THE inspired performance that Robby McCrorie produced against Celtic at Ibrox last season in just his second start for Rangers underlined why so many in Scottish football had predicted that great things lay ahead for the young goalkeeper.
McCrorie was only involved in the cinch Premiership encounter with the Parkhead club in August because there had been a Covid-19 outbreak in the squad and both Allan McGregor and Jon McLaughlin were unavailable.
But the 23-year-old, whose previous first team appearance had come against Alashkert in the second leg of the Europa League play-off in Armenia a few days earlier, pulled off two vital saves from the visitors’ new £4.6m striker Kyogo Furuhashi in the second-half and helped his side to record a narrow 1-0 win.
That, though, remains his last competitive outing. In the past 16 months, he has either sat on the bench or up in the stands on match days. When Celtic rocked up in Govan again on Monday, he was not involved in any capacity once again.
National team manager Steve Clarke, who called McCrorie into his squad for the Nations League matches against Ukraine and the Republic of Ireland back in September, is an admirer of the 6ft 2in player and has described his situation as “not ideal”.
Clarke will, with Craig Gordon of Hearts sidelined until the end of the season as a result of the double leg break he suffered against Dundee United at Tannadice on Christmas Eve, need to draft in a new keeper for the Euro 2024 qualifiers against Cyprus and Spain in March.
But there would appear to be little if any chance of the former under-21 internationalist being considered despite his previous involvement in the senior set-up.
So should the young man who has had productive spells at Berwick Rangers, Morton, Queen of the South and Livingston in the past six years look to go out on loan once again this January? Or even move on permanently? Or just bide his time? He would appear to be at a career crossroads.
Jonatan Johansson, the former Rangers striker and first team coach who took McCrorie to Cappielow shortly after he was appointed Morton manager in 2018, believes there will be no shortage of interest in the Ayrshire lad in the coming weeks.
“I knew Robby well from my time at Rangers when I took over at Morton,” he said. “I really liked him as a person and I could see his potential as a goalkeeper too. I liked his reach, his confidence, his character, his eagerness to learn, his willingness to work. So when there was an opportunity to do a loan deal with him I was interested. Rangers were keen for him to play too.
“It wasn’t easy for him. All of the teams in the Championship are of a pretty decent and similar standard, all of the teams are tough to beat. Small differences count so the goalkeeper is very important.
“As a manager, if you take an 18-year-old or a 19-year-old who is unproven to be your goalkeeper in the Championship you are effectively putting your job on the line. You don’t know how they are going to react as a first choice player.
“As a goalkeeper, you have to be a leader on the pitch, have to talk a lot, have to organise the defence. I can understand why managers want an experienced player to be their No 1, even in the lower leagues.
“But I knew Robby was a good goalkeeper so I was confident and comfortable bringing him in. He is tall, he goes for crosses, his distribution is good, he is vocal. His positioning on the pitch when the ball is outfield is always good. He is always in a position to play sweeper if he needs to.
“He did really well for me. He dominated his area. Aerially, he was very good. That is not easy in the Championship because a lot of balls get played into the box. But that was why I wanted someone with his profile, because he was good in the air. He is also a good shot stopper.
“From a personal point of view, he is probably dying to play regularly. I am sure there are loads of clubs who would like to take him. There will be no shortage of takers.”
But Johansson, who has just ended his two year spell in charge of TPS back home in his native Finland and is seeking a new challenge himself, is not overly concerned about the lack of game time that McCrorie has received in the last season-and-a-half.
He is confident the Scot will be learning and improving every day at Auchenhowie by working with goalkeeping coach Colin Stewart and training with McGregor and McLaughlin and feels that at 24 he still has time on his side.
“It is unfortunate that Robby is not playing,” he said. “He could potentially go out on loan again now. But I know for a fact that the goalkeeping coaching at Rangers is top, top class. It is a great place for him to be in that respect. Plus, I don’t think 24 is old for a goalkeeper.
“Yes, he has two excellent goalkeepers in front of him, but a good team needs three goalkeepers. It is not as simple as saying he wants to go out on loan. A big club needs three goalkeepers. It is still a great club for him to be at.
“He has been given a new contract (McCrorie signed a three year extension that keeps him at Ibrox until 2025 last October). So I am sure he is very highly thought of at Rangers and is viewed as a future No 1. I have no doubt they have a plan in place for him and will know how best to develop him. If they feel he needs to go out on loan then he will.”
Johansson played on no fewer than 106 occasions for Finland – only former Ajax, Barcelona and Liverpool playmaker Jari Litmanen has featured more for the Nordic nation – and is acutely aware of the standards required to play in goals at international level.
He thinks it would be too much for McCrorie, even though the Rangers player has been in and around the squad before, to represent Scotland at the moment even if he does go out on loan and get a run of first team games before the Cyprus and Spain matches.
“It is probably too soon for him for him with the games he has under his belt,” he said. “There is a different pressure playing for Scotland. The manager needs to see him play at a similar level for a number of games. Playing under-21 football is totally different. It is important for him to play at a good level.
“When you are a third choice keeper you don’t get many games internationally because these days there aren’t many friendly games with the Nations League. And it is really important that the goalkeepers who are picked have played consistently at a high level for a period of time.”
