Crawford tips Clark for Moldova trip after stunning Saves against United
ZANDER CLARK might just want to cancel any plans he had for a fortnight’s time. If his performance on Saturday and the rapturous reception of the St Johnstone fans were anything to go by, he could just be making the near 1.500-mile trip to Moldova instead.
The goalkeeper had one of those rare days where he was more than a match for everything Dundee United threw at him. Headers from corners? Pushed over the bar.
Twice. Long-range efforts? Meat and drink. A late scramble in the box? Consider it repelled with a fine double save.
It would have been easy for Clark to retreat after losing his place in the Scotland squad in the last international break but the 29-year-old appears to be taking it in his stride. His manager, Callum Davidson, said as much in the aftermath of his Tayside derby heroics and his team-mates were in agreement.
“That’s probably one of the best performances I’ve seen from him in any game I’ve played in for sure,” said St Johnstone midfielder Ali Crawford after their 1-0 victory. “He was unbelievable. He made numerous saves and I don’t know how he made some of them to
be honest. He had that doublesave towards the end when he got straight back up and saved the second which kept us in the game. In that performance alone, Zander should be in the Scotland squad. He deserves another shot.”
Crawford is a man who knows all about making the most of his opportunities. The former Hamilton Accies man is loving life in Perth after arriving on loan from Bolton Wanderers and on Saturday it was his goal which gave Clark the platform to step up and be the match-winner.
His strike was vintage Crawford, a curling effort around Ryan Edwards and into Benjamin Siegrist’s corner which gave the United goalkeeper no chance and set off wild celebrations among the boisterous away support.
But with his temporary move nearing an end the 30-year-old remains hopeful of finding a more permanent solution soon.
“My loan is up in January,” he said. “But I’m hoping that gets extended until the end of the season.
“I’m enjoying my football here. Hopefully I can keep popping up with some more goals and help us climb the league.
“I would like to say longer –
100 per cent. But unfortunately it’s not up to me.
“It’s obviously down to the club and whether they want to keep me for the remainder of the season.
“If that’s the case, then I’ll be more than delighted to stay on.”
Meanwhile, Peter Pawlett, the Dundee United midfielder, has also backed his former team-mate Clark to force his way back into Steve Clarke’s squad ahead of two crucial fixtures this month.
While he faces tough competition – notably in the form of Craig Gordon but also from the likes of Liam Kelly – Pawlett is sure Saturday’s stunning display will have been enough to convince the Scotland boss to bring Clark along for the Moldova and Denmark games.
“When I was on loan at St Johnstone, Zander was just a young lad but he always had that ability and now he’s showing it,” said Pawlett, who spent the 2012/13 season in Perth. “He deserves his chance in the Scotland squad and I am sure on that performance alone he’ll be back in the next one.”
The Tayside derby loss brought to an end United’s impressive nine-game unbeaten run but Pawlett, 30, believes they will be ready to bounce back when they visit Tynecastle on Saturday.
“We have had a good start to the season and this is just a blip,” he said. “It will be a good game next week.”