Scotland's oldest outfield World Cup squad member admits career lows have all been worth it

Grant Hanley is never likely to be mistaken for a ray of sunshine.

The Scotland defender can often come across as a brooding, serious character, not one for frivolity or nonsense. Don’t expect him to be front and centre when the inevitable World Cup TikToks are being filmed.

Not that he is denying any of that. Asked how he has changed since making his Scotland debut back in 2011, he drolly deadpans: “A bit older and more crabbit?”

Grant Hanley during a Scotland training session at Lesser Hampden this week. | SNS Group

If at times it has seemed as if he is being followed around by a dark cloud, then there are good reasons for that. A largely successful club career that has seen him stationed at several high-profile spots across England – Blackburn Rovers, Newcastle United, Norwich City and Birmingham City – and, since last summer, at Hibernian has also had its difficult moments.

There have been periods when he has been sidelined with injury, other times when he has endured long spells when he simply hasn’t been selected. Throughout it all, however, he has always remained in Steve Clarke’s Scotland plans, one thrawn figure looking out for another.

That loyalty has not gone unnoticed, with Hanley expressing his gratitude that his continued involvement with the national team, even during periods of turmoil at club level, have now led to him getting ready to perform at a World Cup.

“To be honest, I've never really sat down and thought that this is me at my lowest, or this is the lowest point,” he said. “But throughout the course of my career, there's been more lows than highs, if you're being honest.

“It's part and parcel of it. It's up to players as individuals and the teammates around them to have that character to go through and keep going. I think when you look back, I have had some low moments with Scotland.

“I've had really low moments with injuries and things like that. But when you get to stages like this, when the World Cup's on the horizon, that's what makes it all worth it. That's what makes going through all those difficult periods in your career and your life worth it. Just keep going, really. Get the head down and keep moving forward.

“Someone just told me it’s 15 years (since he made his debut) which really does make you feel old, to be honest. I think it’s just about having that resilience to push through. It's never something that you really think about at the time. It's just more something that your character builds over time.”

Grant Hanley is the oldest outfield member of the Scotland squad at 34. | Getty Images

At 34 years old, Hanley is the oldest outfield member of the squad selected for the World Cup. He has experienced – and endured - plenty during his career to hopefully now be in a position where he can help some of the younger ones. But he points to others operating at the highest levels of the club game as a sign of how far the squad has developed on Clarke’s watch.

“Having that experience, I know there are a lot of boys with a lot of caps in the squad now, and that's obviously something that the manager’s consciously built up over time,” he added.

“There are a lot of young lads coming in, straight away welcomed to the squad, and you see exactly how everybody operates and how everybody behaves in and around the squad, so it's certainly got that.

“They see how all the boys are together. In international football, there are big spaces in between games. But it doesn’t feel like that. Stepping onto a stage as big as the World Cup, most of the lads in there have done something similar.

“The Euros were huge, the pressure and the atmosphere around it is massive, but having that in the locker certainly helps. It's probably important to mention as well, a lot of lads in that squad now are doing that at Champions League level, Premier League level, all over Europe on a weekly basis.

“So, in the dressing room there's a lot of lads that have got a lot of experience of playing at the highest level to draw on.”

Hanley does his best to hide it but, behind that gruff exterior, is a tingle of excitement as the World Cup gets ever closer.

“Obviously everybody's attention will be turning to what's ahead in the summer now,” he added. “Just in general life, you can start to feel that bit of buzz. You can see more and more people with Scotland strips on the streets and things like that. It's certainly something that everybody's looking forward to.”