THE Scotland squad which will travel to face England in a friendly next month will be named today and is expected to include places for Cardiff City midfielder Craig Conway and Motherwell's Steven Hammell, who both impressed manager Gordon Strachan as part of the group which won in a World Cup qualifier with Croatia last month.
The friendly will be played at Wembley on August 14.
There will be no place in the squad for Darren Fletcher once again, with the Manchester United midfielder to miss the start of the new campaign as he continues to recover from an operation on his bowel intended to relieve him of the effects of ulcerative colitis. The condition has kept Fletcher from competitive action since Boxing Day and he resolved to have surgery the following month.
That decision had been taken with the intention of returning in time to lead his country out at Wembley but the 29-year-old has since accepted that he will instead be made to play the role of a supporter. However, he has spoken positively about his recovery from the surgery and he still expects to make his return to full training early next season.
"Hopefully, [I'll be back] not too long after the start of the season; I think I will just miss the beginning of the season," said Fletcher. "I've had [ulcerative colitis] for five years but really struggled to control it for the last three years. It's had a big impact on my day-to-day life, never mind trying to play football. Medication wasn't helping me but surgery was the only solution if I wanted to have not only a future playing football but even a quality of life going forward.
"It's all going well. I am still in the hands of the medical team just now and the surgeon who is looking after me. Everything is going to plan so far and I am not that far away now. I am doing exercise on my own. I've not been given the green light to join in contact in football training but I am doing my own running and physical activities and feel great. Hopefully, in the next few weeks I am going to join in and to start making the comeback, which is looking very good."
The scheduling of the England game so early on in the campaign has invited criticism but Fletcher has been quick to dismiss the suggestion the date could lead to the common spate of call-offs for Scotland friendlies. "From the Scotland side of it, [England] is the game that you want to play in when [you] are growing up. Maybe England might have a few call-offs but I definitely know in the Scotland camp we won't have many," said the midfielder.
"Everyone has grown up with stories from their parents or people in football about the old games at Wembley and the old Home Nations matches and how fierce they were."
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