Settled Doran’s a rover no more
Highland stepping stone has now become a stable foothold for Aaron
FOUR years ago, Aaron Doran arrived in t he Highlands confident t hat it would only be a fleeting visit. It’s funny what a cup final or two can do.
The County Cork native was ushered to Inverness on loan by parent club Blackburn Rovers on the premise that it would merely be a stepping stone in his career.
Yet, while that’s been true in the cases of Andrew Shinnie and Billy McKay, the fact Doran and others are still there speaks volumes.
Inverness no longer appears to be merely a club for journeymen to pass through. Increasingly, it’s being viewed as a desirable footballing destination — their appearance in Saturday’s Scottish Cup Final surely adding to the allure.
‘I saw it as a stepping stone at the start,’ admitted Doran as he looked forward to Saturday’s clash with Falkirk at Hampden. ‘I first came in on loan and played every week. I scored a few goals.
‘I left Blackburn and the club came back in for me. I thought I would come back and play, and maybe get a bigger move.
‘But the team has just grown and grown. I’m happy to be here.
‘The club has been giving out bigger contracts over the last couple of seasons.
‘Previously, they were giving out one-year deals. But the likes of myself and Gary Warren signed three-year deals, so they are giving players longer contracts.
‘They want the players to stay. I think that’s helped us — we’ve had a steady squad in the last couple of seasons and we’ve just kept pushing on.
‘We want to keep doing that. We want to push the likes of Aberdeen for second place.’
If their achievements of late continue to fly under the radar, then no one among the squad is too put out by that.
Regardless of how much room for growth there remains at the club, for those who pull on the jersey on Saturday, there is a regular need for reality checks.
‘I always wanted to be a professional footballer and play in these kinds of games,’ Doran explained.
‘Robbie Keane was my hero. He’s from where I live, and he played for the same local club as me, Crumlin United.
‘I haven’t done as much as him, but it’s still a huge thing to play in a Scottish Cup Final.
‘I had his name on the back of my shirt as a kid and I went over to Spurs a couple of times to watch him. He came over and shook my hand, and I got a few photos.’
The attractions of playing professional football in Inverness would surely now be obvious to a blind man.
Notwithstanding the picturesque environment, European football and now regular appearances in major cup finals now come as part of the package. There are those in the lower echelons of the English game who would now walk there for such an experience.
‘It’s a beautiful place to live, there’s a lot of stuff to do up here,’ Doran said.
‘ We are really tight around Inverness. It’s not a big place, the lads go fishing together and play golf. We’re all really close. If there’s anyone f eeling down, we get around them.
‘All the lads settle into the club quite quickly because they’re all nice people.
‘It’s an easy place to live, so it’s a really good club to be at.
‘I’ve been here four-and-a-half years now. It’s been good, we’re making history every season.
‘I didn’t expect this. We made it to a cup final last year, and a semi- final the year before. We’ve just been pushing on every year — and, hopefully, we can keep doing it.
‘ I don’t think many people expected us to get into the top six, but now we’re there every season.
‘The chairman used to give out bonuses for reaching the top six, so I don’t think he’ll be doing that anymore.’
Bring the Cup north for the first time on Saturday, though, and — rest assured — Kenny Cameron will be only too happy to reach for his cheque book.
‘There is a real buzz around Inverness,’ Doran continued. ‘Every shop window has pictures of us and there are scarves and flags everywhere.
‘We need to go out there and put on a show for all the fans that are coming down to watch us.
‘We are getting to play in the Scottish Cup Final — and it’s probably the biggest game any of us have played in.
‘ We’ve done really well this season and we just need to get over that final line.’