Messi, Ronaldo, Aguero, Salah, Suarez . . . the crème de la crème of attacking talent in European football. These guys score goals for fun year in year out. But guess what? They are all being left trailing in the goal dust by a wee guy from Barlanark and an ex team-mate of mine. Yes, the story of Stephen Dobbie has been a fascinating one which shows no signs of abating anytime soon. So far this season, 24 goals – including four hat tricks – have already been plundered and we are in the first week in October. It’s an astonishing return. His tale is a prime example of the old adage "it’s never too late". Ability alone is not enough. Fitness, drive and dedication have turned Dobbie from being a talented, but overweight, striker nearly going out the game aged 23 in the third division at Dumbarton into currently the most lethal striker in Europe. So how has he done it?
Our paths first crossed back in 2003 when Stephen signed from Rangers to join an already very youthful Hibs striking department under Bobby Williamson. Myself, Stephen, Gary O’Connor, Derek Riordan and believe it or not a young whippersnapper called Scott Brown made up the forward line all battling for places in the starting line up. I was the oldest at the ripe old age of 23! Both myself and Stephen travelled through to Easter Road from the West and got to know each other really well. He is a smashing lad and we got on great.
Straight away you could see that he was a very talented player, but competition was fierce and Stephen never got much game time. But that was simply down to his attitude and fitness. He was as good as any of the rest of the strikers – in fact his finishing even then was obscene – but what let him down was his fitness and ability off the ball to get around the pitch.
We used to meet at the Showcase Cinema in Coatbridge every morning to travel to training and Dobs would be in secretly munching a McDonald’s breakfast. He would deny it, of course, but the sausage and egg McMuffin wrapper stuffed down the side of his dashboard tended to give the game away. Not that my diet was much better to tell you the truth but I got away with it a little bit more than Stephen did back then due to our respective frames. So that was what I think held him back from being successful at Hibs because it certainly wasn’t ability.
He left Hibs to go to St Johnstone, which never worked out probably for the same reasons and, at 23, he found himself at Dumbarton in the bottom division, which was scandalous for a player of his ability.
To think he was that close to being lost to the game is scary. He has so much talent. But it’s probably that fear that drove him to bang goals in for fun in that last-chance saloon. That earned a move to Queen of the South under Ian McCall who was probably the perfect man to get him back on track. But it really was Stephen himself who gave himself a shake and, after heading to Dumfries, he never looked back.
A successful spell there led to a fantastic move to Swansea and it was at the Swans that he finally shed the weight that was stopping him really fulfilling his potential. I remember switching on the TV one day to watch a game and I couldn’t believe the shape he was in. I had to double check it was him. He had lost about two stones and was zipping around the pitch no problem at all. I knew then that he would go on be a success in England and the rest of his career because that was the only thing preventing him doing it.
He has enjoyed a cracking career both in England and back at his beloved Queens and, at 35, is still in the shape of his life. He has plenty of goals left in the tank. I read that he is in the gym every day and doesn’t eat any carbs at all until a Friday before a game. A bit different to the Tesco meal deal in an M8 garage on the way back to Glasgow from training. He has transformed his life off the pitch. He deserves everything he gets and is the one player in Scottish football I still love watching. Dobbie is still easily capable of playing in the top league in Scotland but has found his adopted home at Palmerston Park. He has became a legend at Queen of the South.
It is never too late to change. With application, discipline and hunger you can turn your career around like Stephen Dobbie. It took him to get to rock bottom to realise it. I for one am glad for his sake, and for the punters of all clubs who drool over him on a weekly basis, that he did.
And another thing
The pressure was on both Celtic and Rangers this weekend playing catch up on Sunday. Finally Celtic clicked and destroyed a poor St Johnstone side. Rangers burst the Jam Tarts bubble with a comprehensive victory at fortress Ibrox. It is shaping up to be the best title race in years.
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