SHAUN HUTCHINSON was contacted this week to discuss the idea of him moving to Rangers. It was one of his Motherwell team-mates who had spotted in one of the papers an opportunity to tease the Englishman.
Hutchinson had been named as one of the players approached by Ally McCoist to talk over the prospect of joining the Ibrox side in the summer and that offered up the chance to have a laugh, not least as the defender would claim to be completely unaware of the story.
The 23-year-old rolled with the punchlines but it will not just be his future which is scrutinised within Fir Park in the coming months. The defender is just one player out of contract in May and who are inclined to consider their options.
They first have an opportunity to move on into second place in the SPFL Premiership table with a win over Ross County this afternoon, though, and Stuart McCall will make it clear that any decision to leave Fir Park will not necessarily engender a similar sense of success elsewhere.
"Tom Hateley is a fine example," said the Motherwell manager. "He gave good service to this club and we would have offered him another deal last season if he hadn't made to clear he wanted to move on. He felt it was time to have a fresh challenge and he went on trial at a few clubs in England.
"However, he didn't get a club until a few months after the season started and is now playing in Poland. It is easy for agents to say there are clubs interested but you might be fourth or fifth choice on their list."
A move to the Premiership in January has allowed Filip Kiss to consider where he is in the pecking order for his national side. The Slovak made his full international debut as a substitute in a match with Israel earlier this month and hopes that playing regularly with County will help to convince those in charge of the Slovakia team to offer him further opportunities down the line.
"I just hope there is more to come for me," said the midfielder, who is on loan from Cardiff City. "Against Israel, I got my first opportunity for the senior side when I came on for five minutes. Hopefully it will push me forward to work harder and get more and more caps for my country."
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