David Marshall says exiles can make their mark on Wembley stage

CARDIFF goalkeeper David Marshall believes the crop of Scottish talent on display in tomorrow's Coca-Cola Championship final at Wembley may show Clydesdale Bank Premier League clubs what they are missing out on.

Marshall made 50 appearances for Celtic before heading south in 2007 and could be joined on the Wembley turf by as many as eight other Scots, who will all be battling for a place in the Barclays Premier League.

Joining Marshall in the Cardiff line-up will be former Rangers winger Chris Burke and former Aberdeen full-back Kevin McNaughton, but midfielder Gavin Rae – once of Rangers and Dundee – is injured.

Also hoping to feature will be former Motherwell defender Paul Quinn and striker Ross McCormack, another man who found first-team football hard to come by at Rangers.

Blackpool have been carried to the brink of promotion by another unwanted Rangers man, Charlie Adam, while Stephen Dobbie and Stephen Crainey could all also feature in Ian Holloway's line-up.

Marshall said: "There will be a lot of Scottish guys on show and I am sure it will create a lot of interest. A lot of us came through at Celtic and Rangers and it can be hard for young lads to get established into the side. There is obviously a lot of competition from foreigners and it is a high-pressure environment to learn your trade.

"I certainly made the decision to come to England and get first-team football and hopefully it is paying off. I think the likes of Chris and Charlie made that same call and we are all one game away from playing in the Premier League now."

Marshall is hoping to play a part for the national side under new manager Craig Levein and admits that playing in the top flight is vital to his chances.

He said: "I want to play for Scotland and playing regularly will only help that. I'm focussed on winning on Saturday and if we get into the Premier League then it all can change."

Cardiff manager Dave Jones believes his side's failure to make last season's play-offs has driven them to the brink of the Barclays Premier League.

Jones said: "We missed out by a goal last year and everyone said that was the end of us. But we have gone one step further now and now it is about one more final step.

"We fell away last May, everyone was utterly disappointed but we have bounced back. That failure will never go away but it's there to draw upon and it's been bought out once or twice this year."