Debutant Gallagher does his family and fans proud in first international
Declan Gallagher admits he was close to tears knowing his family were there to watch him make his Scotland debut.
The Motherwell centreback put in a solid display as Scotland won 2-1 in Cyprus on Saturday afternoon.
Gallagher’s wife Nikki and four-year-old daughter Shay were in the stand, along with both sets of their parents, and the 28-year-old was a proud man.
“I was absolutely delighted to get my first cap and also get a win away from home,” said the defender. “It’s amazing and I am delighted for all the boys as well.
“I knew my family were up the back of the stand and a lot of people watching back home and to stand and to sing your national anthem and play for your country is a dream. It was absolutely amazing.
“My missus and my wee one were desperate to come over. I think they just wanted a holiday! But they are my biggest fans. My mum and dad were over in Russia and my wife and my wee girl are at every game. And obviously to have my missus’ mum and dad there as well was amazing.
“I said to my missus after the game, I felt like crying knowing that she and my daughter were there to see me get my first cap.”
Gallagher was dominant in the air and twice stopped Cyprus players getting headers on goal from good positions as Scotland put themselves in third place in their European Championship qualifying group ahead of tomorrow’s visit to Hampden of Kazakhstan. Steve Clarke’s side cannot qualify automatically but are assured of a place in the play-offs.
“I’m paid to defend, so it was goodtowinafewheadersand ease myself into the game,” the former Dundee and Livingston player added. “I am here to stake my claim and hopefully I have done more than enough to keep my place for Tuesday, but we have a big squad and the gaffer may feel he needs to freshen it up.
“If that’s the case I’ll support the boys because we have a good squad of boys and we have to work as a team.”
Manager Clarke felt that Gallagher had grown into the game well. “He was up against a very good opponent in [Pieros] Sotiriou, who is a handful,” Clarke said.
“It took Declan a little bit of time to get his distances right and not get too close to the striker. But in the second half he was good for us.”
Cyprus would have sealed a historic best third-place finish in the section if they had won at the GSP Stadium and they came extremely close to a fifth-minute opener when former Rangers and Dundee player George Efrem turned Scott Mckenna and fired a shot off the underside of the bar. It looked as though the ball had just crept over the line but, with no goalline technology to help them, the Austrian officials played on.
Scotland took advantage of the reprieve about seven minutes later when Ryan Christie, pictured inset, cut in from the right flank and curled a beautiful shot into the top corner from 20 yards.
Clarke’s men were pegged back early in the second half when Efrem volleyed home from a corner – the fifth setpiece goal Scotland had conceded in four matches – but Aston Villa’s John Mcginn swept home an inch-perfect Greg Taylor cross to give the Scots another morale boost ahead of the Kazakhs’ visit.
“I was absolutely delighted to get my first cap and also get a win away from home. It’s amazing and I am delighted for all the boys as well.”
DECLAN GALLAGHER