If Lyndon jumps the Dykes he can make an impact for Scots
Steve Clarke called for a chat recently and Lyndon Dykes dominated the conversation.
I gave a quick reference and said: “What is he like? Jersey on, sleeves rolled up and just gets on with it.”
It’s a compliment to my Livingston striker that he was the subject of the Scotland gaffer’s enquiries.
We spoke about a player who has grown season on season in Scottish football, first with Queen of the South and now us.
Stevie asked if I thought Lyndon was good enough to play international football and I gave an honest answer.
He also asked if I believed he was considering pledging his future to Scotland rather than the country of his birth, , Australia. I told Steve I wouldn’t bet on it. If memory serves, I gave him odds of 50-50.
There is an appeal from both nations and I provided an honest and open opinion of where I saw Lyndon with Scotland and where I feel he has improved.
Some players make the most of opportunities which come their way and Lyndon is one of those boys. He has shown that with the way he has kicked his career on.
The question is what would he add to the international scene?
The first thing he’d bring to a Scotland side is freshness.
Anybody who has watched Livingston this season would see his desire just to get out there and play football.
It’s not enough for him just to be out there playing, he places a huge demand on himself to perform. That hunger would be shown in abundance by Lyndon if he was given the chance at international level.
You need a lot more than just character and a good attitude to play for a national side but those fundamentals are crucial.
That work-rate and desire, to have the bit between your teeth and get out there and play, they are essential.
You also need to be strong enough mentally not to be phased by making that step up and I believe Lyndon would embrace it.
That’s the type he is, he loves the chance to prove himself, it’s what he has done ever since he arrived here.
Technical and tactical qualities are another much needed string to your bow but Lyndon is a good listener and someone you don’t need to tell twice when it comes to instruction.
Steve will play a different style to the one we use at Livingston so you need to be ggood at adaptingp to different r roles and coping w a with whatever is asked of you.
What you need is a willingness to le learn. Some p in players go into international fo football with p id preconceived ideas of it being s fo similar to club football and t thinking systems w s will be adapted to suit them. It soon c comes as a shock that it couldn’t be fu further from the t truth.
If I ask Lyndon to run channelsh then he does it. If I ask him to hold the ball up then that’s what he attempts to do.
He can play wide and also be deployed as a second striker. There’s no point in me trying to bend his ear to try to get him to commit to Scotland as he’s a determined type who will decide for himself and in his own time.
As a management team, we sat Lyndon down and had a chat with him. It was an open and honest discussion and we listened to what he had to say.
He has a big decision to make and we will support it either way. We all want him to play for Scotland but he won’t have it forced upon him.