Czech Republic 3 - 1 Scotland. Depleted Scots unable to keep buoyant Czechs at bay

IF the trip to Prague was football's equivalent of a voyage of discovery for George Burley, it would yield only confirmation of what he already knew.

It is that his Scotland players are, for the time being at least, distinguished by a seemingly imperishable spirit that was required to prevent a potentially embarrassing defeat by a predictably aggressive and technically superior Czech Republic side bound for next week's European championship.

When David Clarkson, the Motherwell striker who had replaced midfielder Gavin Rae 15 minutes earlier, scored the late goal that halved an advantage for the home side established by Libor Sionko, below, and Michal Kadlec, it gave the scoreline a rather unrealistic appearance before Sionko completed his double in the last minute, but testified to the Scots' resilience in difficult circumstances.

In truth, the national team manager, in only his second match, will find it impossible to relate what occurred at the Axa Stadium to what may be expected in the forthcoming World Cup qualifying campaign. With so many regular first choices absent because of injury, the exercise in the Czech capital would simply offer a guide to the temperament of the players available to him.

With the match scheduled for late afternoon in order to approximate to the Czechs' kick-offs at Euro 2008, the Scots were obliged to operate in a searing heat to which they have hardly been accustomed in the past few months. The arrangement seemed not to suit the local fans, either, the large number of empty seats in the stadium indicating their seeming indifference.

There is little doubt that the climate would have played its part in the non-attendance. Prague is subject to very hot summers, but, for the second-last day of May, the temperature yesterday was unseasonably high. The Czechs appeared to recognise the need to pace themselves, even during a first half in which they spent most of the time in their visitors' half of the field, regularly testing the quickness and timing of Stephen McManus and his fellow defenders.

The captain passed with honours on at least three occasions, although the model for the vital blocking challenge had been fashioned by Gary Naysmith as early as the third minute. It was a moment that would have made Hearts fans yearn for earlier times when Rudi Skacel burrowed into the left side of the area and played what appeared to be the perfect low cut-back to Sionko.

The former Rangers midfielder, driving the ball from just six yards into what he would have believed to be an unprotected net, would have been as shocked as the Scottish supporters were gratified when Naysmith appeared, having bolted in from the left-back position, to deflect the ball from its target. McManus executed the first of his important challenges by coming across to the right-back position to foil Sionko, clear with only Craig Gordon to beat. He would repeat the trick on the same player, on this occasion Sionko coming in on the right side of the penalty box. McManus completed the treble soon after by stretching his left leg to prevent the marauding Jan Polak from running in on Gordon.

If Burley's side were not much in evidence in terms of bothering Petr Cech, they still managed, until Sionko's goal, to look composed under pressure, occasionally matching their temperament with neat passing into forward areas. With their first genuinely promising skirmish, they were actually given grounds for a penalty claim.

Darren Fletcher, linking the midfield to lone striker Kenny Miller in a 4-4-1-1 formation, supplied Naysmith before the full-back shuttled the ball out to the debutant, James Morrison, on the left. The West Brom midfielder's measured cross found Barry Robson, who seemed to be nudged from behind by Marek Jankulovski as he rose to glance his header wide. The Celtic player's appeal left the Dutch referee, Eric Braamhaar, unmoved.

Such moments were predictably sporadic as the Czechs sought the result that would lift their spirits ahead of next week's European assignment, although another fluent move between Fletcher, Robson and Morrison ended with a poor cross from the latter as Fletcher moved into the middle of the area as an intended recipient.

None of the Scots' threats, however, would be as authentically scary as the one presented by Sionko, whose terrific cross from the right found Jan Koller at the far post, the veteran striker making a poor job of the attempted conversion by heading high over the bar.

Gordon had to show his renowned agility by diving left to stop a ferocious drive from Jan Polak, the ball rebounding to Jankulovski. The Milan left-back, with his weaker right foot, hit the shot into the outside of the net.

With Karel Bruckner making five changes at half-time, the Scots' opponents became virtually a different side. Burley waited another seven minutes before replacing McManus with Christian Dailly, the substitution taking place just a few seconds after the visitors' most serious threat and three minutes before the home side took the lead.

Miller held the ball on the left and rolled it into the path of the driving Morrison, who hit the shot on the run from 16 yards, forcing Cech to save with his legs. Miller would follow later by squandering a golden opportunity contrived by his own slick footwork.

Having taken Fletcher's pass, the Derby striker turned brilliantly away from Tomas Ujfalusi and, with only Cech to beat, finished abysmally with an over-hit chip high and wide of the goalkeeper's left post.

Kadlec would demonstrate how it should be done with a raking right-foot drive from the corner of the penalty box before Clarkson marked his debut with a neat goal. The striker took Naysmith's cross from the left, turned quickly, and slid the ball left-footed past Cech from the left side of the six-yard area.

Sionko made the result a little more truly reflective of the general play by twisting Kevin McNaughton inside out before chipping past Gordon from ten yards.