Ex-Hearts & Rangers winger David Templeton reveals talks to stay at Hamilton

David Templeton is keen to stay with Hamilton Academical.

First on David Templeton's post-lockdown agenda is a drive to Hamilton to sign a new contract. Daily runs along Glasgow's Clydeside riverbank keeps him fit for football's resumption, and the former Hearts and Rangers winger is determined that will be with Hamilton Academical.

Having returned there for a second spell in January, his five-month contract is expiring and he is confident of agreeing a new one. Talks took place for the coronavirus shutdown and, once restrictions are lifted, the 31-year-old fully intends bringing them to a conclusion.

"My contract is up in June but hopefully I'll be getting something sorted to stay at Hamilton. We spoke about it before all this happened so hopefully there is something there and it can get sorted when everything goes back to normal," Templeton told the Evening News.

"When I was injured and trying to get back playing a few years ago, they were good with me. I really enjoyed it there the first time and I would have stayed. I only left because I wanted to try England before I retired, basically. I didn't know how many years I'd have left so I thought I would jump at the chance I got with Burton Albion.

"I told the Hamilton owners that and explained why I wanted to try England. If it wasn't for that, I would definitely have stayed. When I got the chance to go back to Accies, we had just had the little man so I just wanted to get back home. Going back there was perfect. I enjoy it there and it's close to home, so it's ideal.

"I think it will just be a case of waiting until we are back out and maybe we can get something sorted then. We're obviously not allowed into the club just now, so we just need to wait until we get the green light to go in again. I'll speak to them then and hopefully we will get something done."

The "little man" he refers to is four-month old son, Rhen. Lockdown doesn't get time to be boring in the Templeton household when there is training to be done, nappies to be changed and feeding to take care of.

"It's been non-stop with him," explained Templeton. "I get up with him first thing in the morning, then my Mrs [Robyn] will take him and that gives me time to go out and do my running. He's a good baby as well. He's quite happy and isn't crying all the time so that makes it not too difficult.

"We stay next to the Clydeside so I've just been going runs along the river and working out in the house. It's basically just been core exercises. There isn't much else you can do. It's frustrating not being able to train but you need to do what you can to try and stay fit."

He could be forgiven were he in a perverse way slightly grateful for the unexpected breather. Eighteen months in England's League One with Burton proved to be a rewarding but thoroughly hectic experience for a player whose game is based around energy, running and creativity.

The initial image conjured when someone mentions English football might be the glamour of Manchester City or Liverpool, six-figure weekly salaries and stadiums full with tens of thousands of people. In the third tier, life is rather more humble and demanding for a footballer.

"Trying to adjust to the amount of games was tough," said Templeton. "You were basically playing Tuesday-Saturday every week up until New Year. We had played about 30 games by New Year. That's nearly a full season in Scotland. If you do well in the cups, obviously there are even more matches to cram in.

"There's the EFL Trophy on top of the FA Cup and League Cup so if you get through in these tournaments then it's more games. That took a bit of getting used to. Myself and Scott Fraser both found it tough at first when we went there because we weren't used to it.

"Up here you are mainly weekend to weekend. You weren't really getting breaks in England. There are no international breaks, no winter breaks, it's just non-stop. Once you adapted to that, it was good to be fair."

The impression is that Hamilton is a niche which suits him. Fans in South Lanarkshire admire his ability in a team which is regularly fighting to stay in the Premiership. This season is no different, with Accies poised just above Templeton's former club Hearts at the bottom of the league.

He is nonetheless glad he took the gamble to sample football south of the Border. "I really enjoyed the first season. I played in most of the games and came up against some big teams. We had a good cup run, which was really enjoyable. This season I didn't play as much as I hoped. I was in and out of the team and because we had quite a small squad it was difficult.

"If you didn't play in a game, you would come in the next day but you wouldn't be able to train. There weren't enough players to do a training session out of the boys who hadn't played, so you would just use the cross-trainer and things like that to keep yourself fit. It's not the same.

"You weren't that sharp and it was quite hard but you just had to make the best of it. Being back home and back in a routine has been good. Hopefully we can get back into that soon."

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