It was not quite the old adage of having only one chance to make a good first impression but Hearts striker Lawrence Shankland may come to rue not taking his Scotland chance in Amsterdam.
Perhaps it was a case of trying too hard but the accusation of lacking confidence certainly cannot be levelled against the forward given the form he has shown this season.
But when his time came to lead the line for his country in the Netherlands it does feel as if Shankland failed to take his chance.
One-on-one with the goalkeeper to beat, Shankland somehow conspired to hit the crossbar rather than display the lethal finishing of the Premiership.
It was a golden opportunity to show Steve Clarke he can lead the line at this summer’s European Championship finals in Germany – and he missed it.
If the ever-increasing international football calendar has shown us one thing it’s that chances for experimentation are becoming fewer and further between for national team managers.
Between qualifiers for the World Cup and the Euros, and of course the Nations League, the number of friendlies has dwindled substantially from years gone by.
Clarke has built a unit capable of stringing together results on a consistent basis.
That consistency has led to the same tried and trusted personnel being used on a regular basis.
As a result players such as Shankland, who has seemingly been banging the goals in on a weekly basis at club level, have to bide their time.
Ferguson facing a similar fight for a starting place
For Shankland you can add former Don Lewis Ferguson to that list too.
Performing at a high standard in Serie A for Bologna, where his contribution has led to him wearing the captain’s armband, it still is not enough to force his way into Clarke’s starting line-up.
Why? John McGinn, Scott McTominay and Billy Gilmour are three reasons right there.
In Shankland’s case the duo of Che Adams and Lyndon Dykes are the two factors keeping him out of regular action for his country.
It is not that Clarke doubts what the likes of Shankland and Ferguson can offer but clearly he has huge faith and trust in those regulars.
Let’s face it – given how starved of success the Tartan Army has been in the last two decades the queue to question the manager who has guided the country to the finals of two of the last three tournaments is going to be a short one.
Could Dutch collapse have altered Clarke’s thinking?
Adding to that little nagging doubt at the back of Clarke’s mind will be the collapse of the team once the changes started coming against the Dutch.
Scotland went from a hugely encouraging 70 minutes to undoing all that positivity in a wretched final 20 minutes as they shipped three goals before departing on the end of a 4-0 hammering.
The scoreline flattered the hosts and stung the visitors.
But it reinforced just how reliant Clarke is on his regulars.
Morale will be dented following the heavy defeat and Clarke will be looking for the comforts of home to rebuild some of that confidence on Tuesday when Northern Ireland visit Hampden.
We may see some tweaks again but with just two further games to come after this week Clarke will be looking to have his team settled and his squad in place for Germany.
Chances to sway the manager’s thinking between now and the squad being named are dwindling away.
Those who are given opportunities have to take them or they risk being left behind.
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