| The ex-St Johnstone youth supremo, who still lives in Luncarty just outside Perth, was formerly on the Ibrox youth coaching staff and used to take a then very young Barry to Light Blue training sessions.
“Barry would be about 14 or 15 when I used to pick him up at his house and take him to those training sessions,” said Alistair.
“You could see then that he was an exceptional talent.
“When I joined St Johnstone, I brought Barry up to McDiarmid Park on occasion. He knew some of the lads who were signed and who were training with Saints, but there was only one place he was going to go when he went full-time and that was Rangers.”
The Parc des Princes will be a cauldron tonight, but Alistair feels Barry has the temperament to handle it.
“This is a big, big stage for Barry, but he’s worked so hard and done so well in his career.
“I never doubted his ability to make it, so am not surprised to see him captaining Scotland again. Temperament, desire, hard work, skill — he has it all.
“Tonight’s game is massive and he could play a massive part.” |
