Match Reports - Scotland v Japan 14 feb 07

Scotland lost their first game of a two match tour, 2-0 to Japan at the Dasaki Stadium in Cyprus this afternoon.

Despite Scotland being well organised and working hard in defence, the Scots conceded from two corners scored off the head of Sakaguchi of Japan, one in each half of the game, in 43 and 70 minutes.

Scotland continued to work hard, performing better in the second half, to break down Japan, but the combination of opponents who played the game with high intensity and the poor use of the ball by Scotland when they were in possession added to their demise.

Coach Anna Signeul said: "Obviously we are disappointed at conceding two goals from set pieces, especially as we were well organised in defence, but lack of focus and poor marking at the set pieces has cost us dearly. We need to work harder when we are in possession of the ball, as we gave it away so easily today."

There was one positive aspect to the game for Signeul today as Kim Little, aged 16, made her ‘A’ squad debut today coming on as a substitute in the second half and putting in a performance which pleased Signeul enormously.

Scotland will now prepare to face Signeul’s former colleagues when they play Sweden on Saturday 17 February in their last challenge match of this trip.

Scotland: Fay, Jones (Ferguson 80), Ross (Somerville 80), Kerr, Dieke, Love, Burns (Cook 75), McBride (Brolly 75), Sneddon (Little 70), Fleeting (c), Malone (Hamill 65).
Unused Subs: Johnstone, McDonald and Suzanne Grant.

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Hibs 16-year-old striker Kim Little made a good impression in her senior debut for Scotland last Wednesday even although Japan were 2-0 winners in the friendly tournament in Cyprus. “She went on as a substitute for the last 25 minutes and played in centre midfield,” says Scotland boss Anna Signeul. “That was tough to come into but she played very well and made some great runs. Kim is such a strong player. “It was a shame we couldn’t draw against Japan, as we lost to two set pieces and we usually cope very well with corners. But we’ve come a long way, even in the year since we last played Japan and they beat us 4-0. Then we only managed to defend for 45 minutes of the game and this time we succeeded for 90 minutes. We were well organised and didn’t give anything away.” Scotland now face Signeul's former colleagues Sweden when they meet in the last challenge match of the trip.