THERE are a surprising number of locked doors to be negotiated before Shelley Kerr finally ushers me into her Scottish FA retreat at the Oriam national performance centre in Edinburgh. But that is where the seclusion ends; once at her desk, Scotland’s new women’s head coach is keen to share her vision for the team.

The 47-year-old can’t wait for the friendly against Hungary on September 14. The former captain was appointed in April, but the trip to Budapest finally brings the long-awaited opportunity to work at close quarters with the squad.

Kerr inherits a group of players, plus four more of her own choosing, who will recognise they didn’t perform well at the Euros. In

particular, the 6-0 opening defeat to England left a poor impression on those watching the team for the first time. Reputations need to be restored.

“Every player I have spoken to is very enthusiastic about a fresh approach,” Kerr says. “The conversations have been really positive and there is buy-in already. That excites me as a coach.”

Reaching a first major championship was, of course, the long-term goal of the previous incumbent, Anna Signeul, but even as it was being achieved home crowds remained stubbornly low. Kerr believes she and her players hold the keys to enticing a bigger support.

“We’ve focused quite a bit on the physical aspect of the game for a few years now, and the players are in good condition compared with where we used to be,” says Kerr whose own playing days coincided with Signeul introducing much more rigorous training and lifestyle regimes. “That’s a starting point. Now we want to play in a certain way which is attractive to watch. The speed of the game is different from the men’s game, which is a genetic thing, but we want to play exciting football.”

There will be more emphasis on tactical flexibility, with the players being coached to adapt and switch approach to deal with the different scenarios which unfold within games. Balance is another of Kerr’s key words, again in relation to tactics, but also as in players being able to complement each other.

One of the most dispiriting aspects of the Euro qualifying campaign was players being shoe-horned into the wrong positions simply because the same nine or 10 outfield players were automatic picks in Signeul teams. That will also change with, for example, Rachel Corsie – along with Kim Little one of the candidates to be captain – being restored to her club position of central defender.

“You should never come to the national team and think you’re going to play,” Kerr says. “You’ll want to play, you’ll do everything you can to play, but you should never think you’ve got the given right to start in the team.”

She will also bow to the inevitable and introduce measures to identify players who are eligible to play for Scotland but not necessarily on the radar. Signeul brought Vaila Barsley and Sophie Howard, who both qualify through blood lines, into her squad in April, but only because an injury crisis forced her hand. They retained their places into the Euros and are also in Kerr’s squad.

This is not a policy which is going to please the purist, nor Scottish-born players on the fringe of squad selection, but it is a pragmatic approach which is going to appeal to every head coach from the smaller and middle-sized nations.

“If we’ve want to be competing on the European and world stages we need to have the best players in our squad,” Kerr says. “It is about getting the balance right, but if we have a player who has been brought up in England and qualifies to play for Scotland of course we’ll pursue it. Same with any other country.”

Once the Hungary game is over – all six permitted substitutes are likely to be used – the 2019 World Cup qualifiers get underway next month with a trip to Belarus and a home game against Albania. A venue has been chosen, but not yet announced, for the latter. The other teams in the group are Poland and top seeds Switzerland.

“It’s going to be tough because only one team qualify, but we are excited about the group,” says Kerr, whose assistant is former striker Andy Thomson. “When the draw was made we were ecstatic about not drawing one of the big nations. This is a really good opportunity for us to showcase how we get to the next level.

“Switzerland are a very good team. I watched them in all three group games at the Euros. Tactically they changed within the game, and also depending on who the opponents were. Technically they have it in their locker to be quite innovative and creative.

“They have two players who on their day will cause any opponents problems – [Lara] Dickenmann and [Ramona] Bachmann. They’ve got some real quality throughout the team, are well organised and have a good coach. It’s going to be difficult. Is it impossible? No.

“Poland are capable of causing both us and Switzerland problems, especially away from home. There are travel implications when you go to Belarus and Albania. These games come with an element of pressure and it’s how you cope with it that matters.”