Since Scotland's first international association football match on 30 November 1872,[1] 29 players have scored three goals (a hat-trick) or more in a game. The first player to do so was John McDougall,[2] a Vale of Leven player,[3] in a match against England on 2 May 1878.[1] The most goals scored by a single player in a match is four, which has occurred on eleven occasions, although some sources credit Hughie Gallacher with a fifth goal in the 1929 British Home Championship match against Northern Ireland on 23 February 1929.[4][5] Denis Law is the only player to have scored four goals in a single match more than once. Robert Smyth McColl, Law and Gallacher are tied for the most number of hat-tricks for Scotland's international team, with three hat-tricks each. No player has scored a hat-trick for Scotland since Colin Stein scored four goals in the 8–0 1970 FIFA World Cup qualifying win over Cyprus on 17 May 1969.[6]
Scotland have conceded six hat-tricks in total, with the first one scored on 2 April 1955 by Dennis Wilshaw in a 1955 British Home Championship match against England.[7] Scotland had not conceded a hat-trick for the first 83 years of international matches, a total of 244 matches.[a] Nico Claesen of Belgium was the first player from outside the Home Nations to score a hat-trick against Scotland, in the UEFA Euro 1988 qualifying match on 1 April 1987.[8] Scotland had only conceded four hat-tricks until the 2003–2004 season when hat-tricks were scored against them in two successive matches, first by Ruud van Nistelrooy in a UEFA Euro 2004 qualifying playoff match against the Netherlands, and then by Robert Earnshaw in a friendly against Wales.[9]
Contents |
| More than a hat-trick scored * |
Wartime internationals, not regarded as official matches, are not included in the list. The result is presented with Scotland's score first.
Wartime internationals, not regarded as official matches, are not included in the list. The result is presented with Scotland's score first.
Scotland have conceded six hat-tricks, four of which have been scored by players from the Home Nations.
| Date | Goals | Player | Opponent | Venue | Competition | Result | Ref[a] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 April 1955 |
4*
|
Dennis Wilshaw | England | Wembley Stadium, London | 1955 British Home Championship |
2–7
|
[7] |
| 15 April 1961 |
3
|
Jimmy Greaves | England | Wembley Stadium, London | 1961 British Home Championship |
3–9
|
[16] |
| 19 May 1979 |
3
|
John Toshack | Wales | Ninian Park, Cardiff | 1979 British Home Championship |
0–3
|
[17] |
| 1 April 1987 |
3
|
Nico Claesen | Belgium | Stade Constant Vanden Stock, Brussels | UEFA Euro 1988 qualifying |
1–4
|
[8] |
| 19 November 2003 |
3
|
Ruud van Nistelrooy | Netherlands | Amsterdam Arena, Amsterdam | UEFA Euro 2004 qualifying playoff |
0–6
|
[9] |
| 18 February 2004 |
3
|
Robert Earnshaw | Wales | Millennium Stadium, Cardiff | Friendly match |
0–4
|
[9] |
a A full list of Scotland results for 1872–1880, 1881–1890, 1891–1900, 1901–1910, 1911–1920, 1921–1930, 1931–1939, 1946–1950, 1951–1955, 1956–1960, 1961–1965, 1966–1970, 1971–1975, 1976–1980, 1981–1985, 1986–1990, 1991–1995, 1996–2001, 2002–2005, 2006–2010, 2011 are listed on the RSSSF website. Retrieved 14 April 2011.
b Hughie Gallacher is credited with Scotland's sixth goal in some sources.[4][5]
c This is Scotland's only hat-trick in a game that they lost.
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