Man By Man

Sep 7 2008 By Gordon Waddell

CRAIG GORDON 8

UNLUCKY not to save the only goal after magnificently finger-tipping the ball on to the post before being beaten by the rebound. Almost suckered into a penalty when he slid out to stop Maznov. World class stop from Ipswich ace Shumolikoski in the second half. A really decent shift.

GRAHAM ALEXANDER 5

UP against it in his personal war with goalscorer Ilcho Naumoski on the right hand side. The Burnley man is never going to give you the driving runs of an Alan Hutton and was pegged back to his defensive duties all day. Didn't offer an outlet going forward. But at 36, never let anyone down in a battling show.

STEPHEN McMANUS 6

HARD done by with the challenge on Maznov that led to the killer opener. Left a leg in there but the striker looked for it instead of the ball and conned the ref. The skipper managed his battles with Pandev and Maznov after that though as the defence limited the home side's chances after the break.

GARY CALDWELL 6

STRUGGLED to match his usual standards with the ball at his feet . Too many of his passes went astray. Better on the defensive end though with one sliding tackle ending a dangerous Macedonia break before half-time. Put in some decent covering work as we pushed forward after the restart.

GARY NAYSMITH 6

EARNING his 42nd cap, the left back always does exactly what it says on the tin. Defended his corner with commitment but like Alexander on the opposite flank his chances to get forward and attack the way he can were limited. Didn't manage to put a decent cross in all afternoon.

SCOTT BROWN 5

COMMITTED the cardinal sin at this level and gave away cheap possession with a slack pass that led to Macedonia's deadly free-kick in the fifth minute. Which would have been fine if he'd made up for it going forward. First real threat came in first-half injury time but his shot was blocked. Miles from his best.

DARREN FLETCHER 5

SUCH a great start to the season with Man U, George Burley would have been looking for the 24-year-old to impose himself on a game like this. It didn't happen. Never hid because it's not in his nature but never saw enough of the ball to make an impact. His frustration grew the longer the game went on.

PAUL HARTLEY 6

TUCKED in between defence and midfield to offer his centre halves protection from the support Pandev was getting. Tried to put his foot on the ball and start picking out a few passes but never generated much on that front. As ever a willing Scots soldier when it came to looking for the ball.

BARRY ROBSON 7

BRAVE show from the Celtic man. Fighting a virus all week but he took responsibility going in both directions. His longrange shooting can be special but never caught any of them here. Prepared to have a go, though. Wilted a bit after the break and replaced by Shaun Maloney in 76 minutes.

JAMES McFADDEN 6

RESISTED coming deep to take the ball and head off on his mazy runs. Well-marshalled generally but had a great run across the box on the half-hour although blocked well when he did turn and shoot. Booked for dissent when a penalty shout was denied which could come back to bite us when it matters.

KENNY MILLER 6

A WILLING runner as ever but was on to plums. Played right on the line, desperate to test the pace of their last man but the delivery to him wasn't good enough. More involved after the break as Scotland squeezed the game higher up the park and, like McFadden, had a decent penalty claim knocked back.

SUBS

KRIS COMMONS: On for Hartley in 65 minutes and tested their keeper from a tight angle as Scotland went for an equaliser (5). SHAUN MALONEY: Replaced Robson with 15 minutes left and forced keeper into a save with a ferocious 25-yarder (3). KRIS BOYD: Took Kenny Miller's place with 10 minutes left but too late for him to work any predatory magic (3).