HE shed half a stone in weight playing in the searing heat and stifling humidity of the Florida summer, struggled to get anywhere near to opposition players who were preparing to take part in USA ’94 and ended up on the receiving end of a demoralising 3-0 defeat.
But travelling to the United States with Northern Ireland for end-of-season friendlies against Mexico and Columbia early in his professional career proved to be a life-changing experience for Neil Lennon all the same.
It opened the eyes of the young midfielder, who was plying his trade at Crewe Alexandra in the fourth tier of English football at the time, to the standards he would have to attain in order to succeed at the highest level in the game.
Would he have gone on to achieve so much in the game had he not been exposed to such a high calibre of player in such a demanding environment? It is debatable.
Which is why the Hibernian manager will insist that every one of his Easter Road players who is called up by Scotland for the controversial games against Peru and Mexico this summer grasps the opportunity.
Even if, as is not beyond the realms of possibility given how well his side has been performing in the Ladbrokes Premiership of late, they have Europa League qualifiers to play at the start of the 2018/19 campaign.
The decision to take on the matches at the end of a long and energy-sapping season has been criticised by Celtic, whose players make up the nucleus of the national side, due to the fact they have Champions League matches in mid-July and the Parkhead club has written to the SFA to outline their concerns.
But asked what he thought about the possibility of Hibs players like Scott Allan, John McGinn, Dylan McGeouch and Steven Whittaker being involved, Lennon said: “If they are called they are going.
“I get the Celtic side of things, I understand that. But for other players maybe on the periphery of the squad you have to go, you have to go play for your country.
“I won’t accept anyone thinking they are not going to play for Scotland in Mexico and Peru because it is the end of the season. Sorry, they have not done enough in their career to warrant that kind of attitude.”
Lennon added: “I get the Celtic perspective because they’ve got Champions League qualifiers. Rangers might have that and Aberdeen might have that. I understand that. But the rest of them should go and play. I might have it. They’ll have to go and play. I wouldn’t stand in their way.
“I wouldn’t play any Celtic players. We keep going on about how important European football is. It is important for all the clubs in the Premiership if Celtic qualify. We want to have Champions League football next season again. So I wouldn’t take any of the Celtic players.
“They are near enough into their mid-40s for games already. Some of them didn’t get a break last year. So you’re playing 12 months a year. It’s got to stop. They need a break at some stage. You know what Scott Brown, Stuart Armstrong, Kieran Tierney and all these players can do. I’m sure Alex (new Scotland manager McLeish) will know that as well.”
Lennon, who won 40 caps for Northern Ireland, still recalls the end-of-season tour he went on with his country the year he broke through into the set-up with great fondness and believes it could have exactly the same positive impact on his charges at Hibs.
“Before the 1994 World Cup, I went with Northern Ireland,” he said. “We played Mexico and Colombia, and that was a real eye-opener for me to see top-quality players just before a World Cup. Both teams were going to the World Cup. I had played at Rochdale two months earlier.
“You saw the game at the highest level. It was a real education. Some of these players now in Scotland could do with going and playing against a Mexican team and seeing top players, in the South American culture, and how hungry they are.
“We were playing in Miami in the Orange Dome so I lost about half a stone in weight. It was amazing how hard they worked, their possession. They made the game look easy. It was quite depressing afterwards. It was a real education. Top players going to the World Cup. They had a fanatical support as well.
“I think it would be a great education for some of these players to go and experience, not only from a football point of view but from a life point of view as well.”
Lennon believes McGinn, who was watched by West Ham assistant Billy McKinlay at the weekend, is capable of playing in the Premier League in England at the moment.
“There is no question that John can take his career on,” he said. “I am not surprised there are clubs interested. I am surprised we did not get a bid from him in January. It’s not affected him obviously. I think he is happy here for whatever length of time he wants to be here. But for me it is case of inevitability there will be a bid for him.
“Already, he has had a career most people would be very envious of. He’s only going to get better. He has been outstanding for the majority of the season, brilliant at Ibrox, brilliant at Celtic Park and brilliant at the weekend. He is getting better and better.”
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