AND so the torture continues for another month.

After all, it’s been 19 years, another few weeks won’t do any harm.

Some of the players in this Scotland squad would not have been old enough to remember the last time we graced the biggest stage of all. In 1998 while Craig Brown’s men were marching out at the Stade de France against Brazil, Kieran Tierney was probably getting his nappy changed.

There have been several squeaky bum time moments since, of course. The pungent whiff of glorious failure an all-to familiar scent in the nostrils of the Tartan Army who have trooped across the continent for the best part of two decades in hope.

Almost 20 years on from that World Cup opener in France, that sense of hope wafted once more over the national stadium.

Eighty minutes gone in Scotland’s 2-0 victory over Malta, the haunting sound of a lone piper playing Flower of Scotland drifted over Hampden Park, the voices filling the half-full stadium eventually catching up with just a line to spare.

Is it another false dawn? Only time will tell. Stumbles at home to Lithuania in the opening home game of this World Cup qualifying campaign and THAT late, late, late Harry Kane here back on June 10 are as raw now as when first inflicted. If Gordon Strachan’s men come up short next month in the race for Group F’s second place then the pain will be all too vivid.

Yet, despite those disappointments, Scotland’s fate, at least in the group, is in their own hands. And, right now, you’d trust them with your life. Well, near enough.

This was another professional performance by a team which has developed into an effective and dynamic unit. While always looking vulnerable in the centre of defence, it is their high pressing, quick tempo play which provides some tangible hope that this group, perhaps more than those who have gone before them, can allow the Tartan Army justification as they dare to dream.

At the core of it are the six Celtic players which make up the spine of this team. At risk of sounding like a broken record, having over half of your starting XI playing week in, week out domestically not just breeds confidence but a sixth sense when it comes to positioning, movement and understanding.

Strachan stuck with the same team that defeated Lithuania in Vilnius on Friday night and it was the same Parkhead core that provided a bulk of the energy here. While Stuart Armstrong got his first goal in dark blue on Friday, he went home from Hampden clutching a bottle of champagne as the man of the match.

Kieran Tierney continues to perform well at right-back just behind the enigmatic James Forrest. Scott Brown marshalled the middle of the park well while just  about going through the match without getting the booking to see him be banned for the visit of Slovakia next month, while Craig Gordon was predictably quiet but studious in his approach.

Out of all the plus points to come from this campaign, though, whether Scotland qualify or not, is the growth of Leigh Griffiths into a national hero.

It was the Celtic striker’s two goals against England that brought the Scots to the verge of not only a momentous result but being in the qualification driving seat. Here, he got his third goal in two Hampden games that he deserved by tapping in midway through the second half. He was offside. Nobody cares.

Away from simply sticking the ball in the net, his play here was exceptional at times. The 26-year-old’s game intelligence has swelled with his reputation and he repeatedly dropped deep to provide neat flick-ons for the likes of Armstrong, Forrest and Matt Phillips to bomb on to. His ability to play off the shoulder of an albeit limited defence stretched play to create space for those in support to operate in during cramped circumstances.

It is this influence that will cause tartan hearts to beat uneasily thanks to the sight of him hobbling off here with the clock ticking down and the game won.

While Chris Martin got a rapturous applause as he replaced Griffiths – in stark contrast to the jeers that greeted him just before he netted the winner against Slovenia earlier in the campaign – his arrival did not bring the same pace or energy to carry on from where his predecessor left off. Having Griffiths back fit will be paramount if Scotland’s vision of qualification are to remain as vibrant as possible.

Many eyes here were spent scanning Twitter feeds on phones, especially given England went 1-0 down to Slovakia so early on. At that point many feared that, while this should be the smallest of the three nerve-jangling nights for Scotland in the run in, Scotland’s 19-year wait for qualification would stop here.

Instead, the dream lives on. Beat Slovakia at home and Slovenia away, and we could be just two play-off games from a rumble in Russia.

Step we gaily.