Kid gloves on the up

IT'S been a week to remember for Hearts goalkeeper Jamie MacDonald.

Promotion to the first-team squad, training with Scotland and a new contract at Hearts have all contributed to a dream few days for the Tynecastle youngster.

The 19-year-old was delighted to be given the nod as Craig Gordon's understudy against Aberdeen last week but things got even better on his return from Pittodrie.

Asked along to the three-day Scotland squad training camp at Murray Park, MacDonald was then handed a one-year contract by the Jambos after impressing as John McGlynn's Under-19s finished runners-up in their league behind Celtic.

The youngster was included in the Scots' training camp with both Celtic keepers David Marshall and Rab Douglas preparing for today's Tennent's Scottish Cup final against Dundee United.

Not that he's complaining.

"I was asked to go along to the Scotland training camp as both David Marshall and Rab Douglas were involved with Celtic and that meant Craig Gordon was there on his own.

"I don't think they wanted to call up any of the other senior keepers for just the three days but I wasn't complaining.

"It was a great experience and with Steven Pressley, Andy Webster and Paul Hartley also there, it was a lot easier to settle in."

Rubbing shoulders with some of the country's best players and pitting his wits against some of the English Premiership's top strikers was an unexpected bonus for the teenager, who is hoping to follow in the footsteps of his Gorgie team-mate and eventually earn full international honours.

"Everybody was really supportive of me this week and very happy for me.

"It was a great confidence booster for next season and it was brilliant to come up against Premiership strikers like James McFadden.

"There were a lot of shooting exercises and I thought I did well enough against them. I'm just 19 and Craig's a very good example to follow.

"He's a top-class goalkeeper and hopefully I can get the same breaks as he did and go on to be just as good.

"The aim has to be back in the Scotland squad like that on serious business, if you like. In the next couple of years I'll be aiming to break into the Under-21s and then progress from there.

"My first international call-up came just a few weeks ago when I was in the Under-19 squad for a friendly against Norway. I had never been involved with Scotland before so that made it an even bigger surprise to be asked along this week."

MacDonald will leave the cleaning of Gordon's boots to others next season as he seeks to cement the good impression he has already made at Tynecastle.

While desperate to sample more life in the first team, he's more than happy to continue learning his trade in the background.

"I think the new manager, whoever he is, will probably bring in a more experienced goalkeeper as back-up to Craig for next season," he said.

"I won't mind and will keep my head down and work hard. If I'm involved at all with the first team it will be a bonus.

"I have signed a one-year deal and want to impress the new boss. I was on the ground staff for a couple of months before Antti Niemi left but Roddy [McKenzie] was a big help and Tepi [Moilanen] and Craig have been great as well. I've picked up a lot of different things from them as their styles were so different.

"Pittodrie was great and the atmosphere was something else. That was the first time I had been on the first-team bench.

"I was supposed to be involved in the squad for the league game at Livingston which was postponed. I was also in the frame for the first game of the season against Dundee at Dens Park but Tepi was passed fit so that was that.

"I thought my chance would never come but having sampled what it was like on Sunday, I definitely want more."

Taken from the Scotsman