Ewan Murray was our man at Hampden to witness Scotland squeak past Cyprus. His report has landed, and here it is. Meanwhile thanks for reading this MBM. Anon!

The new boss Steve Clarke talks to Sky Sports, the metaphorical eyebrow raised. “It was interesting. A little bit different! I thought we did OK, we were comfortable at 1-0, but we switched off at a set play and that’s something you shouldn’t do at this level. But I thought the resilience and the character of the players to bounce back - because it would have been easy to feel sorry for yourself, but they didn’t - was a good sign. When you get such a late blow - and it wasn’t even a good header, it was poor marking, we’ll have a look at the video - they way they bounced back gives us good hope for the future. I’ve only been working with the group for seven training sessions, so it’s not going to change overnight. But I’ve given the lads a real amount of information. There are a lot of things to be pleased about, a lot of things to work on. We couldn’t afford to lose. We go to Belgium, everyone expects them to win, but it’s football, anything can happen.”

And did you enjoy the game tonight? “No chance!”

A very happy match-winner Oli Burke speaks! “It’s an amazing feeling to get my first Scotland goal. Credit to the boys, who were fantastic today. I’m really happy, and really happy for the team. Coming into a game like that, it’s made for me to make an impact, and conceding so late drove us a little bit more, pushed us for that next goal. And I think we deserved it.”

Elsewhere, it was a 3-0 win for Belgium against Kazakhstan. Throw in Russia’s earlier 9-0 rout of San Marino, and the table, with all teams having played three times, reads:

1. Belgium 9pts
2. Russia 6pts
3. Scotland 6pts
4. Cyprus 3pts
5. Kazakhstan 3pts
6. San Marino 0pts

Scotland can go top if they beat Belgium next Tuesday, but let’s not get too carried away with the new Steve Clarke era just yet.

Well that was exciting. Perhaps more exciting than Steve Clarke would have preferred, but it’s three points to the Scots. They were pushed all the way by Cyprus.

90 min +5: Efrem’s free kick flies into the top right ... of the stand behind the goal. That’s a dismal effort, and surely Scotland are home and hosed now.

90 min +4: It’s very shapeless. Suddenly Costi barges down the middle of the park and buys a cheap free kick off McLean, who really didn’t need to make a challenge. That’s a free kick, 30 yards out, just left of centre! A chance for Cyprus to salvage a point!

90 min +2: Scotland draw a couple of fouls from Cyprus and the clock ticks on in their favour.

90 min: Then another corner for Cyprus, which is just about dealt with by the Scots this time. There will be five added minutes of this gloriously messy nonsense!

What a response by Scotland! Fraser dribbles down the left and hooks a fine cross into the centre. Burke gets up above Nicholas Ioannou and sends a downward header past Pardo ... but crashing off the inside of the right-hand post. But the ball rolls into the centre, where Burke converts into the empty net with glee! Hampden roars again!

The corner’s hit long. Kousoulos, eight yards out and level with the far post, doesn’t have to jump off the ground to meet it with a header, and plants one into the right-hand side of the goal. None of the Scottish defenders covered themselves in glory there, to say the least. Penny for the thoughts of Steve Clarke, an assured defender himself.

86 min: McGregor’s corner is plucked from the heavens by Pardo, who launches long for Georgiou. The sub forces the backtracking Robertson into the concession of a corner. From which ...

85 min: Fraser makes up some ground on the left, then looks for the top right. No Robertson he, though it’s a decent enough curler that forces Pardo into tipping round the post for a corner.

84 min: Scotland take the sting out of proceedings by taking an age over a throw in the professional style. Hampden is nervous.

82 min: Hampden holds its breath as Margaca fires a deep cross in from the left. Kousoulos, coming in from the right, looks to have a clear header, ten yards out, but is blocked by his own man in Sotiriou. Artymatas tries to smash the rebound home from distance, but Marshall gathers. Sleepy Scotland were so close to giving it all away there.

80 min: McGinn is replaced by McTominay. Then Makris makes way for Pittas.

78 min: Fraser, out on the left, slips a pass down the inside-left channel for the underlapping O’Donnell, who draws Pardo and chips for goal. The ball bounces inches wide of the right-hand post. That would have been a picture-book goal.

77 min: But Scotland’s lead is a slender one. Hampden are reminded of this when Makris has a dig from 25 yards. The ball pings off McKenna and nearly loops over Marshall, but the keeper tips over spectacularly. The resulting corner leads to nothing. But Cyprus were so close to a very fortunate equaliser there.

76 min: A gorgeous bit of skill by Fraser, tight to the chalk out on the left. With little space to play with, or margin for error, he chips the ball down the line past Kousoulos and skedaddles towards the box. At which point he rather runs out of ideas, but that’s a fine run nonetheless.

75 min: Artymatas is booked for excessively bothering McGregor. A free kick midway in Cypriot territory. Scotland rather conservatively play it backwards, professionalism rather than entertainment the watchword. See, this is where Uefa Multiball would come into its own.

