Veteran Scotland goalkeeper Craig Gordon said qualifying for his first World Cup at the age of 42 was worth all the turmoil he has endured in his career as he revealed Steve Clarke talked him out of retirement in the summer.
The Hearts number one, who has had to battle back from some severe injuries over the past two decades, was pondering his future in the game at the end of last season before extending his deal with his club for another year.
Despite not playing for the Jambos this term, Gordon, who made his Scotland debut in 2004 and will be 43 by the time next summer’s finals kick-off, was thrust back into the breach for the incredible campaign-concluding double-header against Greece and Denmark.
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«It’s emotional,» he told BBC Scotland after the dramatic 4-2 win over the Danes which sealed the Scots’ place at their first global showpiece since 1998.
«It’s been an awful long time coming, 20-odd years in this camp, trying to get there, some failures along the way, some bad nights out there, but I don’t think I’ll ever get one as good as that to be a part of.
«Incredible to be part of that. It’s going to take a while to sink in before I can really think about the next step. I nearly retired in the summer.
«Steve Clarke was the one that told me to give it one more year, he might need me. I could have given all that up. That one moment there tonight, that is worth everything, all the disappointments, all the hard work, all the years that I’ve been trying.
«Seven hundred, 800 games, whatever I’ve played, for that one moment.»
Scott McTominay scored a sensational overhead kick early on, while substitute Kieran Tierney curled in a brilliant finish from outside the box to edge the Scots 3-2 in front in stoppage time.
Kenny McLean then sealed a famous Scottish triumph when he lobbed Kasper Schmeichel from the halfway line with the last kick of the game.
And Clarke hailed the quality of his team’s goals.
«Scott McTominay scored the best overhead kick I’ve ever seen and it might not have been the best goal of the night!» Clarke told BBC Scotland.
«It was a lot of emotions. High and low. At times, you’re looking for solutions and thinking how to change it. I knew at some stage we’d have to go two up front.
«I felt the Danes were dominating us a little. It seemed like a good time [to make the changes]. Whether they were 10 or 11 [men], we were going to do that.
«I spoke to Kieran before the first game. He’s a key player for me, one of my men. I’ve got loads of them. Fourteen were involved in the play-off game.
«I said ‘listen, Aaron Hickey can’t do back-to-back games, I can see you coming on at right-back and doing very well for us’.
«I’m not sure I envisioned the goal … but when it was rolling back to him on his left foot, I knew he would score.
«When Kenny hit it, I thought ‘what are you doing?!’ but when I saw it in flight, I thought ‘that’s going to go in!'»
Information from PA was used in this report.
