{"id":2178264,"date":"2026-10-04T07:59:10","date_gmt":"2026-10-04T04:59:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2178264"},"modified":"2026-10-04T07:59:10","modified_gmt":"2026-10-04T04:59:10","slug":"kierron-bowie-seizing-scotland-shot-after-world-cup-disappointment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2178264","title":{"rendered":"Kierron Bowie seizing Scotland shot after World Cup disappointment"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/branded_sport\/1200\/cpsprodpb\/3e53\/live\/7ab140f0-bfc7-11f1-ae6d-41d695ddb617.jpg&#8221;]<\/p>\n<article class=\"ssrcss-2fe4mx-ArticleWrapper e1nh2i2l0\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-15twdc6-Stack e1y4nx260\">\n<div data-block=\"headline\" class=\"ssrcss-l7emlr-ComponentWrapper e1aon0op1\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-usmnse-Spacer e1aon0op0\">\n<header data-testid=\"headline\">\n<h1 id=\"main-heading\" tabindex=\"-1\" class=\"ssrcss-8zqj65-Heading e10rt3ze0\"><span role=\"text\">Bowie seizing Scotland shot after World Cup disappointment<\/span><\/h1>\n<\/header>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-block=\"media\" class=\"ssrcss-l7emlr-ComponentWrapper e1aon0op1\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-126h8e-Spacer e1aon0op0\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-1uy5kw5-FullWidthWrapper ep2nwvo1\">\n<figure class=\"ssrcss-hc6arm-StyledFigure e34k3c22\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-ab5fd8-StyledFigureContainer e34k3c21\">\n<div data-chromatic=\"ignore\" class=\"ssrcss-dtyrnv-MediaPlayerWrapper e1h75hkw2\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-1553su4-ErrorMessage eitf6465\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-h7lv7m-StyledInnerContainer eitf6464\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-nbxsk2-TextContent eitf6461\">\n<h2 class=\"ssrcss-89o2pv-Heading e10rt3ze0\">To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.<\/h2>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">This video can not be played<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"ssrcss-3uli8u-StyledFigureCaption ehbdhz00\"><span class=\"visually-hidden ssrcss-i2z2ig-VisuallyHidden e16en2lz0\">Figure caption, <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-15twdc6-Stack e1y4nx260\">\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Highlights: North Macedonia 0-2 Scotland<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-block=\"byline\" class=\"ssrcss-vxwoax-ComponentWrapper e1aon0op1\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-126h8e-Spacer e1aon0op0\">\n<div data-testid=\"single-byline\" class=\"ssrcss-sevsa1-ContributorContainer ee66fvo3\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-dt4z-ContributorInfo ee66fvo0\"><span class=\"visually-hidden ssrcss-i2z2ig-VisuallyHidden e16en2lz0\">By<\/span><span class=\"ssrcss-nsjd43-TextContributorName epw3ir01\">Scott Mullen<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-dqo7s5-ContributorDetails ee66fvo2\"><span class=\"ssrcss-1m5444d-Text ee66fvo4\">BBC Sport Scotland in North Macedonia<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-block=\"metadata\" class=\"ssrcss-l7emlr-ComponentWrapper e1aon0op1\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-126h8e-Spacer e1aon0op0\">\n<div data-testid=\"metadata\">\n<div>\n<ul role=\"list\" class=\"ssrcss-9tw7r1-MetadataStripContainer eh44mf03\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-10q9h22-GroupChildrenForWrapping eh44mf02\">\n<li role=\"listitem\" class=\"ssrcss-sf7vdp-MetadataStripItem eh44mf01\">\n<div class=\"visually-hidden ssrcss-i2z2ig-VisuallyHidden e16en2lz0\">Published<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-m5j4pi-MetadataContent eh44mf00\"><span class=\"ssrcss-1pvwv4b-MetadataSnippet e4wm5bw3\"><span class=\"ssrcss-61mhsj-MetadataText e4wm5bw1\"><time data-testid=\"timestamp\" datetime=\"2026-10-04T07:59:10.155Z\">28 minutes ago<\/time><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/div>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-block=\"text\" class=\"ssrcss-vxwoax-ComponentWrapper e1aon0op1\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-126h8e-Spacer e1aon0op0\">\n<div data-testid=\"rich-text\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-nqezkk-RichTextContainer e5tfeyi1\">\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\"><b class=\"ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3\">Sometimes, the solution to a problem can be hiding in plain sight.<\/b><\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">On 19 May, Steve Clarke assembled his collection of players to embark on a World Cup journey.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Despite featuring and scoring for a Hellas Verona side heading for relegation from Serie A, and with a perennial problem of strikers not firing regularly for Scotland, Kieron Bowie was overlooked.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Given the loyalty Clarke showed to those who had served him so well, it was not a huge surprise. Neither was the impotence of the national team in the USA as they conjured up just one John McGinn goal.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;I received a message from him saying that I&#8217;m not in the squad but these things happen and it&#8217;s just about how you bounce back from it to be honest,&#8221; said Bowie. <\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;I scored goals in a struggling Verona team and that was as much as I could do. I was happy with where I was at and I was happy with how I&#8217;d played. <\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;I just spent a lot of time at home with my family and then a little golf holiday to Portugal for a week and that was all I did.