Docherty set for return to action at Celtic Park...
GIVEN the welldocumented criticism that has rained down from the Hamilton support towards manager Martin Canning recently, you would think the last place any of their players would want to be is up in the stands.
But while midfielder Greg Docherty would much rather have been on the park than being stuck on the sidelines with his broken foot, he admits that the experience has opened his eyes a little.
And being able to see things from the fans’ point of view has strengthened his resolve to do better for the club, the supporters and his manager as he prepares to return to action today against Celtic.
“This has been my first week of full training so I’m feeling positive and it’s great to be back,” he said.
“It was beyond frustrating being out but I’d say it has given me a new perspective. Being in the stand amongst the fans regularly was new to me and it was good to chat to them.
“Fans pay their money and have the right to their own opinion. I’m a fan and if I didn’t play football I’d be the same, as I have been in the past.
“But it’s funny when you’ve been out on the pitch and then go back into the stand to see the difference. It’s been good to interact with them, although I couldn’t repeat some of the things I heard them shout!
“It’s difficult in the sense that we feel we’re letting the manager down with our performances. We’ve definitely underachieved but it’s easy to sit and continuously say we should be picking up points but at the end of the day you’ve got to go and do it.
“The fans have been good to me and were patient with me coming through the ranks. So, I’ve only got good things to say about them.”
Docherty is taking comfort ahead of today’s game from the last time Hamilton went to Celtic Park and came away with a narrow 1-0 defeat after a creditable performance.
At the same time, he is trying not to let his mind wander any further back to the previous visit to Glasgow’s East End, where he and his team-mates were on the wrong end of a horror scoreline.
“The 8-1 defeat was a massive learning curve,” he said. “I was only 18 and had never experienced anything like that before.
“At the time it was horrific but now, looking back, I have learned a lot. It taught me when you’re under pressure not to go running about like a headless chicken, which maybe I would have done back then.
“Instead you just stick to your game plan and if it goes wrong don’t panic if you lose an early goal, just keep your shape and don’t let them get another one.
“At 5-0 down at half-time a few words were said, and rightly so. I was pretty astonished to be honest but we didn’t perform and we contributed to our own downfall. We didn’t play well and didn’t go about our tactics properly.
“But we did much better there earlier this season. We still got beat 1-0 but I think we gave a good account of ourselves and we did have chances in that game, so we are capable of going there and doing well.
“It was a much more positive account of ourselves when