Adams has cup buzz after battle with Bale

WHATEVER challenges a first experience of the Scottish Cup throws at Blair Adams, they are unlikely to be quite as daunting as those he faced in its English equivalent. For one thing, there will be no Gareth Bale (below) at East End Park this afternoon. Adams encountered the Welsh wonder prior to a then-world record £85million move to Real Madrid. Bale duly scored, to help secure a 3-0 half-time lead over Adams’ Coventry side in an FA Cup third-round tie. Twelve months later, the Hamilton full-back was up against more star names in north London when the draw sent Coventry to Arsenal. ‘I’ve had some great FA Cup games and come up against some top Premier League teams at their stadiums,’ reflected Adams, who moved to Accies from Cambridge in the January transfer window. ‘At Coventry I played against Spurs at White Hart Lane and also Arsenal at the Emirates. ‘Just recently I played against Leeds United for Cambridge. In terms of direct opponents, at Spurs it was Gylfi Sigurdsson, while Gareth Bale was on my side a couple of times. ‘At Arsenal it was Serge Gnabry, who’s now at Werder Bremen. Cup tournaments are great experience and there’s always the opportunity to take any form in them into the league. I want to do well in the Scottish Cup.’ The trip to Dunfermline provides Accies with a chance to reach their first quarter-final since defeating the Fife club at the same stage of the tournament four years ago. For Adams, on a personal level, it is all about regaining regular football after becoming frustrated at Cambridge. The 25-year-old was an England Under-20 international when he came through the ranks at Sunderland, although he never made a competitive first-team appearance before being allowed to leave by Martin O’Neill. ‘I played for England at the Under-20s World Cup in Colombia,’ said Adams. ‘I got a couple of caps and that was one of the highlights of my career. ‘Matty Phillips, Saido Berahino and Jack Butland were a few of the big names in the squad. ‘We drew all of our group games, but managed to get through. Then we lost to Nigeria. ‘I was still playing in Sunderland and we were going over there to play in front of crowds of 40,000. ‘It was a new experience for all of the boys and it stood us in good stead for the rest of our

careers.’