David Marshall is proof of how a football career can zip by in the blink of an eye. He is also a brilliant example of where a refusal to give in might just lead you.
More than 11 years have passed since Marshall, then 19 and deputising for the suspended Rab Douglas, turned in an exceptional performance against Barcelona at the Camp Nou. A scoreless draw sealed progress for Martin O’Neill’s Celtic side in the Uefa Cup, with Marshall the undisputed man of the moment on his European debut after just a handful of first-team games.
As he casts his mind back though, the goalkeeper’s memories are not about making saves against Ronaldinho. “The weather was horrific,” Marshall recalls. “As a goalkeeper you are always thinking about the conditions. It had been fine, we had trained for two days in sunshine, then went on to the bus at half-five and it was bucketing down. I was sitting there thinking: ‘Bloody hell, just be dry … this is Spain.’”
If that is delivered with a smile, the serious point relates to what the evening meant. “It was a one-off game but if I didn’t do well in it, I don’t know where I would have gone,” Marshall says. “You are only a goal away from going out, it becomes only a decent game and you did all right.
“I wouldn’t change it for the world in terms of the actual night, the feeling, the experience and the confidence it gave me. Mentally, you know if you can do it once then you can do it again as long as you work hard.”
On Saturday evening in Dublin, as his country’s goalkeeper, Marshall will be reunited with O’Neill. Also in opposition for the Republic of Ireland against Scotland will be Aiden McGeady, who progressed through Celtic’s youth system alongside Marshall. Another contemporary, Shaun Maloney, will join Marshall in blue and white.
Marshall’s attitude towards O’Neill is as respectful as ever. Their time together was in a different Scottish domestic era, where both sides of the Old Firm bestowed lavish sums on players. “He was so different from a lot of other managers,” the 30-year-old says. “He didn’t take a lot of sessions. He wouldn’t be there every day but when he was, the standard just went straight up without him saying a word. You could feel him walking from the car park – he had that aura.
“To be involved in that first-team training was a big thing. And it was a ruthless environment – if you could handle yourself in training, you gained a bit of respect.”
Just as now, on the international scene, O’Neill had unwavering belief in McGeady. “I remember playing in a seven-a-side tournament,” Marshall recalls. “Aiden was there aged 12/13, and everyone was talking about him.
“Aiden always had a good head on his shoulders. He was always going to be a top player and has turned out to be. He is very strong-willed. He doesn’t let opinion affect him, which has probably helped him get to where he is.”
Completing the sense of full circle is the Scotland manager, Gordon Strachan, who succeeded O’Neill at Celtic and under whom Marshall ultimately decided to seek new pastures after limited opportunities. Not that there was animosity. “There comes a stage where you can only have so many chances at it,” Marshall says. “You have to go somewhere and be a No1. It was never a wrench to leave because I never said to myself as a youngster: ‘I would love to sit on the bench for Celtic.’ It was easy for me to go.”
Despite a series of outstanding displays over six years at Cardiff City, national service was never smooth for him. As third-choice to Craig Gordon and Allan McGregor, for a spell he was known to refer to himself as The Invisible Man. A Scotland career which began in 2004 has yielded just 18 caps, all but five of which have arrived since 2013.
“It was hard – you can be away for 10 days,” he says. “I was living down south with a young family and it could have been nice to come home and spend some time. It was so frustrating at times. It wasn’t as if I could say I should have been playing, either. I was the youngest of the three goalies.
“I think you have to remember how much pressure the managers were under. Things weren’t great, every friendly result was picked up on, so they were only doing the best for themselves and the country. You think about things when you are away and not involved but this is a short career.”
Since being established as Strachan’s first choice, Marshall has been determined to relish every moment: “I just believed that if I worked hard a chance would come, that I had the power to do it.
“I don’t know if I appreciate it more than these lads because I know how much Craig and Allan love playing for Scotland. But I do know it would be harder to come out again. I know how tough it is when you are travelling and not getting a game.”
Marshall felt instantly at home when moving to Cardiff. As is typical of a pragmatic, mature attitude, he has been unmoved by frequent speculation linking him with a transfer back into the top flight.
“If you play well in the Premier League and get relegated, that is always going to happen,” he says. “Cardiff were good to me in terms of a contract. If it is only rumour it doesn’t affect me. I have never been at the stage where I had a decision to make.”
Like his entire generation, one thing missing from Marshall’s CV is an appearance for Scotland in a major finals. “It would be the biggest thing in my career. As a kid growing up I was watching Scotland in Euro 96, France 98. To get there would be the highest achievement possible.”
Should he do so, the goalkeeper’s quest would have been aided more than a decade ago by the man he will look to frustrate and deny in Dublin.
