George hopes he can play his cards right on long trip to Dingwall
SHAMAL GEORGE may be Livingston’s No. 1 on the pitch – but he admits being ‘ horrendous’ at Uno is proving costly off it. The card game is the Lions’ game of choice around the club and especially on long away journeys like the one to this afternoon’s clash with Ross County in Dingwall.
It helps pass the time, but also helps bring the Almondvale squad closer together.
George reckons the team spirit at Livi is the one of the best he has experienced in his career, but the former Liverpool and Colchester United goalkeeper admits his Uno skills are more of a treat for his team- mates than for him.
Admitting the trip to the Highlands is nothing compared to away days in League Two, he said: “From Colchester to Barrow and Carlise is seven hours on the coach. They were the worst so Dingwall isn’t too bad at all.
“There was a midweek game at Barrow where we left at 7am and got back at 4am but we won 3- 2 so it was worth it.
“We’ll play Uno on the bus, we play it a lot in the club. I’m horrendous at it – Ayo Obileye is probably the best.
“If you lose you need to get the treats in for everyone else so it’s a trip to the supermarket.
“We play it on away trips but we also play it every day when we get a break in the club. It’s good for team spirit and keeps the boys close.
“We’ve got a really close bond, it’s one of the best I’ve been involved with in football.
“Another thing that helps is we’re not allowed our phones after 10.15 every day, so everyone has to talk to each other. Then after training we get our ice baths and food then we can get them back.
“The gaffer wants everyone to talk and have that close bond because everyone would be on their phones all day otherwise. They all get switched off at 10.14 because it’s a £ 20 fine if you have it on. It helps keep everyone focused and talking to each other.”
George returned for Monday’s 1- 1 draw against Motherwell after almost two months on the sidelines with a thigh injury.
He added: “It was a frustrating time getting injured. It was probably a good time, just before the break, but I went over to Turkey and half did it again.
“I wanted to be back for the first game back after the break – that’s me missed Celtic twice now – but I feel good and ready to go.”
Whilst Livi are searching for their first win since beating Aberdeen on November 8, County have taken just one point from a possible 15.
But George has some personal insight into the attacking threats he will face against the Staggies.
He said: “I was at Colchester with Owura Edwards and Yan Dhanda at Liverpool.
“Owura’s a good lad and has rapid pace, it’ll be a good test for Nicky Devlin. He was in and out of the team for some reason at Colchester but he’s a good player.
“With Yan, I know what he likes to do with free- kicks. It’s good to see some of the boys I’ve played with doing well up here.”
Jordan Tillson, meanwhile, hopes Ross County’s hard- fought point against Aberdeen on Monday will help kick- start their bid to get off the bottom of the cinch Premiership.
The Staggies are three points behind second- bottom Dundee United having played a game more than the Tannadice outfit.
“I think the focus has been in building what we did in the last game and adding layers to what we did,” he told the Dingwall club’s official Twitter account.
“We had a really strong defensive unit and if we can add to that a bit more of an attacking threat it would be brilliant. It is going to be a tough game regardless of who we play this season. But Livingston have obviously got a threat and they have done really well, especially in the last few seasons.”