Cieran Slicker breaks silence on horror Scotland match and makes debut confession

Slicker came on in the seventh minute for Angus Gunn after Scotland’s No 1 had picked up injury. Yet to make a senior appearance a club level, the former Scotland Under-21 internationalist was thrust into the limelight due to more experienced keepers such as Craig Gordon, Zander Clark and Liam Kelly all carrying injuries.

Slicker’s poor clearance led to Iceland opening the scoring a minute into his debut and the 23-year-old allowed a loose ball to squirm underneath him for the second goal. He was beaten too easily by Victor Palsson header early in the second half to endure a horrific first taste of playing for Scotland as the hosts went down 3-1 at Hampden.

The keeper subsequently lost his place to Ross Doohan for the next match against Liechtenstein and has since gone on loan to Barnet from his parent club Ipswich Town, where he has become their No 1. They have won four of their past five matches this season, including a 2-0 win over Tranmere on Saturday - although Slicker was sent off at the end for violent conduct.

Speaking before that match, Slicker opened up on his summer travails with Scotland in a candid interview with East Anglian Daily Times - and revealed that it doesn’t feel like he has made his international debut.

“I wouldn't say that I wasn't ready,” said Slicker. “Not prepared is probably the correct way to put it. When Angus went down it was like, ‘wow, I'm coming on’. It was really strange. It just didn't feel real, to be honest. I didn't feel like myself coming on. I wasn’t mentally prepared to play a game.

“I don't want to make excuses, I know that I wasn't good enough in the game, but the scenario in which I made debut wasn’t ideal. Playing for your country is every young footballer’s dream. It was my dream. So to do that and it not go to plan… yeah, it was difficult.

Senior players rallied around keeper

“I didn't really speak after the game. Credit to the boys, especially the senior boys, they got around me and said, ‘don't worry. It's happened to all of us.’ At the time those words didn’t really mean too much to me though because I'm the harshest critic of myself.

“The next day, all the boys were on recovery but I just wanted to train. I trained well actually and I think the manager was happy that I'd gone out to try and brush it aside.

“It was a difficult moment, for sure. But I think, looking back at it now, it was a massive learning experience for me. It’s taught me to always expect the unexpected.

“There were times in the summer where I saw the odd thing and thought about it, but in general my mindset has been ‘it’s done now, learn and move on’. I've got belief in myself and I listen to the people whose opinions I trust the most.

"It’s made me realise that there's always going to be noise - whether you're doing well, whether you're not. You just have to try and block it out and keep a level head. If I had played well then I would have been on top of the world, loving it and my confidence would have been booming. But because I didn't, and because of the way things went, my mindset all summer was, ‘Right, I've got to lock in’.

“If I'm being honest, I don't feel like I've made my debut for Scotland. I know there's obviously a number next to my name now, but I don't feel like I earned it.

“Before the game, I’d probably played six, seven professional games. If you look at any international player that's making a debut, most of them have had seasons of playing and working their way up to get that moment.

“I was part of the squad because I train well and people can probably see my ability and potential. That's what the manager's probably gone off.

“Looking forward now, the feeling for me is that I've got to earn it the next time I play for Scotland. I got put into a scenario that was difficult for me, but having had a taste for it, it's made me really want to get there again."