Meet the Scottish Socceroo aiming to down the French

Thanks to his Sydney-born father, Hibs winger Martin Boyle could line up against the world champions in Qatar. He talks to Richard Jolly about swapping Aberdeen for Australia

- Richard Jolly

It is a journey from Montrose to Mbappe. While Martin Boyle will begin his first global tournament against Kylian Mbappe, Karim Benzema, Antoine Griezmann and the rest of a France team defending the World Cup, his first-team career started in humbler surroundings: Scottish Division 3.

Figuratively, the Australia winger has come a long way. Geographically, too. Not everyone represents the country of their birth but perhaps no one in Qatar comes from further away from their adopted nation. I am a little boy from Aberdeen playing in a World Cup,” he tells The Independent. Sometimes I still pinch myself. My family are still incredibly proud of where we came from. I started from the bottom of Scottish football and worked my way up. If you had told me this four years ago, I would probably have laughed in your face.”

But whereas Scotland need few reminders their last World Cup was in 1998, they will have representation of sorts in Doha. Boyle is the Socceroo from Aberdeen, not Adelaide; he comes from closer to the Cairngorms than Canberra, nearer Brechin than Brisbane. My accent doesn’t really fit the Aussie culture,” he admitted. But his father, Graeme, was born in Sydney, after his grandparents had emigrated and before they returned to Scotland.