Women’s World Cup play-off: Five-goal thriller sees Scotland beat Czechia

Women’s World Cup play-off: Five-goal thriller sees Scotland beat Czechia Scotland have secured a second play-off, after a 3-2 win over Czechia (5-2 aggregate) kept their hopes of qualifying for the 2027 Women’s World Cup alive.  Scotland headed into the clash with a 2-0 advantage, but suffered a blow when captain Caroline Weir was injured during the warm-up. Angel City’s Claire Emslie stepped into her place in midfield, while Rangers skipper Nicola Docherty donned the armband.  On paper, Scotland are the better team. They stand 25th in the FIFA World Rankings to Czechia’s 33rd. The offensive performance inside the first 20 was undoubtedly their best under Melissa Andreatta, who took the reins in April 2025. The team, which is largely unchanged from the selections of the previous manager, have a newfound aggression in attack. Nevertheless, the homeside have plenty to improve on as they look to book their ticket to Brazil. They will face Sweden during the December international break for the second World Cup play-off.  Starting XIs Scotland MacIver; Docherty (C); Muir; Clark; Hanson; McGovern; McLauchlan; Taylor; Grimshaw; Emslie; Davidson. Czechia Votíková; Veselá; Bendová; Polcarová; Bartoñová; Cahynová (C); Kotrčová; Dubcová; Černá; Khýrová; Stašková.    Czechia brace dampens Scotland’s spirit Shouts of ‘No Scotland, No Party’ rang around The Marbill Coaches Stadium in Glasgow, but just three minutes in, they were silenced. Denisa Vesela’s rocket from well outside the box flew past MacIver at full stretch. Before Czechia could settle, Scotland hit back, with Lauren Davidson sliding one past Barbora Votíková to make it 1-1 (3-1 agg) in the fifth minute. Scotland looked most dangerous, with Davidson lining up a shot for Kirsty Hanson which slipped just past the post. By comparison, Czechia struggled to get into the box, with long-range efforts marking their best chances.  As the weather took a turn, the game settled into a cagey affair. A Czechia corner was converted by Captain Klára Cahynová to make it 1-2 (3-2 agg) at half-time.  Embed from Getty Images Scotland fire back to clinch Sweden play-off A frantic start to the second half saw the Czech team crack under pressure. A long ball from Scotland keeper MacIver let Kathleen McGovern smash it past Votíková at the near post to restore Scotland’s two-goal aggregate lead. In the 71st minute, Erin Cuthbert’s cross was fumbled by Votíková. A merciless Christy Grimshaw capitalised, sending it to the back of the net. Despite the two moments of brilliance from Czechia in the first half, the visitors did little to trouble Scotland in the second. With time running out, they turned up the pressure. MacIver, who rarely starts for Scotland, was called into action again and again. The whistle blew at 3-2 (5-2 aggregate), leaving the Scots to fight another day. While the hosts showed a bright performance upfront, the cracks in Scotland’s backline will need tightening ahead of December’s second round play-off against a trigger-happy Sweden, who won their first round play-off against Lithuania 15-0 on aggregate. Related articles from Her Football Hub: England beat Greece but still leave room for improvement Sydney Sweeney’s Novig ad: What does it mean to represent women’s sports? From Alex Morgan to Naomi Girma: When women’s transfer hypes failed to become reality