Scott McKenna still has the video nasty of the day he was given his marching orders for almost halving John McGinn in two.
By the big defender’s own admission that X-rated Scottish Cup shocker in which he dumped the midfielder on his now famous derriere remains the worst tackle of his career. Five years on from that walk of shame nobody is more delighted than McKenna to see McGinn enter Scottish football’s hall of fame.
Scotland ’s talismanic midfielder and stand-in skipper will join the list of legends on the Hampden roll of honour with his 50th cap this evening while McKenna is on the verge of his 28th. It’s a far cry from when McGinn was strutting his stuff with Hibs while McKenna was making a name for himself in the wrong kind of way on loan at Ayr from Aberdeen. The footage of that scything ‘tackle’ that caught McGinn somewhere round the midriff midway through a Scottish Cup tie at Easter Road still gets produced at very international camp.
And asked if he could have imagined back then that he’d be lining up with his victim for Scotland half a decade later, the Nottingham Forest stopper said: “No definitely not!
"That tackle is probably still one of the worst ones I’ve made! Thankfully we’ve both managed to move on from it and are both doing okay.
“I’ve still got the video on the phone to show him when I need to. I keep it because he will tell someone new in nearly every camp that I did it to him. I like to keep the evidence.
“To be fair John’s probably too strong for me now but it’s great we have both managed to come so far from that day.”
McKenna has nothing but praise for the man who is set to don the captain’s armband in Andy Robertson’s absence again this evening.
He said: “Fifty caps is a great milestone. John fully deserves it as well. He will go on to make many, many more and hopefully he’ll keep scoring those important goals for us and putting in top performances.
“Whenever you see John in an attacking position you know he’s going to create something for someone else or he’s going to score. More times than not he will take those opportunities for us and hopefully that will continue.
“He’s not a massive screamer or shouter in the dressing room. It’s just the way he leads on the pitch - he will make a forward pass or a tackle and it brings the rest of the boys with him.”
McKenna was rock solid in the heart of a back four alongside Jack Hendry in Wednesday’s 3-0 win over Ukraine. It was a partnership forged four years ago when the duo were blooded by Alex McLeish with one eye on the future.
McKenna was handed the captain’s armband at the age of only 21 for a 1-0 friendly defeat to Mexico in June 2018 in which he and Hendry were tasked with keeping Raul Jiminez quiet. Now 25, the defender is hoping to make a central defensive berth his own.
He said: “Jack and I came into the squad at the same time in March 2018. Since then we have both had our ups and downs but thankfully we are still getting to play for Scotland.
“I remember the trip that summer and there were a lot of call offs and a lot of the Under-21 boys in the team. We lost to Peru and Mexico but it was a great experience and one I will never forget, especially being captain.
“I was desperate to be in the squad and I was lucky enough to do that, then the next target is trying to stay about it. I was able to reach 25 caps in the last camp and that was a massive honour for me and I want to add to that.
“The times Jack and I have played together in the past we have a decent understanding. The results weren’t maybe what we wanted, but against Ukraine we put in a good display and thankfully we got a positive outcome.
“I want to become a mainstay in the team, I always have. When I have picked up injuries and other boys have come in and done well then you can’t really argue.
“But when I do get the chance I have to show the manager what I can do.”
McKenna and Hendry were part of a back three that was torn apart by Ireland in Dublin just three months ago as the Nations League campaign threatened to unravel on the back of a 3-0 thumping.
McKenna said: “It was a difficult day. I think we let everyone down. Not just ourselves but there was a big travelling support there that we let down. And everyone back home.
“I think a frustration that day was how poor we were at set plays. We knew that was a huge strength of Ireland’s and to concede so early on was a big disappointment.
“The manager told us last week we had to be more solid and not to give away chances. It was nice to come off the park on Wednesday and the opposition had zero shots on target.
“I think the back four gave us a better opportunity to press at the top end of the pitch and get more pressure on Ukraine. When we turned the ball over we were far closer to their goal and we created chances with that. If you are in the Scotland squad you have to be able to adapt and I think we showed that on Wednesday.”
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