Approximately 60 seconds before Jack Hendry single-handedly torpedoed any genuine chance of Scotland pulling off any sort of upset against the Swiss on Tuesday evening, there was a fleeting moment in which the Tartan Army were given reason to feel optimistic about what could be.
It started with Billy Gilmour dropping his shoulder after collecting a short throw on the halfway line. The Napoli midfielder made the two men in close proximity look a bit daft as he spun away before releasing Kieron Bowie down the right channel.
Bowie had no right to beat the covering Nico Elvedi to the ball. But he did, with relative ease as it turned out. Granted, his subsequent cross for strike partner Oli McBurnie was rank rotten.
But nevertheless, the build-up was enough to get the supporters on their feet. Little did they — or Bowie, making his first start for his country — know that was as good as it would get over the next couple of hours.
The Sassuolo man cut a dejected figure as he was sacrificed a few minutes later following Hendry’s moment of madness.
However, at least he could console himself in the knowledge that he won’t have long to wait for another opportunity to show what he can do.
Bowie’s first Scotland start was cut short on Tuesday after Jack Hendry’s early red card
Because while Sebastien Pocognoli may have several selection dilemmas to iron out before this evening’s meeting with North Macedonia, Bowie’s place in the starting XI should be set in stone.
The new boss needs to get a proper look at whether or not this partnership with Oli McBurnie is worth pursuing. Truth be told, we’re all curious.
The signs against Slovenia during their 20-minute spell on the pitch together were promising, albeit their end product was badly lacking. But it’s far too small a sample size to make any rash judgments. Bowie deserves the opportunity to get a run in the Scotland team, starting today.
It may be a different story in 12 months’ time, but for now, we need to show some patience.
Between the qualifiers, Nations League and our status as a host country for the event, Scotland have three lives when it comes to qualifying for Euro 2028. Even we can’t mess that up. Surely.
Which is why we should be treating this, and indeed the next batch of international fixtures, as opportunities to give guys like Bowie a platform to stake their claim before the really serious stuff gets under way.
A goal or two against a very beatable opponent this evening would be a decent start.
