Benched Boyd walks out on Burley's Scotland

Published on Sunday 12 October 2008 23:14

A BAD result, an infamous miss, and Scotland's World Cup hopes are hanging in the balance. Time for the players to show some solidarity, you might think. Time for them to back the management, show some defiance and say they can still make it to South Africa.

Not Kris Boyd. Instead of any of that distasteful positive stuff, the Rangers striker apparently thought the aftermath of Saturday's 0-0 draw with Norway was the time to flounce off and announce he would never play for Scotland again as long as George Burley is manager.

The rumours began hours after the match, and yesterday afternoon Boyd confirmed them. "I left a message on George Burley's phone (on Saturday] night and he hadn't got back to me," he said. "I didn't think just leaving a message was very professional, so I spoke with (Scottish Football Association chief executive] Gordon Smith and informed him of my decision. I will not be playing for George Burley again, but I hope to be back in a Scotland jersey again one day."

Burley reacted last night by saying he would treat Boyd's decision with "respect". A mixture of bemusement and contempt would have been a more understandable reaction, but to express those emotions would have accorded the fringe player's decision a greater level of attention than it deserves.

Smith said he hoped Boyd would reconsider. "If Kris Boyd is saying it's because of George Burley then that's unfortunate," the SFA official said.

"He didn't play yesterday, he didn't come on as a substitute, so maybe he has got upset. If Kris spent a bit more time thinking about it, he might have changed his mind. Maybe it was a quick reaction to how he feels."

That reaction, like Burley's, was a sensible line to take. But the SFA should now let the matter lie, and not prolong a debate which is sure to see some of Boyd's supporters clamouring for him to be restored to the squad – and on his own terms.

Had Boyd walked out on a serious point of principle, his decision might have deserved some respect. Had he quit at the end of a long qualifying campaign, or as a veteran who had fought long and hard for his country, there would have been no hard feelings.

So long, Kris, and thanks for all the goals, and the happy memories, and those times you made yourself available for meaningless friendlies because your commitment to the cause was so uncompromising. That could have been the reaction.

Instead, Boyd is calling a halt to his international career aged only 25. He has played for Scotland 15 times, and scored seven goals. He may well hope that in a year or two Burley will be gone and a new manager will rush to recall him, but there is no guarantee of that – and certainly his actions of this weekend will surely make any successor think twice before bringing him back.

So, coming towards what should be the peak years of his career, he is jeopardising the chance to play perhaps dozens of games at the highest level, and the possibility of being in the first Scotland squad since 1998 to qualify for the final stages of one of international football's two principal tournaments. And why? Because, it seems, he is not rated highly enough by Burley, and he has been frustrated by his lack of playing opportunities.

The frustration is understandable: every professional wants to be picked for the big games, and since Burley took over Boyd has seen only 28 minutes of action. But quitting the international scene is, self-evidently, not the way to end that frustration.

Granted, Boyd is not the only Scotland player to have decided to hang up his international boots. Lee McCulloch did the same only last month, and, while family reasons were offered for his decision, an unhappiness with the Burley regime may have played a part.

Yet, while we cannot exempt the manager of any blame for the discord within his squad, it remains the case that the vast majority of his players recognise he has a bigger picture to deal with and cannot pander to their individual feelings. James McFadden, for instance, was unhappy about being substituted ten minutes or so into the second half of the Norway match, but accepted the reasoning behind it.

"I was very disappointed," McFadden said. "I wanted to play as much as I could; I wanted to play the whole game. But the manager changed it, and in the end, it almost worked."

Boyd's supporters might counter that it would have worked had their man, not Chris Iwelumo, been introduced to the action in the second half. But that is a moot point, and even if conceded would hardly constitute a vindication of his actions.

By yesterday afternoon, player and coach had been in direct contact, and according to Burley there had been no mention of any other issue bar lack of playing time. "I've spoken with Kris and he told me that he was disappointed not to play on Saturday or in the last couple of matches," he stated. "He said that he did not want to be considered for future Scotland squads so that he can concentrate on his club career."

That explanation was either disingenuous or diplomatic, for Boyd certainly does not want to play only club football. He wants to play at the highest level, and apparently believes he deserves to do so. Making himself unavailable, however, is a strange way of trying to prove his case.

The truism states that all good strikers have to be selfish. Boyd has perhaps not understood that it refers to behaviour on the field of play, not off it.

Fans criticise 'yesterday's man'

KRIS Boyd's decision to quit Scotland has been condemned by the Tartan Army, who last night accused the striker of a lack of loyalty.

"The players have put us through so much misery over the years, but following Scotland is a series of highs and lows," said Hamish Husband, spokesman for the West of Scotland Tartan Army. "The Tartan Army always follows the team, and the players should show the same loyalty.

"I appreciate that Kris Boyd should have come on against Norway and that he would have scored the winner. But he has to suffer with the rest of us.

"He is one of the best strikers we have. But if you don't want to play for Scotland just leave – don't say it's because of George Burley; don't pretend you want to play and that you will play again in the future. We will have to wait and see whether Burley is the right man for the job, but whether he is upsetting players or not is not my concern. What I want to see is players who want to play for Scotland. Boyd is yesterday's man. We move on."

James McFadden started against Norway as a lone striker before Burley took the decision to throw Steven Fletcher and debutant Chris Iwelumo into the action, leaving Boyd on the bench. What followed was an open-goal miss from Iwelumo, as the hosts were forced to settle for a 0-0 draw.

"All Scotland wants is players who want to play for the jersey," added Husband. "From what I've seen of Chris Iwelumo, he is not the best centre-forward in the world – and we all know Boyd would have scored if he had come on. But after Boyd's statement today, I would take Chris Iwelumo over Boyd any time. More than 50,000 people believed that Boyd would have scored the winner. But if he doesn't want to play for the jersey, then no one is interested in him any more."

Lisa Gray