Airdrieonians have made a stirring comeback this season by lifting themselves off the bottom position of League 1 that they were well on the way to calling their own. Safety is now in the hands of the Diamonds and whilst manager Gary Bollan deserves praise for the journey he has taken them on so far, one of their players has been on an even more remarkable journey.
Keigan Parker was once of the brightest prospects in the Scottish game and he went on to score a stunning goal at Wembley before flitting from club to club and returning north to Ayr United a couple of years ago.
Whilst at Ayr, Parker won a Goal of the Season competition for an audacious overhead kick against Dundee, however he was soon on his travels again as he moved to Ireland.
A return to Scotland happened in the junior ranks with Irvine Meadow however at the start of 2013, the one time Scotland under-21 cap joined Shettleston Juniors, who were in the Central District First Division – the third level of junior football in the West of Scotland.
Parker said: “I was with Shettleston juniors for a spell at the end of last season and started this season with them as well. I was doing some coaching there which was great as I wanted to gain some experience doing that.”
“I must have played 30 or 40 games for them in the 7 months I spent as a player there and it certainly gave me an insight into another level of football. I wanted to have a bigger picture of football to help my coaching and I got that there.”
“I enjoyed my time at Shettleston but something was still eating away at me that I could still do a job at a higher level.”
In May 2007, Parker scored Blackpool's second goal as they were promoted by defeating Yeovil Town 2-0 in the League One Play-Off Final at Wembley. It was a stunning curling effort and helped promote Blackpool to the Championship.
Asked about his journey from Wembley to Shettleston Parker said: “Scoring at Wembley felt very far away during my time there but it has felt far away for the past 4 or 5 years.”
A Perth connection helped get Parker back into the senior game as he explained: “I knew I could come back but I kept playing away at Shettleston. However when Gary got the manager’s job at Airdrie there was a lot of publicity about them playing Rangers.”
“That got me thinking and I decided to make a move to get playing senior again. An agent I knew got in touch with Gary and we took things from there. I played with him at Rangers when I was a kid at St. Johnstone so there was a bit of a relationship to build on.”
Bollan got in touch and Parker has been playing for Airdrie ever since with the striker saying: “I got the call to come in and I played in a reserve game against Raith Rovers. I thought I would have a longer trial period however he signed me straight away.”
“I had kept myself fit and had been playing regularly so I was ready to stake a claim for a first team place.”
When Parker joined, just after Christmas, Airdrie had been rooted to bottom spot for 2 months and they sat 5 points behind Arbroath.
Things have changed with the now 31-year-old saying: “The team have all done really well recently and we have climbed off bottom place. We are 8 points clear of Arbroath which is terrific when you consider where we were. We have had a great run of games and apart from losing to Rangers we have only lost one game in ten.”
It is not just Parker who has made the difference as he explained: “The manager has changed things about as he has brought some players in and let some players go. I do not think there was a lot of competition for places when Gary first came in and there was a bit of a low spirit as well. He has also put those things right.”
Another former junior striker is helping Parker take the game to teams as he explained: “Jim Lister is still here and I know he had a strong reputation in the junior ranks before turning senior. I am glad he is here as he is one of the few boys that are older than me. He has scored a few goals and I am pleased to say that all of the older boys are doing well.”
“We were always confident we would stop the rot that had set in. We had to get the mentality right. When I first came here if we lost a goal it felt like Groundhog Day and the players would assume a defeat was coming.”
“It is not like that now as we know that we can come back in games.”
As for scoring himself Parker said: “I am up to 3 and I am claiming the one from last weekend against Forfar that has gone down as an own goal. It came off my studs last so it is my goal. “
“I am a bit disappointed with that return however if the team keeps picking up points I will settle for that.”
After a nomadic period Parker is keen to hang around as he explained: “Next season I will be fitter and stronger and whilst I am not signed up yet I am hoping that once we reach safety I can start chatting about things.”
Parker is hoping that winning at Stair Park this weekend will help bring that conversation sooner rather than later as he said: “We are down at Stranraer this weekend and I played there a long time ago in a pre-season friendly. They ended a run of defeats last weekend but we will be looking to defeat them.”
“Coming off last Saturday to hear that East Fife had won at Dunfermline was a bit of a surprise so you cannot take anything for granted. However we are now talking about staying up with a bit more belief.”
“We have a realistic chance and the players are bought into that.”
Parker finished by saying: “It is good to be back enjoying playing senior again on a Saturday and no disrespect to the juniors but it is good to be back playing at this level.”
“I am still looking to build my coaching career but probably it will be a couple of years before that gets a lot of attention again. “
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