Paton hails kid No.1... even if his Cruyff turns give him the willies Teenage Tricks
RUARI PATON heaped praised on Callan McKenna after the teenage keeper’s first Championship clean sheet – even if a penalty box Cruyff turn had his nerves jangling.
Record Sport revealed last week the Queen’s Park goalie is catching the eye of English clubs Arsenal and Southampton after a stunning start to the season.
At just 16, McKenna kept Arbroath at bay and showed remarkable composure under pressure from Jermaine Hylton to perform Dutch legend Johan Cruyff’s trademark skill in the six-yard box.
And Paton, who netted the winner at Gayfield to send Queen’s five points clear at the summit, said: “Callan has got a long way to go, which can be scary sometimes for a young man like that.
“There are a lot of things ahead of him but to be that good with the ball at your feet as a goalie will be brilliant for him in the future. The gaffer wants us to play the ball out from the back and he is so composed.
“Sometimes it’s heart in the mouth stuff when he is trying to do a Cruyff turn in the box but it’s scary how good he is with the ball at his feet.”
Paton was at the heart of almost everything the Spiders did well at Gayfield.
And just like the weekend before in a 2-1 victory at Lesser Hampden, he left the Red Lichties pointless.
His winner came in 69 minutes as he latched on to a Jack Spong through ball to prod past veteran keeper Derek Gaston from 15 yards.
Then Paton wasted no time in racing over to the Arbroath fans to goad them with an ear-cupping celebration.
But before that, he was also involved in a bizarre incident involving Red Lichties attacker Joao Balde.
With the duo jostling for the ball, Paton caught Balde in the midriff with the ball and the 22-year-old vomited on the pitch.
Paton added: “Scottish football is good, isn’t it? I don’t know what happened but I think it hit him in the chuckies.
“I switched to the left side after I saw him being sick because I thought to myself, ‘I’m not going near that.’
“It’s always a really tough shift coming up here to Arbroath.
“You have to come prepared and be ready to take the hits.
“You’ve got to adapt up here, that’s the way it is with the wind and the pitch. You have to deal with those things.
“But it’s always a good occasion because I like it here and it’s a good club.
“Queen’s Park came so close last season and we are looking to go another step forward this year.
“It’s one game at a time. It’s such a cliche but it really is. I don’t think I’ve ever started a season this well. Long may it continue.” For Dick Campbell’s side, the opposite is true at the moment. This was their third successive Championship defeat, leaving them anchored to the foot of the table. A loss to Dundee United on the opening night followed by home and away defeats to Queen’s mean they’re already chasing the pack. But aside from the result, this showing was an improvement on last week’s 2-1 reverse. It was also a much better afternoon for wing-back Aaron Steele, who was left feeling spellbound by experienced Spiders winger and captain Dom Thomas in Glasgow. Steele said: “The gaffer spoke to me after the game last week and said, ‘Welcome to the Championship’.
“It’s important I learn from that. It’s a completely different level from League Two given the standard of players I’m up against.
“After the game last week I went into the house and sat in a quiet room. I took some time to myself to think it over.
“I wasn’t happy with myself because I know the standards I’m capable of.
“I felt like I’m much better than what I showed in Glasgow.
“Mistakes have to drive you on to do better. It’s all about experiences and I’ll be a better player for that 90 minutes.”