Stephen O'Donnell on Motherwell highs and lows, Hampden return and what's needed to inspire next generation
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In a backstage-style area of Hampden Park, Motherwell vice-captain Stephen O’Donnell is all smiles and laughs as he conducts a slate of interviews.
A man who can handle the spotlight and who’s also content out of it, he talks with the Motherwell Times in the hours before Scotland’s 1-0 win vs Croatia. It wasn’t too long ago that he was pulling on the famous navy jersey, representing Scotland on 26 occasions. So how does the national stadium feel to him now? For someone who didn’t dare dream of playing for Scotland as a boy, watching on from the stands is something he’s more than at peace with.
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Hide Ad“I think what I was fortunate enough to have was experiences that I never dreamed of”, said O’Donnell. “When I was a boy playing at Wishaw Wycombe, I never looked beyond a club. It was never my dream to play for Scotland because I never really thought it was something that would happen. I think when I've been fortunate to have that opportunity, what you realise is how hard it is and how good these countries are.
“And then I come back full of optimism because I know how good the staff are from top to bottom, how hard everyone works to get Scotland to be successful. We might not be, but it's never from a lack of hard work, which I think is a real fundamental that the Scottish people really need to hang onto. We should be hard workers. We shouldn't be afraid to work hard and be proud of that.
“And hopefully that's enough to continue to be successful as Steve Clarke has managed to bring. But if it's not, I can live with us not being good enough, as long as we're leaving everything out there. And I think that's what this team does.”
Focus for O’Donnell right now is recovery from injury. A muscle problem picked up in a Premiership clash with Dundee United right before Halloween cruelly denied him a chance to play on the Mount Florida turf again, with the Motherwell feature in the programme for the Premier Sports Cup semi-final vs Rangers not lost on him.
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Hide Ad“It's coming along well, so no setbacks at the moment,” said O’Donnell of his rehab. “Obviously pretty disappointing being missing for the semi-final, especially when the programme had me as first ever semi! So hopefully there'll be another one in the new year. Hopefully get to the semi of the Scottish Cup, that'd be good and hopefully I'm fit for it.
“I am looking forward to getting back in. This team's been doing great. Obviously not missing those old heads, Paul McGinn and myself and other boys that are injured. So I'm looking forward to getting back fit and hopefully adding to Motherwell’s season. Hopefully before Christmas, anyway. That's my target. Maybe for the first time, I'll have a Christmas. I'll wait until after Christmas and come back!”
When he is talking football, the topic of Lennon Miller is likely to crop up. That much is inevitable for anyone in and around Fir Park in the build-up to a January transfer window that will be dominated by talk of what comes next for the club’s latest talent off the production line. Rangers, Celtic, Liverpool. It might be easier to name clubs not linked with him by the time 2025 hits.
O’Donnell has never witnessed the likes of Miller in his career before. An arm of an experienced pro around the shoulder will only be to claim future rewards, with the teenage midfielder in no urgent need of comforting words, Miller an example of football still holding a firm place in the heart of youngsters.
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Hide Ad“I've came across lots of 18-year-olds, none with a level head of him,” O’Donnell said in glowing praise. “And I've never seen the hype that he's getting, that he deserves. He's been excellent since he came into the squad. He was training at 16 and he didn't look out of place then. For him to come into the team, obviously it takes you a bit of time just to get consistent, a couple of niggly injuries.
“But what a talent and what a mentality he's got. I don't think the older experienced ones need to do much. We just need to be there for if he does need it, need a wee arm around him or anything. But if it's anything, I just need to put my arm around him to make sure he gets tickets for me wherever he ends up!
“I think the sad thing is that he will move from Motherwell, hopefully not at Christmas. But again, he's done well. He's done great for the club and hopefully he gets a move that he wants and he deserves. From my experience, seeing the appetite at the camps that Motherwell were involved in, that the FA's involved in, I still see an appetite for football.
“I see a big one. I see one if it's nourished and invested in and looked after. I think it can produce real quality. I think Lennon’s been a great example of that. He stayed at his own school. It shows you that his talent was there and kind of with it being groomed along the way in the right direction, what a talent he's going to be, what a future he's going to have in football.
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Hide Ad“And Motherwell, you can say what you like as you go up the level, but the players need to be good enough. I think Motherwell is great for it. They’ve given young players an opportunity. But sometimes those young players won't go on and have a career. You can only give them an opportunity and if people don't want to grasp it, for whatever reason, can be personal, can be just maybe not good enough. There's no shame in that.
“I think it's so important that the opportunities are given to enhance, hopefully, the league and give players the opportunity to continue to grow the next generation of believers, of fans and children that think it's possible to get into first teams. The more and more that foreign players are coming in, the less likely that becomes.”
O’Donnell has been through major highs and brutal lows at Motherwell. Joining during Covid, the return of fans, clinching European football, managerial sackings, losing his place in the team and earning it back. There’s been no shortage of drama and turbulence since the right-back moved close to home over four years ago.
Now, with the club moving on from an investment saga in the summer under a refreshed fan ownership movement in line with the club’s executive board, and Motherwell on the park performing to a stellar standard, O’Donnell is positive about the claret and amber future. He just wants to be part of it.
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Hide Ad“A lot of the time it comes down to on the pitch”, O’Donnell added. “I think what the manager brings on the pitch, with every club I've been at, if it's not going well then things are a bit frostier. What I would say is the manager has managed to navigate very difficult circumstances with the unrest, the different roles leaving. But my time at Motherwell, I've loved overall. There's been highs and there's been lows.
“There's been times I've been frustrated and angry, times I've been delighted and couldn't be prouder. I think that's just football, that's the emotional journey. That's why as fans, you love it, because it's emotional. And I think as players, for me, my motivation. Touching on what we spoke about earlier, the grassroots, getting exposed to football early you can see the highs and the lows. And it really kind of makes it. Football is an emotional journey, and I'm fortunate I've been part of it for 32 years.
“Watching my wee boy play for a team in Motherwell, and seeing the volunteers giving their time up which, without them, they wouldn't have the opportunity to play. I see the wee boys celebrating goals as a group. They're all hugging each other. I don't even think they understand the point of why they're hugging each other. It's not competitive, but they see it. They see their players they watch at the weekends. And, again, as I said, we speak about the love of the game. I still love football. I love Motherwell, and hopefully my time there continues.”
Stephen O’Donnell was speaking as part of his appearance at the SFA & McDonald’s Grassroots Football Awards. The SFA & McDonald’s Grassroots Football Awards recognise and celebrate the tireless and incredible work of grassroots football heroes who make football possible by consistently supporting their communities by going above and beyond. The awards are now in their twentieth year with the winners joining a long list of inspirational grassroots football heroes who have been recognised by the programme.
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