Josh McPake Interview

JOSH MCPAKE

Interview by Henry Whitaker

“I don’t think people in England look at Rangers as big as they really are up in Scotland. It’s such a massive club and such a big deal for so many. Football is everything to the Scottish people.” At 19 years-old, Josh McPake already knows the pressures and expectations that are to come his way if he wants to become a Scottish footballing great. One thing is for sure though, McPake is on the right path. Under the stewardship of Liverpool legend and Rangers boss Steven Gerrard, as well as currently enjoying himself with Harrogate Town in League Two, there are promising signs.

Go back seven years and McPake’s footballing story was beginning its first chapter. The Scotsman lived in Coatbridge, just outside of Glasgow but was first scouted by Scottish Premiership outfit Hibernian.

McPake would spend two years with the Edinburgh based club but it wasn’t ideal for the youngster who was travelling a good distance just to train.

“I’d come home from my school in Motherwell, not even have dinner and then get straight on a bus,” McPake explains. “I’d get changed on the bus and go straight to Edinburgh for training at night. That was my Monday to Friday at 13-yearsold. It was torture for me and it contributed to my decision to leave the academy. I remember it being so tough just every day sitting on that bus being completely knackered. I was starting to lose the motivation to go to training as I wasn’t with my pals, I was travelling all the time. A home game at Hibs was an away day for me.”

Another reason why McPake’s stay at Hibernian didn’t last longer was because of interest from Scottish giants, Rangers. It all happened very quickly for the Scotsman but as soon as he stepped through the doors at Rangers training complex (Murray Park) he knew he wanted to join.

McPake describes the training ground as “unbelievable” with the move to the Gers being a “massive step up” for him.

Soon after, Steven Gerrard became the Rangers manager and completely revamped the complex. New gyms, changing rooms and concepts all began to appear, as well as youngsters getting their chance to mingle with the first team players.

The Liverpool legend brought McPake into the first team set up, allowing him the chance to learn and train from some of the best there is.

Suddenly, McPake was now training with Jermain Defoe, Niko Kranjčar and Ryan Kent to name a few, and the Scotsman admits that at first, he was blown away by their presence.

“It was surreal being around these players. I remember when Jermain Defoe first came into the club, it was one of those ‘I can’t believe it’ moments. He’s one of the top goalscorers in Premier League history. After training, we’d do some finishing and Defoe would come up to me and I’d ask a few things and he’d teach me a few more. For a young boy coming up, it was so good to have someone like him around the place.”

McPake was playing under 18s and 23s football while training with the first team, it kept his schedule busy, as well as attracting the attention of some of the biggest clubs in Europe.

Before turning 17, McPake was in talks with some of the biggest Premier League and European outfits who were keen to add the youngster to their ranks.

As interest continued to grow, McPake was invited to Rangers’ first-team pre-season camp in Portugal. It was his first time away with the squad and ranks highest in his memories so far.

“I loved it,” McPake recalls. “To have all that thrown on me at 17 was quite weird, especially with a club the size of Rangers and it’s meant I’ve had to grow up quite quickly, but that trip is probably my favourite football memory so far, I just loved every minute of it. Every day I was thinking ‘how lucky am I to be here?’ training with Defoe, Ryan Kent, all these top-class players.”

McPake shone in the Portugal sun and on his return to Scotland, was offered a professional contract by the Gers. Since he was enjoying his time so much, he was quick to sign on the dotted line.

In the same year, the winger won the Scottish Youth Cup, SPFL Reserve League and the Under-18 League in the 2018/19 season, as well as picking up the Rangers’ Academy Player of the Year.

McPake admits that he “wasn’t surprised” to get offered the pro contract but says everything was happening so quickly meaning he didn’t fully understand everything that was going on. From here, his development continued to gather pace.

In July 2019, McPake was handed his first-team debut in the Europa League, coming on against St Joseph’s Football Club in front of 50,000 Glaswegians. However, the debut came as a huge surprise to the youngster who only found out it was a possibility 24 hours before kick-off. McPake had planned to train on the Sunday and Monday as normal, expecting to support Rangers from the stands on the Tuesday night. But on that Sunday, he was pulled to one side by Gerrard, who had a message for him... “The Gaffer came over to me on the Sunday and said to tell my friends and family to come to the game on Tuesday. I thought that was a bit weird as to why he said that. Then on Monday, I was told that I was in the squad. I loved hearing that,” he grins. “I phoned my mum and dad, it was an amazing moment. They loved it as well and we were all so relieved that I was going to get the opportunity.” McPake would come on with 25 minutes to play, replacing the man he’d spent the previous months learning from, Jermain Defoe. “I got chills,” he admits. “There were about 50,000 people screaming and then my name was announced, and since I’ve been an academy player, the whole stadium just erupted. I’ll never ever forget that moment.”

Shortly after his debut, McPake was involved with Scotland’s under 19s team, aiming to help them qualify for the under 19s Euros. In a must-win game against Germany to finish top of their qualifying group, McPake stepped up and delivered, scoring the only goal in the match to secure Scotland top spot.

By now, McPake was on loan at Dundee, gaining first-team experience in the Scottish Championship. After starting the 2019/20 season strongly, McPake then unfortunately injured his ankle and soon returned to Rangers for the remainder of the campaign.

Once recovered, McPake rebuilt his fitness in the under 23s before going back out on loan at the

start of this season. There were plenty of offers on the table but it was Greenock Morton who McPake favoured.

Now 18, he felt ready to kick on in men’s football and the relationship he built with manager David Hopkin helped him greatly during his six months with The Ton.

“Me and him just hit it off straight away. He told me working with him would make me a better player and I believed every word he said. Everything he said did happen”. McPake adds, “He believed in me and I trusted him, it meant I loved my time there.”

In December 2020, Hopkin resigned from his role at Greenock Morton and soon after, McPake, who had outgrown his loan, returned to Rangers ready for the next challenge.

His next destination would be Harrogate Town. Simon Weaver and his team beat competition throughout the division to secure the loan signing, with Weaver’s strong bond with Rangers assistant coach Gary McAllister helping to finalise the move for the Scotsman.

Since putting on the yellow and black jersey, McPake has impressed on the left wing with his power, pace and direct dribbling causing defenders all types of problems in the past month. He got his first Town goal at Tranmere and played a key role in Town’s away win at Crawley at the start of this month.

The hope now is that McPake can continue what has been a strong start to life in English football and help Town push on to even bigger and better things.

For a young lad who is being watched closely by the Rangers hierarchy, there’s pressure on his shoulders. However, McPake is solely focused on the task at hand, knowing doing the right things now will only help in the future months and years to come.

“I want to keep putting in good performances while I’m here at Harrogate. By doing that, I’ll get recognition when I go back to Rangers in the summer. For now, I’m just enjoying my time here, there’s been a good vibe from the minute I arrived and that’s my only focus.”