Hibs star leaning on Scotland's senior strike heroes for advice after living out childhood dream at Hampden
Kieron Bowie made his Hampden bow in an unfamiliar position on the left-hand side of Scotland attack against Belarus
Hibs star Kieron Bowie has declared he’s been leaning on Scotland’s senior strikers for tips and advice after running out at Hampden Park for the first time.
The 21-year-old frontman made his competitive debut for Steve Clarke’s side as a late replacement in Sunday’s jittery 2-1 World Cup qualifying win over Belarus, slotting in to a relatively unfamiliar position on the left side of attack.
Bowie recalls how he was once among sitting among the punters during trip to the national stadium with Kirkcaldy High School - and admits it was a surreal moment to now be living out his dream on the pitch for his country.
Bowie stated: “There are players playing in the Premier League and all over the world, so it's good to play these different players. It's different to club football, it's only a week, so it's a bit of a refresh.
“I'm just trying to do what I can for my club at the moment and then hopefully that can get me in squads. I've only been in three squads now, so I'm just trying to bide my time and watching them play and see when I can get minutes.
“We were a bit under the cosh at the time (when I came on) and it's not my usual position out on the left. But the manager told me to just try and put myself about and chase after the ball.
“When I was young, the school would put on trips and stuff to come to Hampden when the Scotland games were on. Now I’m here, it just shows that it could be them in the future.”
Bowie aims to become a regular strike option for Scotland
Bowie isn’t shying away from the challenge of becoming a regular striking option for Scotland but underlined the quality he’s up against in Che Adams and Lyndon Dykes at present.
He added: “There’s a lot of top calibre players that I'm up against, so I'm just learning stuff from them. I'm a lot younger, so they're doing their thing now but just biding my time and trying to get this on the pitch when I can.
“Playing for your country is an added bonus. I've just got to keep doing what I'm doing for my club and it'll come. I managed to do that today and I'm glad to just get the amount of minutes I can.”
Bowie hopeful World Cup dream can become a ‘reality’
The prospect of being representing Scotland at a World Cup isn’t something Bowie has given a lot of thought, but he is hopeful that it can become a “reality” next month when Scotland round off their qualifying campaign with a crucial double header against Greece in Athens before a potential winner-takes-all showdown with Denmark.
“I've not really thought too much about it, but it could happen and we're just focused on one game at a time.” he admitted. “Hopefully in the next camp we can try and make that a reality.
“My first World Cup memory was when I was eight, so 2010 was probably the first one when Spain beat Netherlands in the final. I wouldn't have thought of that at the time, to even be a professional footballer and playing for my country, so it's honestly just an honour.”
Your next read: