Porteous willing to bide time for move
RYAN PORTEOUS thought he would be playing out the second half of the season with Millwall in the English Championship.
If there is a silver lining for the defender, however, after Hibernian turned down those advances it is the chance to continue playing under the nose of Scotland boss Steve Clarke.
Porteous is sufficiently modest to admit he has an outside chance at best of being included in Clarke’s squad for this summer’s European Championships finals.
It is a position, however, where Scotland have not always been fully resourced in recent seasons, meaning Porteous’s potential involvement is not an entirely outlandish suggestion. He demonstrated his worth again to Hibs on Tuesday night, appearing as a half-time substitute to head his team in front before helping quell a late revival from 10-man St Mirren to secure a precious three points.
There is evident frustration at not being allowed to move on at this time but the 21 year-old has vowed to make the most of the situation he finds himself in.
“Everyone wants to go and play at the highest level, they would be lying if they said they didn’t,” he admitted. “It is flattering that Hibs turned down the money they did for me. It shows real ambition from the club and how well run we are.
“Jack Ross is a manager who wants the best for his players. He knows, and as a club they know, that young players want to eventually move on, further their career and play at the highest level they can.
“In the chats I have had with the manager, he has been honest and said he wants me here but he understands that there is going to be a time, if I want to progress, then I need to make the step up. But the timing has to be right for me and the club.
“You never want to leave on bad terms. I want to try and get the best results for the club. The timing maybe wasn’t right but we can reassess in the summer.”
Meanwhile, opportunities for reserve goalkeepers tend to arise when they least expect them. Dean Lyness was sitting shivering in the main stand at the SMISA stadium on Tuesday night when ever-present Jak Alnwick raced out to try to tend to a short back pass, upended Hibs’ Martin Boyle and was sent off. Out of nowhere, Lyness found himself standing between the posts in a St Mirren firstteam match for the first time in more than three years.
“I was thrown in at the deep end a little bit but that’s what I’ve been preparing for since I came back to the club,” said the former Raith Rovers player.
“You have to make sure you’re in the best possible shape for when the opportunity arises. It looks like I might have another one this weekend [against Kilmarnock] so hopefully I can take my chance.”