Interview: Paul Hartley, return of the enforcer

PAUL HARTLEY doesn't know where he would be without football. Neither would his fellow professionals if they bothered to think about it, which many of them don't, at least not like the new Aberdeen captain. Too many of them, the young ones especially, spend more time congratulating themselves on being a footballer than they do on trying to become a better one.

Hartley is different. The way he sees it, they owe a debt of gratitude to the game, and failure to repay it at every opportunity is the ultimate insult. The former Hearts and Celtic midfielder, who will turn 34 in October, brings to the Pittodrie club, after a year with Bristol City, not a shred of the narcissism that often threatens to give football a bad name. He knows how lucky he is.

"There is no better job in the world," he says. "Trust me. It's a privilege. That's why you have to give it everything, push yourself to the limit. I mean, people are paying to come and watch you. You have to be disciplined, show the right attitude and be respectful to others. You only have one chance of making it as a footballer so, if you're a young player coming through, you have to be totally focused. You don't want to look back in ten years' time with any regrets."

No wonder Mark McGhee signed him. If anyone needed Hartley's influence, it was Aberdeen, a cash-strapped club investing most of their hope in a handful of home-grown players. If anywhere needed his commitment on the pitch, it was Pittodrie, the venue last season for only an air of resignation. His debut last week, when he scored a hat-trick of penalties against Hamilton Academical, already has energised the city.

"It's a big responsibility because there are a lot of young players here. Maybe last season, they didn't have anybody around them with a bit of experience, somebody to talk them through matches and give them guidance when they need it. I know what it's like being a young player. You don't want to go and talk to the manager in his office. That's why I'm here, to help them, make them better players. Better people too."

In his days with Celtic, where he won two league titles, he used to wonder how Aberdeen's players, apparently so tolerant of defeat by smaller clubs, could repeatedly rise to the Old Firm's challenge. If he can help it, there will be no more punching below their weight, no more mediocrity. "Put it this way. We don't want to finish ninth again. That is totally unacceptable. I'd love to win silverware, and get into Europe.I don't see any reason why we can't."

Every impoverished club forced to field their young players cites that as evidence of a successful youth policy, but Hartley believes that Aberdeen really do have some of the best emerging talent in Scotland. He says that 19-year-old Peter Pawlett is a "real star" of the future, while Fraser Fyvie, two years younger, doesn't know his own strength. "Fraser is only 17, but he has this tremendous build. He reminds me of (Wayne] Rooney actually. He's so raw, but the things he can do... and he does them without really knowing. He just has to listen. Great engine, great first touch, great awareness: he can go a long way in this game... if he wants to."

It is Aberdeen's duty not to waste talent like that. Hartley sounded out one or two players after his arrival, and with the permission of McGhee, called a meeting at which he revealed a new disciplinary system. Under it, fines will be administered to those who fall foul of a few basic house rules. He says that every successful club he has played for made similar demands.

McGhee has admitted that Hartley's job is to "police" the dressing-room for him. "But I'm not here to be the manager's friend or grass anybody up. All I've tried to do is instil some things that maybe weren't there in the past. And the boys have been absolutely terrific about it. They know it's for their own benefit. I just felt it was important to get the players together and make sure that everybody was pulling in the same direction. I don't want three or four of them sitting in a corner on their own. I want there to be a spirit here that nobody else has got."

Hartley likes things to be done properly. That's why he joined Steven Pressley and Craig Gordon in objecting to the running of Hearts by Vladimir Romanov in 2006. The so-called Riccarton Three were shunted out of Tynecastle for holding a press conference in which they spoke of unrest in the dressing-room. When the Edinburgh club showed an interest in re-signing him last month, it was reported that the deal fell through because the player refused to apologise for what happened four years ago. Hartley is reluctant to go into detail. "There was a certain time when I had a conversation with the people at Hearts, and there was something I wasn't happy about. That's as far as it went. There was interest, but it never materialised."

Which is a shame for Hearts, who were the making of him. He became a Scotland international, and a Scottish Cup-winner, at Tynecastle. More specifically, his second appearance for them proved to be the turning point in his career. After a 1-0 defeat at Easter Road in August 2003, the manager, Craig Levein, gave him the mother of all bollockings and dropped him for more than a month. "It was the kick up the arse I needed. I hadn't taken responsibility. I hadn't done what I was asked to do. That's the thing with Craig: he is straight, he tells you how it is. If you don't do it, you won't play.I took it on board, and I've never looked back. Everything sort of changed after that. It just clicked."

All the signs are that Hartley will be back working with Levein at international level next month. The stubbly midfield anchor, whose job is to break up play, might have made a difference in the recent friendly against Sweden.

With Kevin Thomson now recovering from a broken leg, a partnership with his old Parkhead team-mate, Barry Robson, could lend substance to a young and sometimes naive Scotland side. Can he do for them what he is doing for Aberdeen? "I hope so," he says. "If I'm playing well, hopefully I've got a chance. Craig has gone on record as saying that they maybe lacked a little bit of experience in Sweden. If he feels that I'm the type of guy who can do a job for him, then great, he knows what I'm all about. It would be fantastic to be selected."

He believes that his age should not be held against him, just as it shouldn't be held against David Weir. Asked what it says about Scottish football that a 40-year-old defender is being considered for a recall, Hartley replies: "It says that he's an excellent player. Age shouldn't count. He hasn't missed a game for Rangers in the last couple of years. He has been one of their best players. People say, when you get to 30, it's all downhill. Well, that's crap. Total rubbish. It's about how you feel. If you're struggling with niggles, fair enough, but if you're playing every week, I don't see the problem."

Hartley is a big admirer of Levein. He also singles out Iain Munro, his manager in the early days at Hamilton, as a "brilliant, brilliant coach" who was ahead of his time. Hartley, too, would like a piece of that action. One of the reasons for his return to Scotland after just a season in the Championship was that he wanted to do his coaching badges.

Just as the St Johnstone manager, Derek McInnes, was renowned during his playing career for raising the standards of those around him, so is Hartley already showing the kind of traits that lead to a career on the touchline. "I would rather be a manager than an assistant or a coach. I would rather be the man who makes all the decisions and takes all the pressure. Good management now is not about spending hours and hours on the training ground. It's about getting the best out of your players. That's what I'd love to do."

Hartley is his own man. He has his own thoughts on the game, and he tends not to socialise with his team-mates, which is probably just as well. Pawlett and Fyvie are unlikely to care much for his taste in clothes, his passion for shopping or his obsession with Paul Weller. "I'm a big fan of his. I go to his concerts, and I've got all his albums, photos, you name it. I'd love to meet him. I don't think many of the younger players here have even heard of him, but he has gone from The Jam to The Style Council and his solo career.I like the way he has adapted."

Hartley has done the same, from attacking wide man to holding midfielder. The objective now is to capture some of his hero's longevity. Before training, he is on his bike, warming up his muscles. After it, he is on the couch, resting them. Apart from that, he wants to play as hard as he can for as long as he can.

"I'm nearly 34, but I never missed a day's training at Bristol City. I don't want preferential treatment from the manager. I don't want days off. I don't want to be rested. I just want to keep playing and playing. You can get it into your head that you're old, when you don't need to. I feel good. I want to make the most of what I have left. You're a long time retired."