Debut Shut Out for 20 year old Keeper

Five years of service rewarded with first team call up for Greg Paterson

Greg Paterson was just at much at ease speaking to the media after making his league debut as he was between the sticks on Saturday afternoon. For a 20 year old whose only previous interviews had been with this website Greg answered the questions still filled with the pride of achieving a shut out against Inverness Caley Thistle:-

"It was an early Christmas present. I was worried when I came out and saw the weather I just thought it would be my luck if it got cancelled. I was happy that the game went ahead, the conditions were hard and horrible. The ball was really slidy and I needed extra concentration. It was the same for both teams and we just had to deal with it."

After five years of waiting, even not being introduced as a sub in games where keepers have struggled on through injury, Greg was delighted to get his chance.

The former Woodmill High School pupil was concerned that if the match had been snowed off by the storm that hit Dunfermline 90 minutes before kick off on Saturday. "It would just have been my luck and big Fleming will be back for next week."

Now it would seem that fully recovered or not there's no guarantee Greg Fleming will start at Airdrie since Paterson's showing on Saturday gave no cause for doubt that he is ready to stake a claim to the number one shirt.

"I was happy with the clean sheet, obviously we didn't get the three points but it is up to the Manager whether he keeps me in or not."

Greg Paterson has been at Dunfermline since U15 level and was a regular start in the Under 19's team in 2005-06, 2006-07 and 2007-08. When Dunfermline's first choice keeper, Allan McGregor, unable to play in SPL matches versus his club, Rangers, Greg was on the bench for the match at East End Park on Boxing Day 2005 and if the 16 year old had been required he would have become the youngest ever to play for Dunfermline in the SPL. He came close to a firey debut in November 2006 at Ibrox when Roddy McKenzie played on through an injury picked up after just 14 minutes and also at Livingston in February in the same year when Bryn Halliwell required treatment midway through the second half before being able to continue.

So it has been a long and patient wait extended through the emergency signing of Chris Smith from St Mirren earlier this month but when he sustained a broken foot then the way was open for Paterson who claimed that "it was meant to be that I got my debut.

"I had been down in the dumps but I want to prove to the Manager that I want to do my best for him. He said it was a hard game for me to come into but was happy with my performance."

The debut keeper did well holding testing shots from Foran and Rooney although his first touch was a tricky one for Greg. The game was only just into its second minute when Alex Burke intercepted a pass between the Inverness strikers and sent the ball back to the keeper. It looked like Burkie maybe forgot which Greg was in goals as the ball was set up for a left footed clearance:-

"I didn't want to kick it with my left so I thought take the boy on. I took it across him and kicked it. Kicking was brutal in the conditions and eventually I couldn't feel my toes. I was trying to keep warm as much as I could."

Terry Butcher felt that Adam Rooney might have scored a hattrick on another day given the chances that Inverness created but took time to praise Greg Paterson in his post match comments:-

"It was the keeper's debut today and he did really well. It was difficult to kick off the deck, skiddy and slippy and we would have liked to have worked him a bit harder. Some of the saves he made were comfortable routine saves but he had to make them and did that well."