Raith Rovers starlet Lewis Vaughan hopes his bolt-from-the-blue good luck message from Gary Lineker is not the last time he attracts the Match of the Day presenter’s attention in his burgeoning career.
The former England and Barcelona striker left the 18-year-old stunned after sending him a tweet prior to Rovers’ 4-0 defeat against Rangers, reading: “Good luck to @lewiis7 making his debut for Raith tonight against Rangers. Not a bad way to start.”
Good luck to @lewiis7 making his debut for Raith tonight against Rangers. Not a bad way to start.
— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) September 12, 2014
The link between the pair comes through Vaughan’s uncle Howell, who is friends with the 53-year-old and his wife, Danielle, and even helped decorate their home.
Vaughan admits he thought it would be too cheeky to inform Lineker that he had actually played 10 times for the Fifers before that night, even earning a new three-year deal due to his impressive displays last term.
And Vaughan has aspirations to feature on Lineker’s Saturday night TV slot every week.
The gifted play-maker said: “My dad’s brother, Howell, stays in Wales and knows Gary Lineker’s wife – he even did some work for them in their house down there.
“He told Gary I was a footballer in Scotland and that it would be great if he could give me a shout out and he was nice enough to do it.
“I had no idea he was going to do it, until I got back into the dressing room after the Rangers game and I had a tweet from Gary Lineker! That was a bit of a surprise. But I soon put two and two together and knew why he did it. I thought it might be a bit rude to tell him it wasn’t actually my debut.
“The comments on my Twitter feed were a bit random after that – I think I got a fair few new followers after that . . . not as many as I would have liked, though.
“It will be a funny story if I end up on Match of the Day one day – that is what every player hopes to aim.”
Vaughan says his progress towards that goal is being aided by the experienced core at Stark’s Park, including a host of players he used to look up to as a promising schoolboy.
He was on the books as a kid at Hearts and, while he toiled to make an impact in the youth ranks, the likes of Calum Elliot, Jason Thomson and Christian Nade were all plying their trade in the Tynecastle first-team.
As a Hibs supporter, regular trips to Easter Road were also common, where he watched Martin Scott ply his trade for the Hibees.
And he is thriving alongside the players he used to watch from afar.
He continued: “Liam Fox, Jason Thomson, Calum Elliott, Jimmy [Martin] Scott – these are the kind of guys who are invaluable for a young player, in terms of helping you on and off the park.
“There are loads of experienced players in the dressing room and, when I do play, they help me through it and are always giving me advice.
“They are terrific for giving me pointers and making sure my game is progressing.
“Christian Nade, Calum [Elliot] and Jase [Thomson] were actually at Hearts when I was there, and I used to watch Jimmy Scott playing for Hibs, so it is strange to be in the same team as them now.”
Meanwhile, Rovers boss Grant Murray says friendships will be on hold tonight when his former Kilmarnock teammate James Fowler arrives in Fife having been named Queen of the South player/manager.
He said: “I know James really well from our time together at Kilmarnock. He is one who I kept in touch with and someone I would consider a friend – not for 90 minutes, though.
“He always had drive as a player, and I knew he would take that into the coaching side of things. He got the best out of his teammates and was real captain material so it is no surprise to see him in the dugout.
“I spoke to him before he even went to Queen of the South. He had a couple of opportunities and asked my advice before deciding to work with Jim [McIntyre] as assistant manager. It is no surprise he has done really well.”