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-block=\"links\" class=\"ssrcss-vxwoax-ComponentWrapper e1aon0op1\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-126h8e-Spacer e1aon0op0\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-1gccci3-Stack e1y4nx260\">\n<ul role=\"list\" class=\"ssrcss-94r6ik-Stack e1y4nx260\">\n<li class=\"ssrcss-qzx51b-LinkItem e3eyuya1\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-1gccci3-Stack e1y4nx260\"><span><\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0s6gx-LinkHeadline e3eyuya4\"><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Two going on four, five or six on good night for new Scotland era<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n<div>\n<ul role=\"list\" class=\"ssrcss-9tw7r1-MetadataStripContainer eh44mf03\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-10q9h22-GroupChildrenForWrapping eh44mf02\">\n<li role=\"listitem\" class=\"ssrcss-sf7vdp-MetadataStripItem eh44mf01\">\n<div class=\"visually-hidden ssrcss-i2z2ig-VisuallyHidden e16en2lz0\">Published<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-m5j4pi-MetadataContent eh44mf00\"><span class=\"ssrcss-1pvwv4b-MetadataSnippet e4wm5bw3\"><span class=\"ssrcss-61mhsj-MetadataText e4wm5bw1\">10 hours ago<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/div>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"ssrcss-qzx51b-LinkItem e3eyuya1\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-1gccci3-Stack e1y4nx260\"><span><\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0s6gx-LinkHeadline e3eyuya4\"><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Scotland beat North Macedonia in Nations League for Pocognoli&#8217;s first win<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/span><\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-block=\"image\" class=\"ssrcss-l7emlr-ComponentWrapper e1aon0op1\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-126h8e-Spacer e1aon0op0\">\n<div data-testid=\"image\" class=\"ssrcss-1uy5kw5-FullWidthWrapper ep2nwvo1\">\n<figure class=\"ssrcss-hc6arm-StyledFigure e34k3c22\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-ab5fd8-StyledFigureContainer e34k3c21\"><span class=\"ssrcss-1nkkea8-Placeholder etlorgc0\"><source srcset=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/240\/cpsprodpb\/a521\/live\/23c46b70-bf75-11f1-9977-1bb0fe4b58eb.jpg.webp 240w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/320\/cpsprodpb\/a521\/live\/23c46b70-bf75-11f1-9977-1bb0fe4b58eb.jpg.webp 320w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/480\/cpsprodpb\/a521\/live\/23c46b70-bf75-11f1-9977-1bb0fe4b58eb.jpg.webp 480w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/624\/cpsprodpb\/a521\/live\/23c46b70-bf75-11f1-9977-1bb0fe4b58eb.jpg.webp 624w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/800\/cpsprodpb\/a521\/live\/23c46b70-bf75-11f1-9977-1bb0fe4b58eb.jpg.webp 800w\" type=\"image\/webp\" \/><\/span><span role=\"text\" class=\"ssrcss-tzgxt7-StyledFigureCopyright e34k3c20\"><span class=\"visually-hidden ssrcss-i2z2ig-VisuallyHidden e16en2lz0\">Image source, <\/span>SNS<\/span><\/div><figcaption class=\"ssrcss-3uli8u-StyledFigureCaption ehbdhz00\"><span class=\"visually-hidden ssrcss-i2z2ig-VisuallyHidden e16en2lz0\">Image caption, <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-15twdc6-Stack e1y4nx260\">\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Bowie scored his first Scotland goal early in the win over North Macedonia<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-block=\"text\" class=\"ssrcss-vxwoax-ComponentWrapper e1aon0op1\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-126h8e-Spacer e1aon0op0\">\n<div data-testid=\"rich-text\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-nqezkk-RichTextContainer e5tfeyi1\">\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Bowie may have been cursing his luck again on Tuesday when his first international start was reduced to a mere 13 minutes following Jack Hendry&#8217;s red card in the Hampden loss to Switzerland.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">The landscape now looks very different.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">The former Raith Rovers and Hibernian forward was one of the main Scotland heroes in Skopje after sending a deliciously whipped finish into the net in the 2-0 win over North Macedonia.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Playing in a new 3-4-1-2, Bowie started the game up top with Oli McBurnie in an ultra-attacking line up set out by Sebastien Pocognoli. <\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Throughout the game, his stats stacked up. The most shots with seven, the most on target with four, most shots in the box with five and the most touches in the opposition box with 11.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;You play all your life to represent a country and to score a goal is just an unbelievable feeling,&#8221; said the 24-year-old Fifer.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;This manager&#8217;s come in and he&#8217;s put a lot of trust in me.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;I think the style that he wants to play definitely plays into my strengths. I think you&#8217;ve seen today a lot of times running them in behind and just showing strength against occupying defenders is one of the main things. <\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;It&#8217;s a process but I think everyone&#8217;s enjoying that process and it&#8217;s a bit of a change.