A CHORUS line of praise has washed over Hamilton Accies this week and yesterday it was joined by a familiar voice.

James McArthur is a Scotland player who can now call himself a £7m footballer after being signed by Crystal Palace and brought back to the Barclays Premier League. Around Hamilton he is more than that, though. He is one of their own, and yesterday he paid full tribute to what his former club had done for him.

Without Hamilton he wouldn't be the player he was, he said, and nor would his career have unfolded as it has. When Palace broke their club transfer record to sign him from Wigan a sell-on fee was dispatched to Hamilton, just as a previous cheque was sent when Wigan took him south for £500,000 in 2010. Hamilton's expert scouting, coaching, youth development and common sense - they also negotiated lucrative sell-on clauses when James McCarthy moved to Wigan en route to becoming a £13m Everton player - have yielded bountiful rewards.

"They deserve that," said McArthur. "Not only for our transfers [his and McCarthy's] but for the work they are doing behind the scenes. Starting kids at a young, young age takes time and money and they will continue to progress as a club. Would I be sitting here if I hadn't started with the Accies? I don't think I would be. I really believe that being at a club like Hamilton and getting that chance to progress is vital. If you were at another club you might not get that chance. You play reserve football and don't progress as fast.

"I owe a lot personally to Hamilton. From a personal point of view, I wouldn't have changed anything. I would always have wanted to be at a club like Hamilton. It's a small club but it's run so well. They are such a good club. Everyone is so close."

McArthur was born in Glasgow in 1987. He joined Hamilton's youth system and made his debut in January, 2005, aged 17, and was established in their team before he was 18. After five full seasons and nearly 200 appearances Wigan, then a Premier League club, made their move. McArthur emerged right in the Old Firm's catchment area but his career did not begin in Glasgow. In fact, of those most likely to start for Scotland in Saturday's Euro 2016 qualifier against Georgia, only David Marshall, Alan Hutton and Shaun Maloney are products of the Celtic or Rangers youth systems.

While those two clubs do not have their troubles to seek at the moment, Hamilton have made headlines around British football. Their defeat of Celtic at Parkhead on Sunday made club history - it was their first there since 1938 - and lifted them to the top of the SPFL Premiership. "It has been amazing," said McArthur. "They have done brilliantly. Alex Neil has done a remarkable job in the time he has been involved. Billy Reid needs to get credit as well because he took these kids and nurtured them and brought them through. Alex Neil took it on from there and has done an amazing job.

"Giving players a chance is the reason why they've done so well. You look at the boys who are there: they haven't just become good players this year. They've played 100 games, 80 games, and learned a way of playing. When you play reserve football you don't get as much out of it. You only learn so much. They are getting the chance to learn the right way and when you need to go and win a first-team match you are playing for your career, really.Hamilton are a prime example . . . not of the way Scottish football has to go, but in the way they are producing young talent. I think that's good for the Scotland national team as well."

McArthur has made himself a valuable part of the Scotland scene and his substitute appearance in Germany last month earned him a 16th cap. Seven of those have come under Gordon Strachan. Given the competition for places across the Scotland midfield, every selection is to his credit. "It's not just the midfield: all the way through the squad there's competition. It's the best squad I've been involved with. It's getting harder and harder for the manager to pick the team and that can only be a good thing." Among the squad only Hutton, Steven Fletcher and Craig Gordon have moved for a higher fee than McArthur's £7m. The figure was of no consequence to McArthur, all the 27-year-old wanted was a return to the Barclays Premier League he had left when Wigan were relegated in 2013. "The fee doesn't bother me at all if I'm being honest. Whether you are worth £500,000 or a lot more, you can only do your best. I just give it my best shot. I help the team - that's what it's all about - it's not about individuals, especially at Crystal Palace. We work as a team and we try to help each other as much as we can.

"The Barclays Premier League is where everyone wants to be. I wanted to stay with Wigan last year and get the club back into the Premier League because I was part of the team that went down, so I was partly to blame when they got relegated. Everyone had to take their share of responsibility for that so I wanted to stay and try to get them promoted. It didn't work out like that. I wanted to give it a year and an opportunity came to get back in the Premier League. I'm happy it went through."