Scotland men strike ten to get off to a flying start in Muscat

Scotland 10-1 Oman

Scotland men were on deadly goal scoring form in their opening match of FIH Nations Cup 2 in Muscat, with a 10-1 victory over the hosts, Oman. Andy McConnell scored a hat trick and there were doubles for Struan Walker and Jamie Golden, while David Nairn; Ali Douglas; and Craig Falconer all struck the back of the net.

The match also marked a 50th cap for Callum MacKenzie, and a debut for Matt Taylor.

The Scots were quick off the mark with good width and Struan Walker and Andy McConnell connecting well in the early stages.

The opening goal wasn’t far away and it was a Jamie Golden penalty corner that zipped into the roof of the net to make it 1-0.

McConnell made it 2-0 shortly later with a low and hard penalty corner through the goalkeeper. Then Rob Field fed Walker as he ghosted into the circle and slipped a low effort against the backboard for 3-0.

Walker struck his second and Scotland’s fourth when he fired the ball into the roof of the net after a slick penalty corner routine that saw a quick three pass exchange. 4-0.

Then a Golden drag flick crashed into the top left corner for 5-0, and a sensational goal-laden opening quarter.

Into the second quarter and McConnell struck again for Scotland. McConnell’s first effort was well saved but David Nairn was on hand to find McConnell for a second attempt, which he smashed through the legs of the keeper. 6-0.

Then Nairn got his own name on the score sheet when he superbly chipped the goalkeeper despite being on the ground to make it 7-0.

The second half saw Scotland’s work rate continue to be incredible, but Oman managed to hold out for much of the quarter. Eventually a move down the left allowed Walker to pick out Ali Douglas with a pass across goal for Douglas to dive in and convert for 8-0.

McConnell then bagged his hat trick with another low penalty corner strike into the bottom right corner for 9-0.

In the final quarter Oman dug deep and pulled one back with a penalty corner into the bottom right corner by Ammaar Al Shaaibi for 9-1.

The scoring was completed when Craig Falconer got Scotland to double figures with a glorious finish on the turn that fizzed into the top left corner for 10-1.

Scotland face Austria tomorrow in their next contest in Muscat, Oman.

Struan Walker was awarded the player of the match and said: “We are buzzing after the performance. We are a particularly young team with some players getting their first cap today, so shout out to them. Two big games coming up in the pool stage, so we are happy to start off with a big win today.”

 

Recent posts:

Back to all news
Back to top