immy hits out at plane-crazy SFA
dons boss brands under-21 travel plans amateurish after it takes injured reds 30 hours to return
By paul third
Published: 22/08/2008
Aberdeen’s frustration at not being able to assess the extent of defender Charlie Mulgrew’s head injury yesterday has been compounded by an injury to captain Scott Severin ahead of the visit of Rangers in the SPL tomorrow.
Dons boss Jimmy Calderwood was critical of SFA travel arrangements after Mulgrew did not return to Aberdeen until late last night – more than 24 hours after the Scotland under-21 side’s 3-0 win in the European championship qualifier match in Lithuania. The former Wolves defender lasted less than half-an-hour as he was stretchered off with a head knock which required five stitches, but he cannot be assessed until this morning due to his late return.
With centre back Zander Diamond already ruled out of the game and captain Severin also struggling, Aberdeen could be facing something of a defensive crisis.
Calderwood said: “Seve took some studs on his foot in training last week and he struggled through the Motherwell game. He hasn’t trained a lot this week as I can see him grimacing when he tries to kick the ball, but hopefully he will be back.
“Charlie is a massive doubt, Zander is definitely out and Tommy Wright is a doubt with a thigh injury.
“It means we could have three of our back four missing against Rangers which is a worry, but it is still 11 against 11 and we will just have to get on with it.â€
Andrew Considine, who was also on Scotland under-21 duty, also made his return to the Granite City last night.
Calderwood was critical of the travel arrangements. He said: “Our physio David Wylie is with the under-21s, which is a help, but the annoying thing for me is how long it is taking to get the players back. In this day and age, to not be back until 30 hours after a game is not good enough.
“Andy is late back too and it means we can’t do any of our technical preparation, which is what we normally do on a Thursday.
“I can’t understand why the SFA couldn’t just hire a charter flight and I haven’t bothered asking why they won’t be back as it doesn’t change anything. I just hope they learn from it for the future. I want my players to play for the country and I am proud when they are selected.
“I won’t make a complaint but I can’t see any reason for this other than finance and this wouldn’t have happened if we had a charter flight. It’s amateur stuff really.â€
While their England counterparts travel in chartered airplanes to every away under-21 match, the Scottish players are forced to wait at airports throughout Europe while representing their country.
Rob Shorthouse, head of communications at the SFA, insisted the association has always used scheduled flights for the under-21 squad. He said: “The SFA don’t charter flights for the under-21s and I would be amazed if any association did.
“As we were using a scheduled flight, there was no direct flight from Scotland to Lithuania.
“We had to decide whether to fly the team back to London late after the game and then travel up or let them relax after the game.
“The decision was made to ensure the players were fed, watered and rested before travelling back.â€