LEE WALLACE has come to appreciate the little things this season.
He might consider that he has had little choice, since the silverware he has won has already been devalued in some quarters; Rangers' league title having come at a level which was always considered to be beneath him.
The Irn-Bru Third Division trophy will be presented to the Ibrox club next month following their final league match of the campaign at home to Berwick Rangers and, to some, will bear the scuff marks from unsavoury defeats by Peterhead, Annan Athletic and Stirling Albion. Yet it will have lost little lustre to Wallace.
He was in the mood yesterday to draw satisfaction from his efforts this term, having been included on a four-man shortlist for the Cheque Centre PFA Scotland Third Division Player of the Year award. It is a roll he shares with Rangers team-mate David Templeton, David Anderson of Queen's Park and Elgin City midfielder Daniel Moore, for whom Wallace voted. "We obviously didn't know much about him beforehand but he has a really bright future and can certainly play at a higher level," said the defender.
So can he, although progress will likely be steady as Wallace helps Rangers up the leagues. At 25, he is not short of patience and this season is the first time in his career that he has been considered worthy of a player of the year award; a Scottish Premier League Young Player of the Month trophy in September 2009 the closest he has come previously. Those plastic awards can be made to seem cheap when they are handed out around the same time as the silverware, although Wallace has ample space on his mantelpiece.
The sole winners' medal from his career came as part of a Hearts under-14 side which won the Milk Cup – defeating Manchester United in the semi-finals – while the Rangers defender also exhibits earnest pride from having helped coach amateur team Heriot Vale to promotion last season. "I've got that medal in the house – that counts. It's a good two years I've had there, coaching a lot of my close mates. I've enjoyed it and put a lot of effort into the training," said Wallace, who will begin working towards his SFA B License in June as a result of his time at the Corstorphine side.
"It's amateurs, so it can be any age. We had a 42-year-old playing last year but he's away now. His legs finally went. But we had a successful season last year, winning the league, and now we're in Premier One in the Lothians and Edinburgh. I was at their game [on Wednesday night]. It keeps me going."
As a professional player with six caps for Scotland, Wallace would not have felt a pressing need to prove himself to the Vale squad, although not all of them felt inclined to acquiesce. "The last guy to come in was Jordan Sheerin – he's Paul Sheerin's nephew – and he won the third division with Arbroath [in 2011]. He was giving me a bit of stick about having a medal I didn't have," said Wallace with a smile. "Not any more, though."
It is a comment which continues to sound hollow since such success is thought to be empty for Rangers, with some forums having fielded debates about whether this title should be appended to those won in the top flight. International players such as Steven Davis, Steven Naismith and Allan McGregor had all sought to jump ship as the club began to sink towards the third division last summer, but Wallace gave a convincing performance of someone who does not resent his own decision to stick around.
"I think I've improved as a player, regardless of being in division three," said the defender, who has missed just five of his side's competitive matches this term. "I try to always compare wee details of matches; I played in the SPL for six years and I don't think I'm doing less running or any less hard work during the week than I have done before. These guys we are playing against are giving their all so, on the whole, not just myself but a few other players have got better this season."
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