Jamie McGrath insists he owes his Ireland call-up to the unwavering belief shown in him by St Mirren boss Jim Goodwin.
Saints star midfielder McGrath has been training with his new international teammates in Girona in Spain this week after finally landing a spot in his country’s senior squad.
He could make his debut for Stephen Kenny’s side when they take on Andorra tomorrow afternoon, which would be the cherry on top of a stunning season in Paisley that saw him plunder 17 goals in all competitions from the middle of the park.
The grounded 24-year-old is adamant he owes his remarkable rise from his small hometown of Athboy, in County Meath, to the Irish national team to the confidence instilled in him by his Buddies boss Goodwin.
Speaking exclusively to Express Sport, he said: “When I first came over to Scotland, I really struggled at the start.
“I came over without a proper pre-season under my belt so I wasn’t right up to speed. I wasn’t playing anywhere near my best.
“Goodwin stuck by me through those tough times.
“He always made me feel like I was still in his plans, even when I wasn’t feeling great about myself.
“He also said I could go home if I ever needed to. I didn’t ever need to at that point, but knowing I could made a big difference psychologically.
“When a gaffer puts that much trust in you, you’re always going to work your socks off for him and that’s exactly what I’ve done.
“I’m naturally more of a 10 and that’s where I played more when I was younger.
“Jim said I should be more of an eight and that positional switch has actually suited me really well.
“I can’t thank him enough for everything that he’s done for me so far.”
While the Irishman’s stock will only continue to rise, especially if he picks up his first cap against Andorra or Hungary next Tuesday, McGrath revealed he’s settled in Paisley and is already looking forward to next season with the Saints.
And he’s determined to help them push on and break into the top six having narrowly missed out on that target last time around on goal difference.
McGrath said: “Before Christmas we’d had a pretty bad start and if you told us we’d finish how we did we’d have probably bitten your hand off.
“It was gutting to miss out on the top six the way we did though. To miss out on goal difference is just brutal.
“It all evens out over the course of a season and ultimately we had a string of home games towards the end of the season that we should have done better in.
“People laughed when we said we’d get into the top six, and we knew it was going to be a stretch given the size of the other teams in the division.
“But we came very close and that gives us a lot of confidence going into next year.”
