder charge on an opponent. "It was shoulder to shoulder and I could not understand why it was a red card," said the German. "The red card for Turkey was a red card but the Pearson one was a decision of the referee and we must learn from that."

Riley sent off Simsek for an over-the-top challenge on debutant Graeme Murty, who was substituted at the break. The Turks felt they had been hard done by when a free-kick move saw the ball appear to cross the line - and Gary Caldwell handle in the process. Riley spotted neither and failed to give the Scots a late penalty when Tam McManus was brought down.

Vogts said: "I am happy with the performance - very happy about that - but not with the result. I think we should have won this match but that is not so important for me. We saw a lot of young players and that is good for the future. We saw a fantastic first half. We played very well and Pearson did very well on the left side. Also, Lee McCulloch was injured which was a shame because we only had one option up front as Tom McManus and Michael McIndoe are different types of player. In the second half we played too deep but we only had two training sessions and had a lot of young players in the team. It was a good experience for the boys and now we have three other Future Team dates in 2004. That is what the players need - international experience. That is very important. There is a difference between Scottish football and international football."

The draw meant the Turks won the Future Cup competition, which also featured Germany. The Scots starting line-up featured five players with previous experience of the senior squad in the shape of captain Scott Severin, the Caldwell brothers, Andy Webster and Pearson. Caldwell, whose younger brother and Newcastle team-mate Gary had been handed a defensive midfield role, had several chances but made no mistake on the half hour when he lost his marker to head home a Jamie McAllister corner.

Turkey were then awarded a penalty in the 61st minute when Veysel Cihan, who had come on for Ersen Martin, went down under a Webster challenge. Shearer saved Ates’ spot-kick but could not prevent him from slotting home the rebound.

Scotland Future: Gordon (Shearer 46 mins), Murty (Shields 46), McAllister, Stephen Caldwell, Webster, Gary Caldwell, Scott Murray, Canero, McCulloch (McIndoe 71), Severin (McManus 62), Pearson. Subs not used: Greer, Mair, Soutar.

Turkey B: Tuncay, Tandogan, Mercimek, Tolga Seyhan, Cimsir, Atan, Gunes, Bolukbasi (Kocak 46), Martin (Cihan 46), Simsek, Ates. Subs not used: Sonmez, Keceli, Turan, Biryol, Polat.