From Strathpeffer to playing for Scotland: Ross County's Don Cowie looks back at his career.
AS a boy growing up in Strathpeffer, Don Cowie would never have imagined playing for Scotland or in the English Premier League.
He loved football and was an avid supporter of Ross County, but a career spanning two decades and seeing the midfielder captain the Staggies, play for his country and appear in national cup finals south of the border was stuff dreams were made of.
Timing proved to be everything for Cowie, as County were a professional side trying to progress through the lower leagues when he left school. Just a few years earlier, and his story might have turned out very differently.
By his own admission, he was not physically or mentally ready to play for his team when he first turned professional, but little by little he grew into the side and eventually took over the captain’s armband in his early-20s.
“I think I struggled with playing for my local team a little bit because it meant so much to me,” Cowie recalled.
“I had been a little boy watching them for as far back as I could remember, but gradually as I got older, year by year I felt I was getting stronger physically and mentally.
“I was very honoured at the time to be made captain. If you look back, it was very much a transitional period within the club.
“We went down a different route. Prior to that we were renowned for signing a lot of players from the central belt, maybe a bit older, coming towards the end of their career.
“When I was made captain, it was just after they had decided to change and got younger players up. I was young at the time, but I was probably one of the more experienced players in the team.”
Read more in today's Ross-shire Journal by clicking here
