GERMANY OR GIBRALTAR, IT’S ALL THE SAME TO No 1 MARSHALL
THE fight to get to this point only makes the prize on offer more precious. For Davi d Marshall , retaining his place against Gibraltar would matter every bit as much as facing Germany.
The Cardiff City goalkeeper has been Gordon Strachan’s pick for each of the four Euro 2016 qualifiers to date. He has not let his manager down, yet is keenly aware that competition for the jersey continues to intensify.
Craig Gordon and Allan McGregor each played 45 minutes of Wednesday night’s 1-0 friendly win over Northern Ireland.
If one were reading the runes, it might suggest that Marshall will get the run- out when Gibraltar visit Hampden tomorrow.
The 30- year- old will assume nothing, however, until he has heard Strachan read out the 11 names in the morning.
If that leads to a 17th cap, there will be no hint of complacency.
Marshall went through years of travelling with the national squad without much hope of playing.
On the rare occasions he was selected, he had a tendency to end up on the wrong end of a hefty scoreline through no fault of his own.
It almost seemed the fates were conspiring against him, but Marshall transformed the situation through his outstanding form for Cardiff in the Premier League last season. Having finally leapt to the f ront of the queue, he is determined to stay there.
‘Everyone knows my history with Scotland,’ Marshall reflected. ‘I had to wait years and years to get caps, so it makes each one more valuable now as I get older.
‘I don’t want to give it up, so I’ll just continue to do what I can. It doesn’t matter to me if it is Germany or Gibraltar. There is a lot of pressure on us to win the game and it puts us in a great position if we manage to do it.
‘Years ago, I never thought I should be playing. Craig was brilliant. Then Allan came in at a stage when I wasn’t playing. So there was never a time I expected to play.
‘It’s just in the last couple of years when I have got myself to a level where I can believe in myself to go and play. Injuries put Allan and Craig out and I managed to get a chance and play well, so that’s why I was probably in the team.
‘With the standard of the keepers here, it’s difficult to consider yourself the No 1. I’ve waited a long time to get a chance, but the boys are all fit. Craig has done great to get playing at Celtic and Allan is playing in the Premier League.
‘ I don’t think i t would be a massive decision whoever played, but the gaffer has stuck with me s i nce t he beginning of t he campaign and I hope to keep playing well and stay in the side.’
Clearly, there is a professional rivalry within the goalkeeping trio, described by no less a judge than Andy Goram as Scotland’s bestever crop. But it is distinctly cordial in nature.
‘We’ve been together for a long time now,’ said Marshall. ‘I’ve been here for over 10 years and Craig has been the same, obviously minus a couple of years through injury.
‘We know each other so well and we are used to the standard. When we are together, it hopefully lifts us to make each other better.
‘ When I was younger, Andy Goram and Jim Leighton were great. That was a great group of goalkeepers, so to hear what Andy — a legend for Rangers and Scotland — said is a great honour.
‘But we can’t read too much into t hat. We j ust have t o keep performing as that is what you are judged on. We need to concentrate and do our best for the rest for the rest of the campaign.
‘I would definitely consider the other guys friends. I shared a room with Craig for five or six years at the start with Scotland.
‘It might be a bit different at club level when there is that one place. But being here is about the country. We have not been at a championship for so long, so there is no room for sticking the knife i n each other’s back. We are all together.’
Whoever is selected tomorrow, they will face a most curious assignment. Gibraltar have lost their four Group D fixtures by an aggregate score of 21-0.
Unless something odd happens, the Scotland penalty area should verge on a no-go zone.
‘ It’s a difficult game to talk about,’ admitted Marshall. ‘Concentration levels have got to be high and football is weird. There could be a deflection, a set-piece, anything.
‘We need to start the game well as the earlier we can score the better.
‘This is probably the only time with Scotland t hat you are expected not to have too much to do.
‘But concentration is a massive thing in goalkeeping. I had it with Celtic when I was younger, when you would play a lot of games where there was not a lot to do. You just have to deal with it and train as normal.
‘Would I prefer to be busy? No, I prefer doing nothing! But you just don’t know how it is going to play out. You can’t go into a game relaxed. You treat it l i ke any normal game and hope the boys up front can help you out.’