2002 World Cup - Scotland 4 San Marino 0

What is the point of San Marino ?

Time wasting at the end of a game when this mystery nation is 4-0 down sums up the San Marino attitude to the sport as they do anything to cheat and keep the score down. It also saw the Finnish referee add seven minutes of injury time.

In the end Scotland captain Colin Hendry smashed substitute Albani in the face with an elbow to enliven this dire game with brutal violence.

San Marino should take up poker or Robot Wars rather than continue to poison international football with their antipathetic style of play.

At least one in three World Cup qualifiers these days sees one side whose only interest in the game is to keep the score down.

The smaller nations should have to prequalify to join the World Cup but FIFA's ambition to fill the world with junk internationals shows no sign of abating.

Why are San Marino allowed to distort World Cup groups where goal difference is now crucial by conceding ten goals here and four goals there ? What are they trying to do when they go out to play ?

It does not look like football.

Scotland racked up 27 shots in a truly dismal game but with only one team trying to play the spectacle on offer was poor throughout.

Colin Hendry scored the first of his two goals when he produced a neat curling shot after a Craig Burley corner had been headed against the post by Matt Elliott.

The captain produced a booming drive for Scotland's second and Colin Cameron was set up for an easy finish by Kevin Gallacher after a headed knockdown by Craig Burley to a far post cross.

Earlier Billy Dodds had met a far post cross with a low finish for Scotland's third goal.