ONE OF THEM HAS A METAL HIP... THE OTHER IS IRON MAN

Gordon is a warrior and legend of the Scottish game. He deserves to go out on his own terms, just like Andy Murray

"MOST people would quit and give up in my situation right now.

"But I'm not 'most people' and my mind works differently. I won't quit. I'll keep fighting and working to produce performances I know I'm capable of." Those are Andy Murray's words but they could easily have come from the mouth of Craig Gordon.

Murray came out fighting last week as he slapped down suggestions it was time to hang up his racquet or risk "tarnishing" his legacy.

I know there were plenty of people who thought Gordon should have packed away his gloves after that horror double leg break he suffered at Tannadice on Christmas Eve, 2022.

At 39, surely there was no way for him to come back for such a devastating blow, they said.

But Craig is to Scottish football what Murray determined is to tennis, a warrior to bow out on his own terms.

Hopefully those terms include him becoming Scotland's oldest ever player.

The goalkeeper now has that honour for Hearts and having signed a new one-year Gorgie deal, the big man - who turns 42 next New Year's Eve - is hoping to recover his place for both club and country.

And you'd be mad to bet against him achieving it.

Anyone who has seen Murray's Amazon Prime doc on his battle to recover from major hip surgery will have seen the endless hours of toil and graft the double Wimbledon champion put himself through during his long rehab as he fought to save his career.

And you can be certain that Gordon has faced a similar journey himself on the road back to first-team action.