Robbie Neilson reckons Lawrence Shankland should hold fire on his summer holiday plans after coming off the beach to answer Steve Clarke’s SOS.
Record Sport revealed yesterday the Hearts frontman cut short his break in the sun to join up with the Scotland squad – and he came off the bench as the national side stunned Spain to steal a march in the Euro qualifiers. Neilson was thrilled the Jambos hitman played a part in the sensational 2-0 win – and he’s convinced the commitment shown could be rewarded by Clarke for the June double header with Norway and Georgia.
The Gorgie boss said: “The guys had a few days off over the weekend. Lawrence was away and then he came back when he got the call. I was delighted for him. Firstly you saw the commitment to come back for the camp and then to get a bit of game time is brilliant for him.
I was at the game and he had that opportunity (the late shot saved by keeper Kepa), and just being on the park and being part of that victory is massive for him. There was a disappointment at missing out on the original squad but he’s a big boy, and then he got the call.
“The big thing for me was for him to get game-time, that in a pressure situation that Steve trusted him. He went on and did very well, he got the opportunity, but not only that, he pressed well, defended well. He’ll definitely be in Steve’s thoughts for the summer.”
Jambos keeper Zander Clark missed out on the No.1 jersey to Angus Gunn but Neilson insisted the shot stopper won’t be too down. He said: “The thing with Zander is that he was involved in the squad, that’s the biggest thing.
“Six months ago, in the summer, he didn’t have a club so six months down the line he is the Hearts No.1 and on the bench against Spain for Scotland, he will be delighted with that, I’m sure.”
Neilson was thrilled for his Scots and he welcomed back his Socceroos crew last night. Newcastle loanee Garang Kuol notched in the friendly double header with Ecuador but Cammy Devlin is set to miss tomorrow’s Kilmarnock clash after suffering a nasty head wound.
Neilson said: “They reported concussion after the game, although he continued in it. Their doctor said it’s mild concussion, so he will miss the game. It’s disappointing, but there’s nothing we can do about it.
“No idea how many stitches he got but no doubt he’ll be telling us when he’s back. I watched the game, I thought he did really well. I was surprised when he came back on but I know what he’s like, the wee man, desperate to do well.
“I was pleased for him to get some game-time. I’m delighted for Garang. He’s probably not got as much game-time as he’d like. But we knew bringing him here, we spoke with Newcastle and a big development one for him coming here.
“You can see in the Australia games, coming on at the end, I would like to give him more game-time and I’m sure he will.”
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