The former Rangers and Hull City midfielder is on his way back to the English Championship after Wembley play-off joy
Greg Docherty still hopes to gain international recognition at Hampden, even after he experienced the euphoria of promotion at Wembley.
After leading Charlton to play-off glory last week, the former Rangers and Hull midfielder is returning to the Championship down south.
And now as he prepares to take a step up to England’s second-tier, he hopes that will be a platform for a Scotland call-up.
The 28-year-old was capped at several youth levels – including with Scot Gemmill’s Under-21s.
Even though he hasn’t yet joined Steve Clarke’s entire national squad, he thinks there is still time.
It must be my ambition, the Addicks star admitted.
“It’s about striving for the best version of yourself and so hopefully doing well for Charlton will help that.
“If it doesn’t happen for me, I’ll still support Scotland.
“But of course that dream is still a driving factor, I think it would be silly for it not to be.
I know the midfield has always been the strongest part of the squad, especially over the last few years.
“There’s a lot of young midfielders coming through, which is great to see, and the nation is now qualifying for tournaments again.
“But I’m still fit. That endurance side has always been my thing so age to me doesn’t really kick in at the minute.
“I’ve truly believe I’ve still got my best years ahead of me.
“I’m going to be playing in a really demanding league again next season. I want to improve on the spell I had with Hull in the Championship, I want to be more of a dominant midfielder in the Championship.
“I feel I’m better for it now, having the experience that I’ve had, particularly this season, leading up to now.”
Docherty certainly won’t have it easy fighting his way into an engine room packed with Premier League stars and even a couple of new Serie A champions. But he’s willing to give it his best shot.
He said: “I knew last year that by stepping down to League One, I wouldn’t be on the cards, so I put those thoughts on the back burner. But playing for Scotland is something that I would love to do.
“I am aware that I have some good players in front of me, such as your John McGinns, Scott McTominays, and Billy Gilmours. However, all I can do is try my hardest and hope that someone notices.
