#U19EURO Wales 1-2 Scotland
International
14 November 2018

#U19EURO Wales 1-2 Scotland

An 85th minute penalty from the impressive Billy Gilmour earned Scotland a 2-1 victory over Wales in the opening UEFA U19 Group 4 qualifier in front of 436 fans at Belle Vue, Rhyl on Wednesday evening.

Wales 1-2 Scotland

Belle Vue, Rhyl

  • Wales scorers: N Williams 68'
  • Scotland scorers: OG 60', B Gilmour 85'

Attendance: 436

Manager Paul Bodin expected Scotland to provide the toughest test for his young Wales side in this qualifying tournament, and the visitors started brightly at Rhyl with Glenn Middleton causing problems for Wales on the left.

Gilmour showed his set-piece prowess in the early exchanges, and the Scottish youngster tested goalkeeper George Ratcliffe with a well-struck free-kick inside the opening few minutes. Gilmour continued to ask questions of the Wales defence from corners, but Ratcliffe and his defence were up to the challenge.

Zak Rudden had Scotland's best chance of the match after just 9 minutes, but his close-range shot was superbly saved by Ratcliffe. The save gave Bodin's team a visible lift, but an enforced early change saw striker Daniel Griffiths replaced by Christian Norton shortly after Ratcliffe's save.

Wales began to settle into the match, with Joseph Adams testing Scotland on the left, while the creative Dylan Levitt combined well with Brennan Johnson and Norton as Wales began to make an impression on the match. However, goalkeeper Ryan Mullen was rarely tested as the Scottish defence stood firm.

P181114-008-Wales_U19_Scotland_U19.jpg

Scotland showed their attacking intentions early in the 2nd half, and it was Gilmour again who found himself causing problems for the Welsh defence when his shot was blocked on the line by Ben Cabango after 55 minutes. However, the visitors took the lead when a mistake from Ratcliffe allowed a back pass from Brandon Cooper to roll into the net on the hour mark.

Wales reacted in the right way and equalised on 68 minutes when Neco Williams made a charging run forward and drilled a fine effort past goalkeeper Mullen, with the help of a deflection. The two goals made for a competitive finish to the game, but it was Scotland that would eventually claim maximum points when Gilmour converted from the penalty spot on 85 minutes.

Despite pushing for an equaliser, referee Juri Frischer brought the match to a close to the relief of the visitors. However, Bodin will be able to take plenty of positives from the match into the next game in the group as Wales take on Sweden at Bangor on Saturday (3pm).  Meanwhile, in the other Group 4 fixture played on Wednesday, Sweden claimed a 2-1 victory over San Marino.

Wales: 1. George Ratcliffe, 2. Neco Williams, 3. Morgan Boyes, 4. Ryan Reynolds (c), 5. Ben Cabango, 6. Brandon Cooper, 7. Luke Jephcott, (15. Jack Vale 88') 8. Dylan Levitt, 9. Daniel Griffiths (16. Christian Norton 9'), 10. Brennan Johnson, 11. Joseph Adams.

Subs not used: 12. Adam Przybek, 13. Sam Bowen, 14. Ryan Stirk, 17. Ryan Astley, 18. Jay Foulston, 19. Lewis Collins, 20. Lewis Clutton

Matches 1 table.PNG