Penrice bit of business can lead to a Scots call
STEVEN NAISMITH is convinced new Hearts recruit James Penrice can become a star for Scotland in the future.
The Tynecastle boss has added the former Livingston left-back to his squad on a pre-contract deal, signed back in March, and he’s adamant the sky’s the limit for the 25-year-old.
Penrice’s arrival in Gorgie comes after a career that began at Partick before a loan spell at East Fife.
But Naismith is adamant the defender can join a batch of unlikely recruits who have had the call from national boss Steve Clarke for international duty.
He said: “I’ve told James that I don’t think it’s unrealistic over his time at Hearts to get himself around the Scotland squad.
“I believe I can help make him a better player and if he shows the same mentally as he has so far then his name can be quoted to be in and around a Scotland call-up in my opinion.
“I’m not saying, ‘I’ll get James into the Scotland squad.’ But look at the likes of Craig Halkett, Stephen Kingsley and Barrie McKay who have managed to get themselves into that conversation in recent times, to get a call from Scotland when they may have thought there was no chance of that happening.
“I firmly believe James can get to that point – he’s under-rated and he’ll be a good asset for us.
“If you look at his career so far, James has had to graft for everything that he has got. The conversation I had with him had nothing to do with his ability as I think he’s a terrific player and a great athlete.
“He’s a fighter and has that old mentality of being able to put in real graft. His career so far has shown me that and those qualities were a banker for me.”