74 min: Burke comes on for the luckless Brophy, who hasn’t really had much chance to shine on his debut.

72 min: Cyprus stroke the ball around in midfield for a while, the rhythm of the game having been disrupted by Spoljaric’s injury. For a while, there are two balls on the pitch. The referee doesn’t stop the game, perhaps under instruction from Uefa to trial a new multiball system. And you thought VAR was needless tinkering.

70 min: Spoljaric has tweaked something, so he’s replaced by Costi.

68 min: Scottish tails are up now. They’re passing it around with much more confidence. Cyprus by contrast are sitting back, hoping to weather the storm. What a difference a goal makes, is a cliche for a reason.

66 min: The resulting corner ... you know how this goes by now. Once Cyprus clear their lines, they swap Michalis Ioannou for Georgiou.

65 min: McGregor, to the right of the D, has a shot towards the bottom right. Pardo parries. He should gather, but spills the ball round the post. It was inches away from squirting into the net. The keeper got away with one there.

64 min: McGinn sends a pass wide to Fraser, who is dribbling again with more purpose and intent, just as he did during the early stages of this match. He can’t quite break through on the edge of the area, but Cyprus were worried for a minute there.

62 min: And there’s the Hampden Roar at last! The goal deserved nothing less. Robertson is a special player, and he’s being serenaded by the crowd accordingly.

What a goal! McGinn, in a central position, slips the ball left to Robertson, who is racing towards it with extreme intent. He meets it first time, flush, sending a diagonal rising heat-seeker into the top right, Pardo with no chance whatsoever! A captain’s goal from a European champion. What a week he’s had!

60 min: Sotiriou bustles down the left and wins a corner off O’Donnell. Another wasted set-piece will be along in a minute. And there it is. Scotland clear.

59 min: McGregor passes the ball into touch while standing one yard from the white line, under no pressure whatsoever. A few addled Scottish heads right now as they hectically search for the breakthrough.

57 min: Robertson’s cross from the left is swallowed hole by Pardo. Nobody in there challenging. On the touchline, Steve Clarke shows his first signs of concern.

56 min: Fraser runs at the Cypriot back line, but loses confidence as he approaches the final third. The hosts need to up their game, quick-smart.

54 min: And now a few whistles thrown in as Efrem earns a corner down the left. The set piece is claimed by Marshall. Scotland’s surge since the restart didn’t last long.

52 min: Artymatas strides from the back like Beckenbauer, nobody bothering to close him down. He picks out Spoljaric upfield. Spoljaric races through a big gap between Mulgrew and McKenna, and sends a shot towards the bottom right. Marshall smothers, but the home faithful are getting worried. This second half had begun with a passionate, full-throated chorus of the Bonnie Banks o’ Loch Lomand. But that Hampden Increasingly Concerned Mutter’s back now.

50 min: Sotiriou busies himself on the edge of the Scotland box, then sends a pass right for Makris, who fizzes a low one into the box. Fortunately for Scotland, it’s just behind Sotiriou, and the hosts clear.

49 min: A positive run by Forrest down the right leads to a corner, which in turn leads to nothing. Pardo’s still to have his hands seriously warmed by Scotland.

48 min: Added energy = good. Rushes of blood = bad. Fraser and Brophy work a little space down the left, the ball breaking back to Robertson, who must still be high on life after events in Madrid last Saturday. He smashes a very ambitious shot from distance miles over the bar.

47 min: Roberson hoicks a long one down the left. McGregor gets on the end of it, and sends a huge up-and-under of a cross into the box. It’s easy pickings for Pardo. But it looks as though Scotland have been given the half-time rocket by their new manager, because there’s an early energy about them.

We go again! Cyprus get the second half underway; there have been no half-time changes.

Half-time entertainment. Scotland’s women take on England tomorrow evening. Ahead of the big one, here’s Louise Taylor’s highly entertaining romp through the history of the women’s game, a tale that takes in outraged 17th-century ministers, the suffragettes, and some World Cup final hat-trick heroics that have nothing whatsoever to do with Geoff Hurst. (Also, the pictures from the 1971 Women’s World Cup in Mexico City are sensational.)

Where’s Colin Stein when you need him?

45 min: McGregor goes sliding into a 50-50 with Michalis Ioannou. He crumps his studs into his opponent’s knee, and is very fortunate just to see yellow. That was a poor challenge.

44 min: McLean launches long down the inside-left channel. He’s very close to finding Fraser free, but there’s one too many joules of energy applied to the ball, and Pardo can come out and gather.

43 min: Robertson picks up the pace and barrels down the inside-left channel. He slips a ball wide to Brophy, who enters the box, makes for the byline and crosses well. But the flag goes up for offside. Brophy had gone too early, though only just. Not much in that at all.

41 min: And I bet this moment gave Robertson another sort of rush, as Sotiriou strides free down his flank and shoots diagonally, low and hard, towards the bottom left. Marshall does very well to paw the ball away as it threatens to worm its way into the corner. Scotland clear their lines, but that was close.