Want the latest Scottish sport news sent straight to your inbox? Join thousands of others who have signed up to our Record Sport newsletter. Subscribe Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice Invalid Email

MARK REYNOLDS waited years for a Scotland squad call-up – only for Aberdeen team-mate Ash Taylor to pull on a kilt and declare his allegiance within six months of arriving here.

But Reynolds insists he wouldn’t grudge his mate pushing him down the pecking order because he’d be a great fit for Gordon Strachan’s side.

Taylor was born in England and played for Wales at Under-21 level but last month he revealed his eligibility due to his Scottish grandfather and a desire to switch allegiance to dark blue.

Scotland boss Strachan is aware of the player’s availability and has watched him in action – but Reynolds is just as keen to impress after missing out on the last couple of squads, despite having finally earned his long-awaited call-up last year.

He said: “Ash has been taking stick in the dressing room. He has three or four nations he can play for. So you’d think he would be quite happy to put on a kilt and sing the national anthem.

“It wouldn’t bother me if he jumped in ahead of me. It would be a strange one but stranger things have happened.

“He is tailor-made for football. The thing that has always held me back was people saying a centre-half should be 6ft 4ins and built like the side of a house – well that’s exactly what Ash is, but he can play as well.

(Image: SNS)

“I would be happy for him if he got a call-up. He is a good big player and he’s only 24.

“It would be great to see him get a call-up. It is good to see a player come from being almost in the wilderness in England and not noticed, to do well at Aberdeen and getting talked about for a Scotland call-up.”

Not since the days of Willie Miller and Alex McLeish have a Dons central defensive partnership commanded at the heart of the Scotland rearguard, but Reynolds has his own cap ambitions after years of being overlooked by a succession of national bosses.

Ever since he starred in the 2006 Under-19s European Championships in which the Scots were runners-up to Spain, he has been touted to make the step up. But so far his only senior cap is at B International level back in 2009.

His form for Aberdeen over the last year has earned him call-ups to the main squad but he has yet to make his full international debut.

Reynolds added: “There is no point worrying over things you can’t influence. It’s a waste of time to sit here and moan about not getting picked.

VIDEO: Watch the Daily Record Friday Football Show

Video Loading Video Unavailable Click to play Tap to play The video will start in 8 Cancel Play now

“If I play well I will be called up. Even if I am playing well and don’t get called up there are reasons for it. The first time I dropped out, Gordon Strachan phoned me and we talked about why I wasn’t in the squad. I had no qualms about that.

“Thankfully for me, I never felt too far away in terms of the standard when I was involved with the squad. The worry is you go up there and play with them and think it is a step too far.

“But without wanting to sound big-headed, I felt comfortable with those guys and did not look out of place. That is a nice feeling, it makes you feel better about yourself as a player.”

There’s seems to be nothing but good feelings brimming from that home dressing room at Pittodrie just now as the Dons seek to stretch their unbeaten run to 13 league games by beating St Mirren there today.

That would set them up perfectly for next Sunday’s clash with Celtic at Parkhead and Reynolds says the togetherness among the players on and off the pitch is a big reason for the success.

He added: “If you look at the starting XI there’s about seven of us around the same age of 27 or 28. We have similar interests, there’s a good atmosphere and we all enjoy a good laugh.

If you look at any successful team they always talk about how well they socialise, how comfortable they are around each other and the camaraderie in their dressing room. That’s something we have.

“A few of the boys in the squad who’ve played in England or even in the central belt have been discussing this. Sometimes you can stay so far away from the club and be uninvolved with each other.

In England you could have boys living an hour and half away from training and having to commute. In Aberdeen you can only live here or in a field in the middle of nowhere. Everybody is right next to each other so it’s a lot easier to socialise.

“There’s only one place to go – the city centre – so we’re all in and around each other and if we have days off we’ll visit each other or go golfing and that adds to our bond.

“Jonny Hayes is a decent cook. He looks after himself. He buys all the best cuts of meat to keep the weight off. He worries about turning into a wee fatty.

“We visit others like Jamie Langfield, but Niall McGinn’s single so he just visits everybody else. We are all comfortable in each other’s company.”