Wardlaw’s first-class delivery proves some old habits die hard

Thursday 12 May 2011

interview Former postman had strong belief that his side would beat the drop

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It has been an arduous journey, but one aided by a scene this week at the St Mirren training ground which Gareth Wardlaw, a postman until he followed his manager to Paisley from Cowdenbeath a year ago, likened to a gathering of corporate disciples in a pyramid scheme.

The 32-year-old striker’s goal -- only his third of the season -- was enough to secure St Mirren’s place in Premier League, with both Wardlaw and his team-mates displaying a patient and assured performance, despite the fraught nature of the occasion.Eighty-five miles down the A90, Hamilton Academical were also fighting for their top-flight status, but faltered against St Johnstone after a belated resurgence that offered them hope.“It was the biggest game of my career with the pressure and everything, and Hamilton so close to us,” said Wardlaw. “We’ve done it the hard way. We had the chance to wrap it up a couple of weeks ago which we didn’t do but we remained focused and knew we had to go to Aberdeen and get the job done.“I have to say that before the game I’d never seen a dressing room so focused. It felt as if we were just going to get a result at Pittodrie.“We put a flip chart up in the dressing room and wrote the headline ‘I believe’ and we all wrote our thoughts under it. Our performance against Inverness last weekend wasn’t good enough and we sat down on Sunday and got a few things out in the open and it was a great help going into the Aberdeen game. We focused more on the positives than the negatives and it certainly showed in our work rate and effort.”When Lennon informed Wardlaw that he would start Tuesday’s game, the frontman was convinced he would score, though his spectacular strike was the only one of note in what was a dismal 90 minutes for both sides at Pittodrie.“I just had a funny feeling I would score,” he said. “I believed. If I believed I would score every week I would be playing for Rangers or Celtic.”Wardlaw didn’t turn professional until he was 26. Before that he was still playing with amateur club Burntisland. A hat trick for Scotland Amateurs against Ayr United in a bounce game brought an immediate invitation from the Somerset Park club to join them. After that it was on to Raith Rovers and then to Cowdenbeath where Lennon was in charge.“I was a postman until last summer. It was a gamble to go full-time,” he said. “I was in a job for life but, hopefully, it has paid off and I can get a new contract for next season. I only signed a one-year deal to see how I would cope with the step up to the SPL.”Wardlaw admitted he tried to persuade the Post Office to give him a sabbatical lest his top-flight career did not take off, but was told that is only available to those entering further education. The step up was demanding from a physical point of view, too, though he has no regrets about taking the plunge.“I was crawling out of the door after training because it was so tough,” he said. “Now I look back and realise I could return to working from 4am to 11am on a Saturday morning then putting in a shift at the football. I don’t know how I ever did it. It’s been a helluva journey.”

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Wardlaw’s first-class delivery proves some old habits die hard

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