Dunfermline’s Ryan Williamson has admitted he will have to pinch himself if he pulls on a Scotland jersey.
The right-back has gone from almost packing in football a year ago to being on the brink of representing his country against England.
It has been a heck of a week for Williamson, who was called up to the Scot Gemmill’s under-21 squad for the European qualifiers against the English at the Riverside Stadium in Middlesbrough next Friday then the trip to Latvia the following Tuesday.
There is also the small matter of the 21-year-old being a key man for his club against Dundee United at a packed East End Park today in one of the most eagerly-anticipated matches of the Scottish season thus far.
The international recognition is a rich reward, not only for his superb form for the Pars but also his determination to battle back from injuries that at one time looked like they would force him to quit.
Williamson said: “If I do get to pull that jersey on I will have to pinch myself – 100%.
“It would probably be my best achievement to date.
“It would be a great moment for me and my family and hopefully I do get to go out and show people what I can really do.
“In years gone by I have been round about the under-19s, at training camps and in provisional squads but just missed out at the final hurdle.
“So I am glad that my hard work and my good start to the season have been rewarded.
“The gaffer (Allan Johnston) praised me after the Brechin game last weekend and wondered why I had never been near the 21s or involved.
“I never really thought too much about it because I have been let down in the past when I’ve got my hopes high.
“But the manager (Johnston) phoned me on Tuesday morning just when I was getting ready to leave the house.
“He asked where I was and I told him I was just out of the shower and I was leaving in 10 minutes.
“He said: ‘Good, bring your passport in because you’re in the 21s!’
“It was a wee bit of a shock.”
Williamson has suffered from serious injuries in his still fledgling career, including a broken leg and knee damage.
He revealed that it got so bad that he did think about calling it a day as he struggled to adjust to the Championship last season.
“The past couple of years have been hard for me and definitely not gone the way I wanted them to,” he said.
“I am not going to lie.
“There was a time after we won the title (League One in 2016) and had come back up when I was struggling.
“I considered just chucking it altogether.
“I was thinking that it was not for me.
“I was even thinking that bad injuries were cursing me.
“I did my knee and I was only back a few months when I broke my leg.
“It took so much out of me, mentally.
“Physically I felt fine but mentally I was finding it so hard to shake off and enjoy it again.
“I was given a two-year deal by the club and I thought I would give it my best shot because play football is all I have ever wanted to do since I was young.
“I said to my dad: ‘I have to be patient and it will happen – I will eventually get over it.
“When you get rewards like this, though, it makes all the hard work coming back from those injuries more than worth it.
“As time has gone by I’ve got more and more confident and I can’t get a better confidence boost than this call-up.”
As well as Williamson’s good news, there were also call-ups to the Scotland under-19s squad for Pars youngsters Stuart Morrison and Callum Smith.
That provides further evidence, were it needed, that the league-leading Pars are in a good place going into today’s crunch clash against the Tangerines.
“A win against United would top off a very good week,” said Williamson.
“We have been working hard in training and we know it’s going to be a very difficult game.
“United were the pre-season favourites, with the signings they’ve made and the money they’ve spent.
“But we know with the squad we’ve got and the boys we’ve got in that changing room are more than capable of getting the three points and being right up there at the end of the season.”
