German surge does for Scotland

Having beaten Greece 4-1 in their opening UEFA European Under-17 Championship Elite round Group 1 game in front of a sell-out crowd on Wednesday, Germany repeated the trick today to end the hopes of Scotland.

Bigalke opener
The Rheine Stadium played host to a capacity 5,500 crowd this morning, and they were celebrating 26 minutes in when Sascha Bigalke scored with a superb solo effort. Kevin Wolze made it 2-0 soon after from distance though Scotland, who had lost 2-1 to the Republic of Ireland on Matchday 1, were given hope when Greg Connell pulled one back before the break.

Substitutes strike swiftly
However, as against Greece, Richard Sukuta-Pasu came off the bench in the second half to register for the mini-tournament hosts, this time within two minutes of his introduction just after the hour. And on 70 minutes Marvin Knoll was brought on - and seconds later made it 4-1. Ireland beat Greece 1-0 in the second group fixture today to take second place behind Monday evening opponents Germany on goal difference. A point against the Irish in Nordhorn - a game which is already a 6,000 sell-out - would secure Germany's place in the Belgium-staged finals from 2-13 May.