Passing the first serious test of his St Johnstone Premiership career should help Jason Kerr’s prospects of earning a Scotland call-up in the future, according to the Perth skipper.
As a centre-back and as a newly-appointed captain, Kerr was under a bright spotlight when Saints’ season got off to a dreadful start and his own form dipped below the consistent excellence of his previous top flight campaign.
Talk of Scotland selection faded away as a result.
However, with the former under-21 international raising his game and bringing others with him on Saints’ stunning rise up the table from rock bottom to seventh, Kerr could be back on national manager Steve Clarke’s radar.
“The thought of being called up for Scotland still drives me on,” said the 23-year-old. “Every player wants to play for their country.
“I feel like that if I can keep playing as I was over the last few months and we can pick up where we left off as a team, then hopefully I might have a chance. When your team is bottom of the league, you’re not going to get picked.
“I’d like to think that coming back from what happened at the start of the season will help my cause. There were people who were saying I shouldn’t even be in the St Johnstone team.
“I feel like I’ve come through that test as an even better player.”
