Scotland women’s U19s bid to reach Euro finals explained, with Hibs, Hearts and Spartans represented

Scotland women’s under-19s will be hoping to make home advantage count in three Euro qualifying round games at Ainslie Park in north Edinburgh, beginning tonight against Spain. Here is all you need to know:

What is it all about?

Scotland are bidding to qualify for the UEFA women’s under-19 championship, which is being hosted by Belgium next summer. They reached this stage by recording three straight victories in the previous qualifying round in April against Kazakhstan, Estonia and Kosovo, which resulted in promotion to League A. Pauline Hamill's squad are in Group 1 of the League A final qualifiers, which includes Spain, Finland and Switzerland. The four teams will play each other once over the next six days at Ainslie Park, with the group winners qualifying for the finals. The seven League A group winners A will qualify for the final tournament along with the tournament hosts, Belgium.

When and where are the games?

UEFA Women’s Under-19 Qualifying Round: League A Group 1

Spain v Scotland (Wednesday, 5 October; 6pm kick-off)

Finland v Scotland (Saturday, 8 October; 11am)

Scotland v Switzerland (Tuesday, 11 October, 1pm)

Scotland line up before their qualifier against Estonia at Ainslie Park in April. They will be back at the same venue this week aiming to reach the tournament finals. Picture: Mark Scates / SNS

All matches are taking place at Ainslie Park, home of Spartans, in north Edinburgh.

How do I watch?

Spectators can attend free of charge. Scotland's three games are all available as live streams on Youtube, Twitter and Facebook, with commentary from Amy Canavan and Chris Marshall.

Players to watch

Pauline Hamill's squad includes eight Edinburgh-based players, with four from Spartans, three from Hearts and one from Hibs. The four Spartans players who will all be playing at their home ground are wingers Mya Bates and Hannah Robinson and midfielder Hannah Jordan – all three were recruited in the summer – and former Hearts forward Amelie Birse. Hearts have three players in the squad – attacker Aimee Anderson, midfielder Lisa Maher-Rogers and versatile Boroughmuir Thistle academy graduate Addie Hanley – while Hibs are represented by striker Eilidh Adams. Everton’s Kenzie Weir, daughter of former Hearts defender David, is also in the squad.

Anything else?

Scotland have won six games on the spin and haven't tasted defeat since November last year against the Netherlands. Three of these victories were in their previous qualifying round in April and Hamill's side have kept up this momentum in the last few weeks as they warmed up for these qualifiers with a 5-1 victory against Hungary and a 2-1 win over Slovakia in two recent friendlies. The opposition in these three games will represent a step up in class, but Scotland will be hoping to make home advantage will count.