Tony Watt’s in the driving seat for Malta qualifier
● Mcghee reveals conversation with taxi driver helped reinforce positive view of born-again Hearts striker
Former Scotland manager Andy Roxburgh once memorably took advice from a Lisbon taxi driver when formulating tactics prior to a 5-0 thrashing by Portugal.
But Mark Mcghee is confident he can rely on the testimony of a Partick Thistle-supporting cabbie’s view that Tony Watt has come of age.
The Scotland assistant coach was already sure of Watt’s increased level of maturity in any case after conversations with the striker during the summer.
Mcghee also sought the counsel of Hearts director of football Craig Levein and head coach Robbie Neilson. Both provided glowing references about a player who scored his first goal for Hearts in Saturday’s 2-1 win over Thistle.
“I didn’t see the game at the weekend but I spoke to a Thistle taxi driver in midweek and he told me he had been impressed with Tony Watt,” said Mcghee. “He had worked his socks off and Hearts eventually got the win.
“He went the distance as well, which is a question which has been asked of him – whether he can go the 90 minutes? Everything about him is positive.”
He might have been a late addition to the squad for Sunday’s opening World Cup qualifier against Malta but Mcghee insists Watt was never an afterthought.
The striker, who is on loan at Tynecastle from Charlton Athletic, was absent from Gordon Strachan’s original 27-player squad when it was named nearly a fortnight ago. But he picked a good time to score a last-minute winner against Thistle at the weekend.
A hamstring injury picked up by Leigh Griffiths in Celtic’s victory over Aberdeen on the same day created space in the squad for another striker. Despite many expecting Ross Mccormack, the £12 million Aston Villa centre forward, to step in, Watt was the surprise choice.
Mcghee revealed the 22-year-old was always a contender to be called up after he was satisfied by Watt’s attitude and outlook during two long conversations with him prior to his return to Scotland with Hearts.
“There is a new energy about him – and not just from when he went to Hearts,” said Mcghee. “I had two quite long conversations with Tony in the summer and reported back to Gordon that what I was hearing was of improved maturity and responsibility.
“He was talking a good game, talking about his own decisions and taking responsibility for himself,” he added. “I was very encouraged about what I heard from him.
“And then, of course, he made his move to Hearts. I have spoken to Craig and how they feel about him. He is on the right track now.
“Even when we had him in before, very early in the last campaign to look at him, we saw a good player. He just wasn’t in the right frame of mind back then. Now he is. And he has something to offer.
“This is international football and there is a responsibility, not only from the point of view of the performance – but also how you are acquitting yourself in general.
“The boy is getting it right. I spoke to Robbie [Neilson] about him and to Craig in the boardroom when they [Hearts] played Celtic. They confirmed everything I had been feeling about him.”
The qualifying campaign is yet to start but John Mcginn already feels a profound sense of loss.
Scott Brown’s retirement could be interpreted as giving the Hibs player a chance to stake a claim in a newlook Scotland midfield. But Mcginn himself was especially saddened by the news, no matter what it might mean for his own prospects.
Brown, he revealed, was an encouraging presence next to Mcginn when he made his full Scotland bow in March, in the 1-0 win over Denmark. “He looked after me,” he said. “I’m a Hibee after all!”
While it was clearly a memorable night for Mcginn, it was a special occasion for Brown as well. He was making his 50th and, it turned out, last appearance for Scotland. Despite his own emotions, Brown determined to help Mcginn through a testing experience. The Hibs midfielder won’t ever forget it.
As remains the case, Mcginn was making a considerable step up from playing Championship football with Hibs to the international arena. Having been a former Easter Road stalwart himself, Brown was alert to this as well as the nerves that were likely to hinder Mcginn at first.
“He made sure I was under his wing,” said Mcginn. “It was brilliant to play alongside him on his 50th cap. It’s disappointing for all of us that he’s not here. But he was a massive influence on me early on in my international career. If I can have half as good a career on the international stage as him I’d be delighted.
“He was talking to me throughout the game,” added Mcginn.
“Before the game he said just go and do what you normally do. I settled down really quickly. I’ll be forever grateful [to him] for that. It’s disappointing he’s not here now but we need to focus on who is here now.”
While Mcginn is stopping short of taking everything Brown does on board – “I still wear jerseys outside,” he smiled, with reference to the Celtic skipper’s preference to wear short-sleeved shirts whatever the weather – he acknowledged just how large a presence he is.
“Even off the pitch as well as on it he treated everyone the same,” he said. “He was a really big character in the dressing room. On the pitch he gave his all. He would be the first to say that he wasn’t the best technically in the squad. But there was no one in the team that would work harder. That’s the sort of attitude I need to show.”
Mcginn is an arch competitor and so realises what Brown’s absence could potentially mean for him and his other midfield compadres. Indeed, when once Scotland seemed more than well served in the middle of the park, now, with James Mcarthur and Kevin Mcdonald having withdrawn from the squad to play Malta on Sunday due to injury and Charlie Mulgrew excluded, manager Gordon Strachan’s options are limited.
“It gives me an opportunity,” Mcginn agreed. “There are still an awful lot of quality midfielders in the squad, you can see that on the training pitch. It’s just up to myself to prove to the manager and the staff that I’m good enough to give them a dilemma.
“It’s up to me,” he added. “I want to do that [replace Brown] but I’m fully aware of the standard of player we’ve got here. I’m supportive of whatever decision the manager makes.”
It would be a special achievement if Mcginn, whose grandfather Jack was once president of the Scottish Football Association, could follow in Brown’s footsteps to the extent that he is named Scotland skipper, as some predict will happen sometime in the future.
Just how long the 20-yearold has to achieve this distinction is illustrated when he reveals one of his early memories of watching Scotland was against Romania in March 2004. It was the friendly when John kennedy was stretchered off after sustaining a careerending knee injury.
“Ever since then I was lucky enough to get all the tickets so I know what to expect on big matchdays at Hampden,” he said. “I am really keen to be involved in the future.”
Clearly Mcginn, as well as the Scotland management team, would prefer if he was playing in the top flight this season. “They believe I’m still good enough to be in the squad and that gives me massive confidence,” he reasoned. “When I think of that it means I deserve to be here.”
The way the Easter Road side have started the current league campaign under Neil Lennon, it’s clear they are not intending to stay another season in the Championship. Mcginn believes his own performances can only be improved by having a midfielder as manager.
“He [Lennon] takes me aside, he’s really calm behind closed doors,” he said. “He doesn’t hide in highlighting your weakness but he’s very keen for you to improve. He’s improved a lot of the boys already and that will continue for the rest of the season.”
“It’s disappointing for all of us that he’s not here. He was a massive influence on me early on in my international career”
MCGINN ON BROWN “There are still an awful lot of quality midfielders in the squad, you can see that on the training pitch”
MCGINN ON TALENT POOL