" DAVID MARSHALL "

David Marshall: I never once thought about quitting Scotland

By Neil Cameron


We'd 10th June 2015

DAVID MARSHALL insisted he never once thought about quitting Scotland even when as third choice goalkeeper his main job was to make sure the two players above him were looked after.

MARSHALL LAW: Scotland's No.1 has no intention of letting top spot slip after years on the sidelines
MARSHALL LAW: Scotland's No.1 has no intention of letting top spot slip after years on the sidelines
If they handed out caps for perseverance, then the man who will stand between the Republic of Ireland and a goal this Saturday would have far more than the 18 he's won so far for his country.

Marshall made his international debut 11 years ago and since then has travelled the world, watched too many games and spent a lot of time in hotel rooms away from his family so he could play second fiddle, at best, to Rab Douglas, Allan McGregor and his room-mate for all this time, Craig Gordon.

Even when Marshall was playing well for Norwich City and then Cardiff, he always seemed to be the other guy. Not everyone would put up with this, however, now established as the Scotland No1, Marshall is happy that he stuck it out through some tough times.

"Attitude gets you so far," he said. "It's a squad game now, so it's different from being at a club. If you have been on the bench and do all the travelling, which happens at international football, it can be a long time away if you are not playing.

"It's not so bad when you are younger, but when you have a family and kids, and you're still not playing, then it is hard to justify it at times; especially when it goes on so long. There were a few boys in that boat.

"So I wouldn't say I deserve to play just for travelling. It was tough at times and the only thing you can do is work hard.

"Did I ever think about quitting? No, not really. I was always the youngest goalie so it didn't really cross my mind. When I was at Celtic and not playing, then coming here and not playing, that was more difficult.

"There was nothing to look forward to. If you are playing for your club then you can concentrate on that, and playing for Scotland would be a wee bonus."

A bonus for Marshall for two years was the absence of Craig Gordon, who for some time rather selfishly never let down his country and therefore was almost undroppable.

So you might imagine the current No1 would not welcome the fact the player he once deputised for is back, and playing as well as he ever did. Indeed, Marshall is delighted with the return of his team-mate.

"What Craig had done is unbelievable. To be out of the game for two years is a long time. You would have thought it might take him a bit of time to get to a certain level but Craig has fitted in perfectly. He's picked up awards this season, so it's been really great for him.

"I would say that if anyone could do this it would be Craig. He's a natural goalie. He does a lot of gym work. How he is physically meant he could take time off and come straight back in. So the work he did would have helped him. He also had confidence in his ability to come back."

Asked whether he would be happy if Gordon of all people took his place given all he's been through, Marshall did state; "I'm no his da."

Which is a fair point.

"I shared a room with Craig for five years before he picked up his injury, " said Marshall. "To come back at Celtic - and this is the major thing - to perform at that level in Europe and winning the league, and from speaking to him even he was surprised he got back so quickly.

"Before the injury, everyone knew how good he was. I watched him with Scotland and never really made any mistakes. He was so consistent and to come back to that so quickly is great.

"To have so many good keepers does push you on. The standard throughout the whole squad is like that. If a player picks up an injury then someone else can slot in. To have that level, especially with the goalies, is a great thing to have."

Scotland have two top class goalkeepers and a chance of making a major tournament. What a time to be alive.

David Marshall determined to remain Scotland No 1



We'd 10 June 2015

It IS many people’s idea of the story of the Scottish football year – Craig Gordon’s remarkable journey from unemployment and oblivion to a championship medal and a Player of the Year prize. And David Marshall, decent fellow that he is, has been perfectly happy to heap more praise on a man he must consider his rival.

You could argue that Marshall can afford to be magnanimous because he is the man in possession of the Scotland goalkeeper’s shirt, having started all of the country’s Euro 2016 qualifiers to date – but his appreciation of how Gordon has rebuilt his career at Celtic is genuine and heartfelt.

What Craig’s done is unbelievable. To be out for two years is a long, long time
David Marshall
“What he’s done is unbelievable,” Marshall said yesterday at the national team’s training camp at Mar Hall. “To be out of the game for two years is a long, long time. You might have thought the road back to a certain level would have been quite a tough one, but for Craig it seems to have been effortless. He’s picked up awards this season so it’s really been great for him.”

The Cardiff City goalie then appeared to contradict himself. He wasn’t totally surprised by Gordon’s comeback, he said. But this was yet another compliment for the man. “I shared a room with Craig for five years before he picked up his injury and I would say that if anyone could make this kind of return then it would be him. He’s a natural goalie and doesn’t need to do a lot of gym work. How he is physically, he could be away from it for a while and still come straight back in. He’s not one of those ’keepers who needs to be constantly training and training. He also has great confidence in himself and that’s helped him get back.

“Before the injury everyone knew how good he was. I watched him with Scotland and he never really made any mistakes – he was so consistent.

“Then he turned up at Celtic where, to be a ’keeper, to come back at that level, show the concentration that I know from my time there you need to have, play in Europe and win a championship, has been brilliant. I’m a bit surprised, to be honest, that he’s got back into the Scotland squad as quick as he did but here he is. Craig loves playing for Scotland, he always has, and without having asked him the question, I think I know his main objective is to play for his country. He’s desperate to play, I understand that. He has a lot of caps and he’d have a whole lot more were it not for his injury.”

These were fine words and Marshall speaking at such length about his rival prompted the suggestion that if he had to make way for another ’keeper for Saturday’s crucial qualifier against the Republic of Ireland, maybe he would want it to be Gordon. Marshall pondered this for, oh, all of two seconds. “Hold on,” he laughed, “I’m no’ his dad!”

Marshall wants the job in Dublin. “Every time before Scotland play there’s usually a question over who will be the goalie but I hope I play.” He’s waited a long time to be first choice and isn’t about to give it up.