SCOTLAND Under-21s fought back from two goals down to claim a creditable 2-2 draw against Ukraine in Cartaxo, ending their Vale do Tejo tournament campaign on a high.
Taras Stepanenko and Dmytro Lyopa had given Ukraine a commanding lead with goals just before and after the interval. Stepanenko beat St Mirren's Chris Smith after 42 minutes, converting Volodymyr Lysenko's cross, before Lyopa extended Ukraine's lea
d five minutes after the break. But Billy Stark's side came back into the game when Falkirk midfielder Scott Arfield gave them hope with his 64th-minute strike. And Ryan Conroy hauled the young Scots back to level terms when he netted six minutes later.
Conroy's Celtic club-mate Scott Cuthbert, captaining the side, was sent off 13 minutes from time and Scotland held on for a draw, leaving the two sides a share of third place in the four-team tournament.
Scotland had lost 2-1 to hosts Portugal on Tuesday, with Rocco Quinn scoring and Jamie Hamill sent off, while Ukraine were beaten by Sweden. New Scotland Under-21 manager Stark refreshed his team for their second game in the two-day tournament. He took full advantage of his large squad with Cuthbert the only player to keep his place, allowing the likes of Steven Lennon, Greg Cameron and Ross Campbell to come into the side.
The young Scots are without a game until their next European Under-21 Championship qualifier, the tricky test against unbeaten Group Six leaders Finland at Pittodrie on 26 March.
Finland have won all five of their qualifiers so far, while Scotland have two wins, one draw and one defeat – which came against the young Finns – from four matches.
The full article contains 289 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
