Steven Naismith remembers it well. A game in Amsterdam before the last Euros, Lawrence Shankland up front on his own, a friendly to see if he was a contender for when the big stuff happened in Germany.
Naismith, now Steve Clarke's assistant at Scotland, was then Shankland's manager at Hearts. It was mid-March 2024 and the striker was tearing it up at Tynecastle — 28 goals to his name, including a run of 15 in 15. He was flying, and starting against the Netherlands.
“Lawrence Shankland's international maturity and partnership with Andy Robertson highlight his rise from fourth-tier to World Cup striker.”
"At one point, the ball breaks to him 20 yards out and rather than taking it out of his feet and finishing, he tries to reverse it for Scott McTominay," Naismith says. "I was watching it and that moment told me that he's still at sea at international level. See, when you go into the international set-up the first thing in your mind is fitting in. Just fit in. And I think that was Shanks fitting in."
Naismith texted him after: "I said 'I cannae work out why you're passing to McTominay because I'd rather you have that shot than anybody else'. But when I thought about it I could understand it because maybe he was a bit unsure of his place."
"I told him he needed to think about what's got him there. 'You're in that starting team because the manager trusts you to take these chances. Don't pass them up.'"
That Shankland is now a different player. "He's totally different now. He's comfortable. He believes he's part of it. And that's why he's in the squad — for these moments. He's matured so, so much. He's just elevated his game," Naismith says.
Thirteen years ago, Shankland and Andy Robertson were team-mates in the fourth tier of Scottish football at Queen's Park, their trips to Elgin and Berwick, Annan and Montrose. They lost 1-0 at home to Peterhead in the first leg of the play-off final and 3-1 away in the second (attendance 954). From Balmoor to Boston and the greatest show on earth.
Robertson's journey to the World Cup has been laced with huge moments on giant stages with Liverpool over many years, but Shankland is only now emerging as a main man in his country's eyes. His run of form this season has made Clarke alter his thinking from one upfront to two, from Che Adams as the lone runner.