THIS IS MY HOME... IT MADE ME WHO I AM
Aussie-born Dykes is determined to repay Scotland with goals
THE sights, the sounds and the ever-evocative scents of a family reunion in wintry Moniaive linger still for Lyndon Dykes. Happy memories of a holiday in Dumfriesshire played their part, certainly, in drawing the Aussieborn striker into the Scotland fold.
But there’s more, so much more, to his decision to reject the Socceroos and answer this call from the old country.
In short, the 24-year-old feels as if he owes Scotland a debt of gratitude. Repayment starts at Hampden on Friday night, as Dykes contends for the No9 jersey in Steve Clarke’s team.
Reflecting on the strides he’s taken since pitching up at Queen of the South as a raw teenager, the former Livingston centre-forward — now at QPR following a £2million transfer — clearly feels strongly about this sporting nation.
The fact that both parents just happen to have been born here? A bonus.
‘Scotland gave me a chance in my career, really,’ he said. ‘Without Scotland, where would I be?
‘I’d be nowhere — or I wouldn’t be where I am at the moment. So that was a major thing in my head. From the get-go, I wanted to play for Scotland.
‘Obviously, I spoke with (Aussie coaches) Graham Arnold and Rene Meulensteen — they were always great with me.
‘But, in the end, speaking with Steve Clarke here, he knows what we spoke about before lockdown, he knows how I reached my decision.
‘A lot of people would have said that Australia was the easy route. But, with the squad that they have here in Scotland and the boys coming through, as well, it’s only a matter of time before we get back to where we should be.’
Plenty of factors will have played a part in Dykes’ decision. A Gold Coast native who grew up playing rugby league before turning out for a part-time ‘soccer’ club in Surfers Paradise, he could hardly be more stereotypically Aussie in many respects.
He might well have been swayed, too, by watching big sister Hollie win a hatful of gymnastics medals — including two golds — for her country at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne; a young Lyndon was there to roar along with the crowd singing Advance Australia Fair in honour of her achievement.
Set against that, there’s the undoubted truth that playing for Scotland — which doesn’t require 23-hour flights to home games — is an easier sell to an aspiring English Championship employee.
Clarke, who wisely refused to exert pressure on his targeted target man, clearly measured his pitch perfectly to appeal to both head and heart.
Dykes said: ‘Obviously, the travelling is a lot for Australia. But my head was already with Scotland. My parents are Scottish, my son was born in Scotland. The country gave me my chance in my career.
‘And I love being in Scotland, even though I’ve just moved to England. I’m still going to be travelling up here. I came for a few holidays when I was younger, with my dad. It was a small village, Moniaive, and I remember it snowing down. My favourite memory was smelling all the chimneys in the town, something that always stuck in my head. ‘I had a Scotland kit when I was young, even though my dad was never a major football person, so I didn’t watch a lot of games when I was little. ‘But I’ve always had friends who are Scottish and English, I played with a lot of people in Australia who had moved there from Scotland. So I was always in that environment where half of them were Celtic fans and the other half were Rangers fans. I always knew what was going on. The Scottish blood is in me.’ Few care as much about that as they do about Dykes’ ability to get Scotland up the park, into the opposition penalty area — and do some damage. The long, long, agonising exile from a major finals remains a burden that every single men’s senior team player has to bear … until we finally break the curse. ‘For me, personally, I want to win games and get as high (in football) as I can,’ said Dykes. ‘With the squad Scotland have, they should be pushing as hard as they can. If the nation gets behind us, the sky is the limit. We should be getting the country back to where it was, qualifying for finals.
‘I’m here to work hard, I’m here to learn. And I’m here to hopefully score some goals — and get Scotland to where they should be.
‘It would be an honour to be in the team who do that.
‘I want to learn from what the boys have. It would be an honour to lead the line — but I know I’ve got to work hard for that.’
Revealing some of the back-andforth that went into a decision delayed by lockdown, Dykes added: ‘I had a few saying I should play here or there but, in the end, it came down to my decision.
‘I’ve always been strong about Scotland.
‘But, after speaking to the manager and backroom staff here, I told my parents — and they were over the moon.’
Asked how he broke the news to them about the call-up, he replied: ‘Well they knew beforehand, what was happening with my decision.
‘But, to be honest, I think they saw it when the squad was announced — before I actually told them! They were just chuffed when they saw my name in the squad.
‘I was there in Melbourne with my family when my sister won gold. Yeah, if she wants to come and watch me play for Scotland, she can do that. No bother.
‘It’s unfortunate that the fans and the family won’t be there watching on Friday — but they are all going to be supporting us and watching on TV.
‘There’s nothing we can do about it with the coronavirus —it’s affected so many people all over the world. I’m sure they will be supporting at home. ‘We’ll see what happens with the team — but I’ll be proud to put that
strip on.’