Curtis involved in all five as Scotland Under-21s beat Azerbaijan 5-2 in Kilmarnock

Rangers winger Findlay Curtis was involved in all five of Scotland Under-21s' goals as they defeated Azerbaijan 5-2 in Kilmarnock on Wednesday night, a victory that coincided with the first match under new head coach Tony Docherty and assistant Steven Naismith amid a wider youth coaching overhaul.

The result came as part of a broad restructuring of Scotland's youth set-up initiated by the Scottish FA's chief football officer Craig Mulholland, with the aim of creating a more streamlined pathway into Sebastien Pocognoli's senior men's side. Docherty and Naismith replaced Scot Gemmill in the under-21 role, and Pocognoli has given a presentation on his game model to the age-grade coaches as part of an effort to align playing style. Mulholland, SFA chief executive Ian Maxwell and Scotland assistant Alan Irvine attended in Kilmarnock as Docherty deployed the same 3-4-2-1 system that Pocognoli favours and that Docherty used at Dundee.

On the field, Scotland produced an attacking display marked by intense pressing and quick passing; the match report described the performance as featuring attacking elan and aggressive pressing. Curtis was central to that performance, having a hand in every goal, while Tyler Fletcher controlled midfield and three different forwards scored, including West Brom's Barney Stewart netting twice and James Wilson among the scorers. Fletcher and Wilson had previously been part of the senior squad's training camp before linking up with the under-21s.

Docherty said his brief to the players was to establish a clear identity for the age group. "My message to them was I want you to create an identity for the Scotland Under-21 team - by your attacking style of play, by your counter-pressing," he told BBC Scotland. "And I thought we did that in abundance. The performance level, enthusiasm and energy of the players was outstanding."

Docherty also praised those who had returned from the senior camp. "I came back with them from the camp," he said. "They couldn't have been better with their attitude and leadership in the group. The team performance, including the subs, was really strong. But they deserve special mention because their attitude to the group has been brilliant and we need to make sure we continue that going forward." Former Falkirk striker Stewart, who scored twice on the night, described the emphasis on mirroring the first team: "They want us to mirror exactly what the first team do," he told BBC Scotland. "We sit down and watch the first-team games. I've got everyone in my ear saying, 'you see what they did there?' We watch patterns of play, pressing, you name it."

The SFA's restructuring extends across the age groups, with Tam Courts appointed to lead the under-19 programme alongside Lee Wallace; David McCallum paired with Jonny Hayes at under-17 level; and Rhys McCabe named in charge of the under-16s with James Grady and Stephen Clarke. The coaching group will be supported by Peter Leven and Neil McFarlane and tasked with introducing a so-called "Scottish DNA" so younger age groups operate under the same principles while having licence to play differently from the first team.

Courts outlined the technical focus for the younger players: "If you want to be a team that has credibility on the top stage, for sure we need to have more dominance and control of the ball," he said. "We need to develop more players that are technically capable of playing in smaller spaces and also creating and scoring chances, because just now at the top level of the game, spaces are at a premium, chances are at a premium and we have to recognise that this is where the game is going. "We have to develop players that can actually execute in those situations." On his part, McCabe said: "There's a lot of learning and personal development that I want to do first hand," McCabe said. "Working with Sebastien and guys that have been about the game at different levels and had different experiences. I want to channel that and use that to ultimately make me a better coach."

The success of these, and other SFA changes to youth football in Scotland, can only ultimately be judged over the long term. But one thing is for sure, they are shaking up the status quo.