Saturday Interview: American dream over, homecoming is a happy one for Deuchar

Published on Friday 6 March 2009 21:42

WHILE his own return from America has not kept the world on tenterhooks, Scotland's former ambassador for football to the United States will forever stress the value of an adventure David Beckham temporarily halted following yesterday's confirmation of a job-sharing scheme between AC Milan and LA Galaxy.

Kenny Deuchar headed back across the Atlantic for much the same reason as Beckham, whose desire to be re-acquainted with a traditional football environment led to the extended haggling which has briefly diverted the Scot from his own bid to re-start his career at Hamilton Accies. Deuchar will be firmly focused on his own efforts to taste Homecoming Scottish Cup success at Ibrox tomorrow, in what is a historically loaded tie. In 1987, then bottom of the Premier League, Accies inflicted a 1-0 defeat on the big-spending Rangers side managed by Graeme Souness.

It is a ground where Deuchar's own success rate is what the Americans might refer to as an awesome score-grab of two in one. That is, he has played there once – in a 4-2 defeat last February – and scored two goals. Not even Beckham could better that when he appeared at the stadium last month.

They might not inhabit the same sphere of fame, but Deuchar and Beckham shared the same pitch last year. It is no exaggeration to say the Scot stole much of the limelight when scoring the second goal for Real Salt Lake, and then, following a Beckham double, having what would have proved a winning goal denied him by a badly judged off-side call from a linesman. "I am still a wee bit bitter about that actually," he admits. "It wasn't even close." But there is no trace of regret – and thankfully no hint of mid-Atlantic drawl – when Deuchar speaks of his time in Salt Lake City, a town deep in the Utah mountains and where it wasn't always possible to escape his roots. A shop called Edinburgh Castle occupies a prominent space on Main Street, and is owned by Eric Gilzean – brother of Alan.

Deuchar let nobody down, although denied the opportunity to make use of his status as a doctor due to work permit restrictions he also grew frustrated by a lack of opportunity to do what he came to do – play first-team football. Eighteen starts in 34 games for Real Salt Lake saw him included in the first XI more often than not, but his goals dried up in the arid heat of the mid-West.

"The occasion where I found myself out of the team happened to be the last six games of the season," he explains. "We were doing well as a team and the strikers who got their chance did well, so I can't have too many complaints. As a squad we did really well and got to the Western conference final and were just one game away from winning the whole thing. It was successful season.

"You are signed to the league (Major League Soccer] rather than the club and I had another year left on my contract. But I was keen to come back, and they were keen to free up some space on their salary caps. There were no hard feelings."

It was a profitable stay in terms of experience. He played at such iconic arenas as the Giants Stadium, while also sampling a more sociable culture prevalent in football in the States. The willingness of opposing teams to fraternise after games took Deuchar back to his days at university in Dundee.

"You would normally leave the day after an away game, rather than straight after it," he says. "Having played on a Saturday night you wouldn't leave until Sunday. Regardless of the result both teams will go out together and catch up after a game, and have a beer in a local bar. The soccer community over there is quite close-knit, because it is not one of the top sports.

"On one occasion in Colorado, we had just knocked them out of the play-offs after a last-minute equaliser, meaning we got into the play-offs at their expense. But we met them all in the nightclub afterwards. We had basically just ended their season, but were invited back to one of their player's places for a house party."

While it might often have proved convivial, football in America perhaps lacked the gritty qualities found in the British game. To see Deuchar kicking up the turf against Hibernian at New Douglas Park on Wednesday, a pair of snarling centre-halves on his back, was to view a man relishing a return to his natural domain. Now all he needs to really feel at home is the goals to begin to flow again. He has yet to find the net for his new side, although can be excused a period of re-acclimatisation. "The atmosphere is completely different over here," he explains. "Over there you might get 15-16,000 at games, but it is quiet. You are maybe playing in stadiums which hold over 50,000, but only 20,000 are at games. Even with 6-7,000 here, there is more of a buzz. I prefer it."

"Things change so quickly," he continues, having registered how eccentric his career path sounds to date; Falkirk, East Fife, Gretna and St Johnstone sounds orthodox enough, but throw in Salt Lake and a period on loan with Northampton, combine it with a medical career that has resumed one day a week at Wishaw General Hospital, and it quickly begins to look notable. "You never know what is round the corner – that is what makes it exciting," says the 28-year-old.

Indeed, Deuchar is living proof of how, if you want to give God a laugh, then tell Him your plans. Less than 20 months ago he sat in the restaurant he co-owns and, in the shadow of the Falkirk Wheel, contemplated the season ahead. His aim was to re-establish himself with Gretna, then an apparently vibrant club set to embark on a maiden season in the Scottish Premier League. Yesterday, at a different table, he reflected on his return.

The wheel of life has accounted for some notable casualties in the interim, including not only Gretna, but also the defunct club's owner Brooks Mileson. But the cycle of life is vividly illustrated by the news Deuchar is due to become a father later this year, following his marriage in January to Silvy. It is just another change of circumstances for Deuchar, whose contention that he doesn't believe in fate – "you make your own luck" – is backed up by the decision to send out DVDs of his goals to clubs in America, a ploy which brought about his move there. But it is a belief tested by the combination of events which deposited him in a Dumfries nightclub in October 2007, where he met his future wife. Although then a player with St Johnstone, he drove down for a party in Gretna after a game. "Later on me and Ryan McGuffie (a former team-mate at Gretna) went to Dumfries, and that is where I met Silvy. I got my reward." They were married to full Posh 'n' Becks effect at Airth Castle near Falkirk.

With a new house, and a baby on the way, Deuchar is ready to return to the goals business in which he made his name. When selecting who should occupy the lone striking role he will undoubtedly employ tomorrow Accies manager Billy Reid may well be swayed by Deuchar's form against Rangers. Half of his six SPL goals last season were scored against the Ibrox club. He recently scored a double in the reserves against them.

"It's good to be wanted again," he says of his move to Accies, where he is contracted to stay until the end of the season. "The manager tried to sign me a couple of times before. It's been hard to get into the team because Richard Offiong is doing well. I cannot complain about sharing minutes with him.

"But the two goals I scored against Rangers last season gave me a lot of confidence. Rangers were in the latter stages of the UEFA Cup, and the defence was getting a lot of plaudits. Carlos Cuellar went onto play in the Premiership, and cost 7 million. I feel I can do well against these guys. I just need to take that confidence into the next game and hopefully get a first goal for Hamilton soon."