Hearts star Devlin touched by his Postecoglou pep talk
CAMMY DEVLIN isn’t often lost for words. But being pulled aside for an impromptu pep talk by the guy who — to quote the Hearts midfielder himself — is ‘coaching fricken Celtic, man…’?
That left the typically combative Aussie battler almost mute with pride. Almost.
Plenty will have noticed Ange Postecoglou taking a moment to chat with his fellow Australian (below) immediately after Celtic’s 1-0 home win over Hearts last month.
While casual observers might have dismissed it as just a couple of ex-pats exchanging niceties, it clearly meant much more to Devlin.
Postecoglou’s message to the 23-year-old was apparently straightforward enough, the coach telling him: ‘So good to see you doing so well, mate. There is another level in you. Keep working hard.’
Revealing how honoured he’d felt to be singled out for attention by the Celtic boss, Devlin admitted: ‘I was hoping I’d get the chance to say hello to him after the game.
‘Although I was knackered and gutted about the loss, it was nice to meet him and hear him say that to me, because he’s someone who has done so much for Australian football.
‘He’s coaching fricken Celtic, man. It’s insane. Everyone likes him here — even in Edinburgh, no one’s had a bad word to say. And everyone’s pretty opinionated over here!’
Opinionated. That’s an unusually diplomatic way of describing the tribalism that makes Scottish football such an interesting conflict zone. In fairness, Devlin has taken to the cut and thrust of on-field combat in game fashion, the pocket dynamo — he stands only 5ft 7ins in his longest pair of studs — tearing about the Tynecastle midfield with energy. Occasionally too much energy. Six bookings in 14 appearances is not the disciplinary record of a player who knows when to hold back. Or, as he admits, when to shut up. ‘Yeah, I know,’ he told The Age and Sydney Morning Herald newspapers back home, picking a perfectly Australian turn of phrase as he added: ‘I’ve got to pull my head in. ‘I’ve been saying that for a couple of years now, that I need to shut my mouth and just get on with it. But I can’t help myself. ‘I promise I’m a good bloke off the field. But on the field, I’ve just got white-line fever. I just like to get stuck in. ‘I’ll do anything for the team to win, and if that means putting in an extra leg when I shouldn’t — whatever it is, I’ll be the first one to do it. I’m not going to shy away, because it makes me who I am.’