Years apart, but same school of learning for Goodwin and Watt

Football Writer

Thursday 18 October 2012

A JOINT press conference brought Tony Watt and Jim Goodwin together yesterday, but it is not the only thing to connect the two players.

St Mirren captain Jim Goodwin, left, with Celtic striker Tony Watt. Picture: SNS

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Graeme Macpherson

Watt is the great young hope at Celtic, the 18-year-old on the cusp of the first team and whose potential hints at a long and successful career. The striker could be described warmly as full of daft, boyish nonsense, but with that comes an acknowledgement that he has far from made it.

Goodwin is the embodiment of that dream unfulfilled. The 30-year-old midfielder left Ireland to join Celtic as a young man, with aspirations of one day becoming an established fixture in their side. It did not turn out that way, Goodwin spending five years at Celtic Park but making only one first-team appearance. There is an understandable reluctance on the part of any young player to face up to the realisation that their future is not going to turn out the way they would have hoped, but Goodwin is living proof that leaving the Old Firm does not represent the end of the road. The 30-year-old elected to rebuild his career down south, before returning to Scotland with Hamilton Academical and then moving on to St Mirren, where he is now team captain. It has taken him to a place of contentment and left him philosophical about his false start with Celtic. "I've great memories of my five years at Celtic," he said as he helped promote ESPN's coverage of Saturday's match between his current team and his former one. "I had some wonderful coaches, like Willie McStay and Kenny McDowall, and my education there set me up for the career I've had. "I was disappointed to leave. I'd been offered a year with no guarantee of getting in the first team and I looked at the guys ahead of me and thought I had to be realistic, that I wasn't going to make the breakthrough. It was a tough decision to make so early in my career, but it was the right one. I've had a good career down south and now back in the SPL."Watt's future remains unwritten. Celtic's faith in the player can be seen in the £80,000 they paid Airdrie United to sign him, the three-year contract they awarded him, and the fact he trains every day with the first team. None of that, of course, guarantees he will be a success at Celtic, something the player is well aware of. Watt is a rare breed, a young footballer who is candid enough to say what's on his mind and there is an admission that he enjoys the hero worship that comes with playing for a big club. It is something he could get accustomed to, but talk of him having established himself is quickly dismissed. "You cannot call yourself a first-team player after three appearances, but if I play 30 games this season then maybe I would look at things differently," he said. "I would never get ahead of myself in that regard and I don't go out and tell everybody that I am playing every week when I am not."I do get recognised in the streets as Glasgow is that kind of place. Half the supporters are Celtic fans and the other half are Rangers fans and it is a brilliant feeling to know that you can make a lot of people proud through playing football. People wanting to know you because you play football is different class; it is hard to get your head around that."Ten years ago I would have approached a footballer in the streets if I watched them playing and thought 'wow'. They would have been my heroes when I was younger and hopefully I want to do my bit and get people to recognise me more."To achieve that Watt will need to force his way into the Celtic team, no easy task given the queue of strikers ahead of him. He has become friendly with St Mirren's Kenny McLean – the pair were on Scotland Under-21 duty this week – but joked it would be difficult to "put him up in the air from the stand"."There are a lot of strikers at the club at the moment and I just need to bide my time and do well enough to impress the manager," he added. "I'm massively ahead of where I thought I would be at this stage of the season as I thought I would be in the reserves or out on loan possibly. I never wanted to go out on loan as I just wanted to play for the first team and the manager has given me a chance."n Goodwin and Watt were promoting ESPN's coverage of St Mirren versus Celtic this Saturday lunchtime. To get ESPN call 0844 324 1546 or visit Espn.co.uk/tv

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Years apart, but same school of learning for Goodwin and Watt

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