SCOTLAND Under-19 coach Archie Gemmill last night pleaded for no further call-offs from the squad which travels to Portugal tomorrow in preparation for their attempt to become the first team at that age level to qualify for a finals tournament for 20 years.
Having got through the first stage without losing a game or a goal, the squad will travel to Belarus next May for the elite round against the hosts, Bulgaria and top seeds France, in a bid to qualify for the eightteam finals in Poland two months later. Back-to-back games against Portugal . . . rated in the top four at that age group . . . this Tuesday and Thursday are seen as vital preparation.
Gemmill and co-manager Tommy Wilson named a 23-man squad but they have already lost Norwich City's Andrew CaveBrown due to injury, and seen key strikers Steven Fletcher, of Hibs, and Calum Elliot, of Hearts, pull out due to a clash with their club commitments.
"There are quite a few in demand at their club side, if you look at the last squad we had, " Gemmill said. "So we will just see how many call-offs we have.
"Anybody who gets into the Under-19 squad is a good player in his own right, but the more of the top boys we have the better the trip will be. The trip gets the boys together, actually playing together, and integrated into knowing each others strengths and weaknesses."
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