Former Everton and Birmingham striker James McFadden has offered an anecdote on Saipan we had never heard before in his chat with Si Ferry for Open Goal's impressive series of interviews with players involved in Scottish football.
Having heard yet another tale about the madness of Thomas Gravesen a few weeks back, the latest part that has been released reflected on McFadden's international career which got off to a bumpy start at the age of just 19.
Bertie Vogts handed the then-Motherwell striker his debut as a teenager on Scotland's tour of the Far East in 2002 against South Africa, and McFadden, who had earlier explained that he was never a big drinking and didn't go on many nights out, got a bit carried away with his career milestone.
After going out on the lash, he missed the Scotland team's flight home from Hong Kong the next day and was terrified to call Vogts and offer an apology. Eventually, he mustered up the courage to apologise to everyone he needed to and thought that he was in the clear, that was until he touched down in London on his way home at the very same time Roy Keane was arriving back from Saipan.
The 19-year-old McFadden was bewildered as he thought the gathered media were waiting for him, a Motherwell striker who had a bit too much to drink.
It was embarrassing, but I was a young boy. I stayed with my Mum and Dad, I didn't have a girlfriend or anything, I didn't have anybody to answer to really apart from the manager [Vogts], my manager at Motherwell, and my Mum and Dad. They were all fine, so I was alright. I just, as soon as they were all fine, I went "It'll blow over".
Then, flying back into one of the London airports, it was the same time Roy Keane had walked out of the Ireland camp [at the 2002 World Cup], so when I touched down there was all this press and I thought "No way... No way! I play for Motherwell what are ye wantin'!"
Obviously, it was for him, so I was delighted that he'd done that.
Jump to 7:42 in the below video to hear it from McFadden first-hand.
Had he a few more years of experience under his belt he would surely have known that something else was up, but at 19 and being afraid as to how the reaction was going to be to what you thought was a big deal... It would have been terrifying.
Thankfully the media were more worried about the madness surrounding the Ireland captain and a story that dominated headlines around the world, and not a 19-year-old Scottish striker who had a mad one in Hong Kong.