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-block=\"media\" class=\"ssrcss-l7emlr-ComponentWrapper e1aon0op1\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-126h8e-Spacer e1aon0op0\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-1uy5kw5-FullWidthWrapper ep2nwvo1\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-1w8ucfj-PortraitVideoWrapper e1pbfhqo0\">\n<figure class=\"ssrcss-hc6arm-StyledFigure e34k3c22\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-ab5fd8-StyledFigureContainer e34k3c21\">\n<div data-chromatic=\"ignore\" class=\"ssrcss-dtyrnv-MediaPlayerWrapper e1h75hkw2\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-1553su4-ErrorMessage eitf6465\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-h7lv7m-StyledInnerContainer eitf6464\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-nbxsk2-TextContent eitf6461\">\n<h2 class=\"ssrcss-89o2pv-Heading e10rt3ze0\">To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.<\/h2>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">This video can not be played<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"ssrcss-3uli8u-StyledFigureCaption ehbdhz00\"><span class=\"visually-hidden ssrcss-i2z2ig-VisuallyHidden e16en2lz0\">Figure caption, <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-15twdc6-Stack e1y4nx260\">\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Bowie smashes in first Scotland goal<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-block=\"text\" class=\"ssrcss-vxwoax-ComponentWrapper e1aon0op1\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-126h8e-Spacer e1aon0op0\">\n<div data-testid=\"rich-text\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-nqezkk-RichTextContainer e5tfeyi1\">\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">The word &#8220;process&#8221; has been used so many times by the Scotland head coach and his players in recent days it&#8217;s probably the new team motto.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">But there is truth in it.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Pocognoli is trying to implement a radically different system to his predecessor. Not only that, it&#8217;s a different mindset. All while trying to embed a clutch of new players.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">It&#8217;s early days for the Belgian, his group, and, of course, Bowie. But the man on loan at Sassuolo believes things are clicking, and it&#8217;s an opportunity for him to make his mark.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;It&#8217;s a lot longer international break,&#8221; he explained. &#8220;We spend a lot more time together so it&#8217;s good for him to get his message across and his ideas. Also, we play more games so we have to train a little bit less of course.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;I think for me it&#8217;s a fresh start with a new coach and different ideas.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;He said to me &#8216;you don&#8217;t need to prove yourself, just go and do what I know you can do&#8217; and I feel like I&#8217;m just doing that.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Bowie, who made his Rovers debut at 16, added: &#8220;I think people, obviously Scottish fans, have the same idea of how I was when I was at Hibs and that&#8217;s all they can remember. <\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;But I feel like since I moved to Serie A, it&#8217;s a different league, different challenge and I&#8217;m getting more experience at a higher level.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;So, yeah, I feel like I&#8217;ve definitely kicked into another gear and I feel like I&#8217;m showing that.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-block=\"topicList\" class=\"ssrcss-vxwoax-ComponentWrapper e1aon0op1\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-tcr9z1-Spacer e1aon0op0\">\n<div data-testid=\"topic-list\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-nj9heb-StyledTagContainer ed0g1kj1\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-1pfbb52-TopicListHeaderWrapper etw6iwl0\">\n<h2 class=\"ssrcss-89o2pv-Heading e10rt3ze0\">Related topics<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-17ehax8-Cluster e1ihwmse1\">\n<ul role=\"list\" class=\"ssrcss-w8zanw-ClusterItems e1ihwmse0\">\n<li>Scotland Men&#8217;s Football Team<\/li>\n<li>Football<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p>[analyse_source url=&#8221;https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/sport\/football\/articles\/c5djvw4n8vp8o&#8221;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/branded_sport\/1200\/cpsprodpb\/3e53\/live\/7ab140f0-bfc7-11f1-ae6d-41d695ddb617.jpg&#8221;] Bowie seizing Scotland shot after World Cup disappointment To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. This video can not be played Figure caption, Highlights: North Macedonia 0-2 Scotland ByScott Mullen BBC Sport Scotland in North Macedonia Published 28 minutes ago Sometimes, the solution to a problem can [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[35,226],"class_list":["post-2178264","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-bbc-com","tag-crawlmanager"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2178264","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2178264"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2178264\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2178264"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2178264"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2178264"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}