Striker never lost the faith

CHRIS MARTIN always knew he would prove himself good enough to be a Scotland player.

The striker, now at Fulham on loan from Derby, was booed by some fans when he replaced James Morrison with ten minutes to go.

And yet he shut up his critics with a goal which saved Scotland’s World Cup campaign – and Gordon Strachan’s job at the same time in the dramatic and invaluable 1-0 win over Slovenia.

Martin, when asked about the reaction, which he claimed not to have heard, said: “That’s up to them to judge. I’m not going to tell them what they should think and how they should think.

“Is that my most important goal? Ask me in a few weeks. I’ll have to think about it.

“But it certainly feels massive with the celebrations and when we got in the dressing room. I know how important it was for all of us. But it wasn’t about me. Whoever got that goal, we just had to win – at any cost.”

Martin is well aware that he not every supporter’s idea of Joe Jordan reborn. All he can do, and this is true for anyone player, is to do his best whenever he gets called up. That he did on this dramatic occasion.

“I do my job and, if the manager keeps picking me, I’ll go out and score goals, be a major part of this squad,” said Martin. “That’s all anyone in this squad thinks about. We’re extremely together and we back each other.

“I know I’d the backing of the manager and the staff – but also all the lads. Hopefully I’ve repaid their faith in me. The manager felt like I might pop up with a goal tonight. I’ve been in just about every squad since he took over, so it is nice to score such an important goal.

“I have to be selfconfident. Most players at this level will be.

“If I was worried about what other people thought, if I fretted about criticism, I probably wouldn’t be standing here in front of you tonight. Listen, you have to be single-minded and have a focus. I have that.”