Lewis hopes Scotland can kill his play-off pain

LEWIS MORGAN hopes to wipe away his Wembley tears by becoming a Scotland hero this weekend.

The Sunderland loanee’s last outing was heartbreak of the late League One play-off final defeat to Charlton.

It was a season that offered so much and ended in tears but Morgan knows seeing off Cyprus and getting the Steve Clarke reign off to winning ways could go some way to softening that blow.

He said: “Obviously there was a disappointment in the play-off final. It wasn’t the end of season we’d hoped for at club level but there is a chance to now end the season overall on a positive note.

“Although we can’t rectify what happened these internationals are pivotal and training has been really good. We shouldn’t have let it go to the play-offs really.

“We wanted to get up automatically because you have seen in the play-offs anything can happen.

“It was disappointing for the club but it is going to get back to where it should be. I have no doubt.”

The Celtic player returns to Scotland a better player after five months at the Stadium of Light under his former St Mirren manager Jack Ross. Morgan said: “It was good. I had knee surgery at the start of the season and it took time for me to get back to where I wanted to be. “I had to go out to get games in my legs again. It’s been a positive because it’s got me back into the international scene but I still feel there are levels to come from me. “It’s well documented how many games there are down there. It is pretty much every Tuesday and Saturday. There is also loads of travelling but I enjoyed being part of it and hope it can stand me in good stead for the season coming up. “It’s hard to compare League One with Scottish football as my only real experience up here was in the Championship.

“But a lot of the teams were well organised and stuffy. They were difficult to break down. Also, for teams playing Sunderland, it was a big occasion.

“Sunderland are a sleeping giant with a massive fanbase that is too big for England’s League One.”

Morgan had former Celtic star Aiden McGeady to turn to for guidance.

“I have been involved in some upsets but I have also had good experiences of playing at Wembley and hope to take that back to club and international level.

“It is a big marker for me and a good learning experience. I was working with a coaching staff I know and respect so I’m sure it will stand me in good stead.

“In terms of the players I spoke a lot with Aiden. He has a similar background to me and a similar position. He is a great player and I learned a lot off him. It was more day-to-day stuff, rather than an insight into what he did at Celtic or anything like that.

“There was a fair Scottish contingent down there, from the manager and his staff to the players right through the team.”

Morgan got his first Scotland cap this time last year in the much-maligned end-of-season tour to Peru and Mexico.

He got some invaluable playing time against both and knows he isn’t the only Scotland player to have benefited from those games. The Celtic player said: “That was a great experience for myself.

“I remember there were some people saying it wasn’t really a worthwhile exercise but it certainly was for the boys who came in and got experience.

“You can see some of those boys have stayed involved in the squad. From that aspect we were able to blood some players who have taken their chance.

“The games were tough. We were playing against two good sides who had qualified for the World Cup.

“Okay, we didn’t get the results we wanted but performance wise I thought we did well.”