Pleasantly pleased is probably the most accurate way to describe manager Craig Levein in the post-game interviews after Scotland won 1-0 over the Czech Republic. He was not about to get carried away and admitted to being nervous in the days leading up to the game. He is used to having daily contact with squads and understanding their personalities and having been out of the training routine for three months he was not about to get carried away. While he played every ball, turned and shimmied past players while looking impassive on the touchline he knows there is a long road ahead as he brings his style of play to bear on the national side.

Looking back on the win, Levein said: "In all honesty, that's not the most important thing tonight. The important thing tonight was that we showed everybody that we're a unit and wanted to work hard for each other and the supporters. I saw some signs we gained a little bit of confidence. We showed some decent football, not as much as we'd like, but Rome wasn't built in a day. We set out to be difficult to beat and we had to work very hard, particularly for spells in the first 20-25 minutes. I thought we were a little bit nervous - maybe my fault talking (too much) about defending and I thought we sat just a little bit too deep. Overall, I'm thrilled with the lads. I thought they worked their socks off, we played some decent stuff, got a goal, kept a clean sheet. I'm not kidding myself or anybody else on. It's a friendly match, it's not the be all and end all but it's a start and we're hoping to gain some momentum." He and his Czech counterpart, Michal Bilek, both know that the result and manner in which it was achieved will have little bearing on how the sides will perform when they meet in EURO2012. Bilek brought on six of his seven substitutes during the game while Levein deployed five his available subs.

Levein applauded the performance of man of the match Graham Dorrans on what was the midfielder's home debut. The manager said: "He's a very good player and I like young players to play like young players. He showed enthusiasm and energy that a young lad should do when he's getting an opportunity to play for his country. I thought he showed everything today. I thought he showed his ability on numerous occasions but his workrate was fantastic as well." Dorrans said: "I feel comfortable at this level. I had a few games in the Premier League last season and I've pushed on this season. Hopefully, I can keep going and keep getting in squads. I thought as a whole we did well. It's a long time to go without winning so I'm glad we got a win in the end."