Neil MacFarlane named Scotland Men's Under-19 Head Coach

The experienced coach takes over from Billy Stark, who retired from the post earlier in the summer.

MacFarlane will waste no time in getting to work, with the Under-19s back in action next month as they take on Azerbaijan, the Faroe Islands and Netherlands in a series of friendly matches in Spain.

The squad for these matches has now been confirmed, with MacFarlane involved in the selection process.

The 46-year-old represented several Scottish clubs during his playing career, including Hearts, Aberdeen and Queen of the South, before moving into coaching where he worked as assistant manager at clubs including Falkirk, Coventry City and Fleetwood Town.

He will be assisted in this role by former Scotland international, Chris Burke.

MacFarlane has been working with English Premier League side Brentford since 2019, as Head Coach of their B Team, and he will continue in this position alongside his new role with the Scotland national team.

Under his guidance, Brentford B lifted the Premier League Cup in 2023, while he also stepped in to lead Brentford to an FA Cup Third Round victory over Middlesbrough in 2021, when Head Coach Thomas Frank was absent with COVID-19.

New Scotland Men's Under-19 Head Coach, Neil MacFarlane: "It's a really proud moment and I'm delighted to be given the opportunity. I never got to represent Scotland as a player, so it's an honour to do it as a coach of this vital age group.

"I think the role has many similarities to my role at Brentford. I'd been working at first teams for a number of years when I took on this position five years ago to look after young talent and to get them ready for our first team. This job with Scotland is very similar and that's what attracts me to it. I've got to develop players, give them my experiences, push them and make demands of them and hopefully push them into the Under-21s and into the full squad.

"I know that at international level I won't have as long with the players as I do at club level but I have a lot of experiences with tours and extended breaks so I know how to maximise the time periods.

"I have a huge belief in young players and I've always had that, even when I worked at clubs as an assistant. I always wanted to give them chances in the first team.

"I've come up against a number of these players and watched a lot of them over the years. I'm looking forward to getting more of a look at them over this camp. I think there's real talent in the group. It's about identifying their strengths but also identifying what's missing so I can help them. It's only a short period of time but it's an important time.”

Andrew Gould, Chief Football Officer, Scottish FA: "We're extremely pleased to be able to confirm the appointment of a coach of the calibre of Neil.

"His extensive experience in working with players at this age group was a decisive factor, while we believe his attractive, progressive style of play will fit within our game model for the Scotland youth teams.

"With Neil and his assistant Chris both in the final stages of completing their UEFA Pro Licence with the Scottish FA Coach Education Department, we hope this appointment also shows our commitment to providing a platform to ambitious, developing coaches.

"We are confident that the pair of them can help to install key habits and provide a pathway for players to progress onto the Under-21s and, more importantly, the senior squad.”

Scotland Squad

Aidan Borland Aston Villa Alfie Bavidge* Aberdeen Bailey Rice* Rangers Callan McKenna* AFC Bournemouth Colby Donovan Celtic Daniel Armer Manchester United Dylan Smith Ross County Ethan Sutherland St Mirren Fletcher Boyd* Aberdeen Gabriel Forsyth* Norwich City Harrison McMahon Chelsea James Wilson Heart of Midlothian Josh Dede Celtic Leyton Grant Rangers Mitchel Frame Celtic Murray Campbell* Burnley Ollie Ecrepont* Ayr United Rory Mahady Leeds United Rory Whittaker* Hibernian Rory Wilson* Aston Villa Rudi Allan-Molotnikov* Hibernian Ryan One* Sheffield United Sam Chambers Leeds United Tyler Fletcher Manchester United