A GOALLESS friendly watched by an attendance that fell far below capacity is perhaps no place for a celebrated international career to end. David Weir, however, has never been the type to plot a farewell in the hope that it generates maximum impact.
"I don't have a big enough ego to think I should go out at the top," the Rangers defender said last season, as he contemplated a Uefa Cup final appearance that many imagined might persuade him to call an end to a career that had reached such a crest.
This theory did not take into account Weir's lack of self-regard. That said, he is not so full of benevolence that he is prepared to stand back and let others annex his position in the Scotland side, and he again demonstrated his value to his country on Wednesday in what was another defensive shut-out.
The 38-year-old Weir earned his 62nd cap in the 0-0 draw with Northern Ireland, and while he didn't treat it as a bonus appearance, there must have been a part of him which noted that this relatively low-key outing could be his last in a Scotland shirt.
His international career started in 1997 with another match against British opposition, though on this occasion Scotland went down 1-0 to Wales in a friendly at Rugby Park. Many presumed his final match would remain the rain-lashed, and suitably epic, final Euro 2008 qualifier against Italy at Hampden in November.
Scotland manager George Burley, who left Weir out of his first two squads, has already gone on record as saying he considers Stephen McManus and Gary Caldwell to be his first-choice central defensive pairing.
He also made public the deal struck with Weir. If the Rangers defender isn't going to start, then he won't be included in the squad. If Burley abides by this agreement, and assuming Caldwell recovers sufficiently from the thigh stain which kept the Celtic defender out of the Northern Ireland game, then it follows that Weir – providing there are no further injuries – won't be present when the Scotland party arrive in Macedonia next month, for the first match in a critical World Cup double-header that is completed by a midweek trip to Iceland.
Both are the kind of fixtures where the presence of someone with Weir's experience might be of considerable value, though Burley has stated his desire for a more youthful Scotland team. Weir's call-up to the squad earlier this week did help send out a mixed message, however. Weir might not be first-choice, but he is more first-choice than fellow centre-halves Christophe Berra and new recruit Darren Barr, who both started on the bench on Wednesday.
If injury should befall one of either McManus or Caldwell during the first game in Macedonia, it would be crazy to have Weir sitting at home. But, with the Celtic pair occupying the centre-half berths at present, the deal made with Weir appears to rule out his inclusion in Burley's first competitive squad.
The player himself is willing as ever to contribute to the cause, but is alert to the manager's wish for a partnership which will serve Scotland for years to come. Burley has much to occupy his thoughts in the coming days. I understand I won't be here forever," said Weir, following the match on Wednesday. "But I want to play for as long as I can, and I want to enjoy it for as long as I can. If the manager makes a decision then I understand that. I don't have a problem with that."
"That is what being a manager is all about," continued Weir. "You have to make a decision. What can I do? All I can do is play football and hopefully change the manager's mind. At the end of the day, I won't fall out with anyone about it."
All Weir can do in the immediate future is wait for the announcement of Burley's squad for next month's fixtures. If the manager, having decided it is better to be safe than sorry, opts to include Weir for what are essentially auxiliary purposes, then the player himself has a decision to make. At 38, he has better things to be doing than losing valuable fitness while sitting around a hotel room.
"The manager just said to me: 'There is no point picking you if you are not going to be playing'," Weir recalled. "That is fair enough. I understand that. I am quite happy playing, and happy that I played tonight.
"I wouldn't be here if I didn't want to be playing. I am available. That's the way it is, and has been for a while."
The full article contains 806 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
