Heather McEwan struck in the dying minutes to earn Scotland women a draw with top-ten ranked Spain in the EuroHockey Championships, Pool B, in Germany.
McEwan (pictured), who plays in Belgium, bravely found the net after a driving run down the left and into the circle from Surbiton player Ellie Mackenzie who sent a perfectly weighted ball in the direction of the South African-born forward to level at 1-1.
Spain, who went ahead in the first quarter, piled on the pressure, but the failed to find a way through the resolute and well-drilled Scots defence in which goalkeeper, Jess Buchanan, had another outstanding game.
The Wimbledon star was a major player in the 3-0 opening day defeat by England, and the Great Britain squad member, who was a travelling reserve for the Paris Olympics, could again be an ace card as Scotland square-up to Belgium on Wednesday in Monchengladbach.
Chris Duncan, the side’s head coach, said the squad showed great character and grit to respond positively after the England defeat and he was particularly pleased with their determination to fight back after losing an early goal to the highly-ranked Spanish combine.
Everybody, he said, played their part and athletes stepped-up, particularly in the dying minutes of the final quarter when Edinburgh-raised, Great Britain defender, Amy Costello, was on a yellow card.
Katie Birch (Wimbledon) and club-mate Buchanan were among the players who kept their cool alongside Dundee-born Charlotte Watson, a Paris Olympian, and, despite the intense pressure, but this, stressed the coach, was a team effort and he added: “We are still in this tournament, fighting for a semi-final place.”
Duncan’s side, may have slipped to No 16 in the world rankings, but they are competing at a high level and took the game to the Spanish side, ranked No 7 in the world, one place ahead of England, in the opening quarter.
He added: “They should be proud of their performance against Spain, and against England. I feel we have played well in both games and the England result did not reflect the performance. We created chances (against England) and they cleared one off the goal line. We made two errors which were punished.
“However, we showed great character and grit to come back against Spain and we played some good hockey defensively and with the ball. We got the job done.”
Scotland pressed early in the game, Jen Eadie (Clydesdale Western) coming close with a driving run and shot.
Ruth Blaikie (The University of Edinburgh) then tried to feed Fiona Burnet in the circle, but the Watsonians player was inches from connecting with the pass.
Spain struck against the run of play, their captain, Lucia Jiminez beating 23-year-old Buchanan to break the deadlock after 12 minutes.
Scotland did not buckle and Mackenzie and Costello, her Surbiton club-mate, were pivotal in keeping the scoreline the same despite pressure from the opposition along with goalkeeper Buchanan.
The Tartan Hearts were in the contest and they pressed hard in search of a breakthrough. It arrived four minutes from the final whistle when Mackenzie kept her cool to find Durban-born McEwan (Royal Victory, Belgium), who qualifies because of her Oban-raised father. She made no mistake, deflecting the ball home.
Now come Belgium, ranked in the world’s top three, in their final Pool B game on Wednesday (BST 11.15am) before the cross-over ties which determine the final placings.
