Scotland could get better with trip to the Doc’s
The national pastime to pick holes in Scotland squads had the raging brigade up in arms this week. No wonder.
“Him? You’ve got to be joking, how can he get in ahead of Graeme Shinnie?”
As a hotchpotch of our own average and overinf lated players were being decried for their unjustified inclusion – young midf ielder Greg Docherty didn’t get a mention.
Gordon Strachan’s want is to go with tried and tested performers rather than scanning the country for those on form and actually getting a game. A strategy of time served failure.
But it was Scot Gem m i l l ’s Under-21 group which was named this week to kick- off their European Championship qual i f ication campaign which more than raised some eyebrows.
To be frank, expectation of this young team is non-existent.
Hav ing covered campaign af ter campaign and witnessed the same old fai lures, it was depressing to scan the latest batch of sacrificial lambs to the slaughter when the Dutch arrive in Paisley next month. But no Greg Docherty? Three years ago Holland beat us 6- 0 at St Mirren’s stadium. They were superior in every capacity – pace, technique, power, strength.
And here we go again. The top Euro Under-21 nations have boys who are established and playing regular top-flight football in some of the best leagues on the continent.
We have lads just out of the development league with the physical attributes of a jockey’s whip.
Last Saturday, Hamilton’s Docherty dominated John McGinn at Easter Road, the Hibs midfielder was bullied by a player who can’t get into Gemmi l l ’ s squad whi le McGinn is in the senior one.
Was nobody from Scotland’s coaching staff watching?
There’s an age-old belief that politics are at play in the selection process and here’s a case for the conspiracy theorists.
Kilmarnock quar tet Greg Taylor, Adam Frizzel l, Dom Thomas and Iain Wilson are all in the squad to face the Dutch but you have to ask if anyone has been to Rugby Park recently.
As part of an aby sma l s t a r t to the campaign, Taylor aside, it’s difficult to see any merit for call-ups.
On the very same day that Gemmill set out his plans, Wales boss Chris Coleman was including 16-year- old Chelsea kid Ethan Ampadu in his squad and Gordon S t ra chan wa s l i s t ing Grant Hanley.
It’s all about opinions of course – but no Docherty makes no sense.