Attendance 5,052
Scotland fought out a thrilling 2-2 draw with Germany in tonight's European Championship Qualifier at Kilmarnock in a game that had the 5,000 spectators enthralled throughout.
There was a healthy travelling support following Germany, commandeering the entire Chadwick Stand and providing a raucous atmosphere that helped inspire both teams in what was a vital qualifying tie.
There was no Ibrox representation injury counting out both Allan McGregor and Stephen Hughes.
The Scots almost made a stunning start when Simon Lynch was inches away from reaching a Peter Canero cutback in just three minutes, but the opening goal when it duly arrived came at the other end six minutes later Benjamin Auer¹s header from a Markus Feulner cross producing a superb one-handed save from Scots' goalkeeper Derek Soutar only for Benjamin Lauth to drive home the rebound from close range.
The home side were behind for only seven minutes Lynch this time reaching Canero¹s low cross to sweep the ball home for the equaliser. Scotland were in command at this stage, and snatched the lead in 25 minutes when a Stephen Crainey corner broke to Gary Caldwell who scrambled the ball home.
There was no opportunity to consolidate the advantage however. Germany struck back within three minutes when Feulner¹s free-kick fell to Auer whose sclaffed effort was headed off the line by Crainey only for Hanno Balitsch to bundle the ball home.
Soutar kept his side level at the interval when he beat out Thomas Hitzlsperger¹s twenty-yard free-kick in 36 minutes. Scotland again had the better of the early stages of the second-half with substitute Tom McManus heading over a Kevin Kyle cross in 63 minutes, then seven minutes later the Sunderland striker made another opening with a delightful pass that released Canero only for the Kilmarnock man, playing on his home turf, to drive the ball across the face of goal and wide.
Kyle again was at the heart of the action with fifteen minutes left when his header from Crainey¹s corner was blocked on the line by goalkeeper Tom Starke.
The Germans stepped up the pace in the final ten minutes. Lauth saw his drive from Florian Kringe¹s pass beaten out by Soutar, then Feulner¹s twenty-yard drive in 83 minutes struck the outside of the post.
The woodwork again came to the rescue of Rainer Bonhof¹s side in the final minute when Kringe¹s header from Azaouagh¹s free-kick came back off an upright.
Scotland nevertheless held out for a deserved draw that keeps alive their hopes of progressing in their tournament.
Is it asking too much that Hampden Park will witness a similar thrilling encounter later today?
SCOTLAND Soutar; G. Caldwell, Murray; Kennedy, Crainey, Kerr; Canero, Pearson, Kyle, Fletcher (Gallagher 85), Lynch (McManus 60)
UNUSED SUBS Gordon, McCracken, Montgomery, Hammell, Duff
GERMANY Starke; Preuss, Madlung; Tiffert, Lapaczinski, Gerniti; Feulner (Schlicke 83), Balitsch, Auer (Kringe 68), Hitzlsperger (Azaouagh 45), Lauth
UNUSED SUBS Haas, Franz, Burkhardt
REFEREE Luis Medina Cantalejo (Spain)