2016/17 HAS BEEN ANOTHER SEASON WHERE SHAY LOGAN HAS SHOWN REMARKABLE CONSISTENCY. NAMED IN THE SPFL PREMIERSHIP TEAM OF THE YEAR FOR THE PAST TWO SEASONS, ONCE AGAIN HE LOOKS THE BEST RIGHT-BACK IN THE LEAGUE. FINDING THAT LEVEL OF CONSISTENCY IS WHAT DRIVES SHAY ON.

He spoke to RedMatchday Magazine last week:

“It is one of my main objectives each season. I base my game on consistency. I never want anyone to think “He has had a bad game”. I know that does happen and you can’t play well every game, but every time I go onto that field I give 110%. I am happy with my form and the team’s form. It certainly makes it easier for me to be consistent when you are playing in such a good side.

“We have had a lot of clean sheets as a defensive four or five. It is nice to be part of a solid team. We have had a lot of wins. We are used to playing with each other. My closest friends in the team are probably the defenders as they are the guys I speak to most and spend most time with.

“We have done a lot more work as a defensive unit in training this season. Even if it is just 10 or 15 minutes after training each day, the defenders will stay behind and just practice attacking balls. We are solid. We have had the same sort of formation, the same sort of personnel for a while. I know where Ash is going to be. He knows where I am going to be. I can also shout at Ash if I am not happy with something and he can do likewise. We don’t take it personally and that is how it should be. We want a clean sheet, we want a win, we want a win bonus; we will do what we have to do to get it.

“Mark is out injured and Anthony has come back into the side and done very well. He was doing very well earlier on in the season, then he had a little spell out of the side, but his attitude was first class. He just got his head down and worked hard. He trains the way he plays. He just loves football.

“We have a strong defensive unit. When I push forward to play as a right winger, I know the guys behind me will have my back covered. Everyone knows where we need to be.

“As well as the defenders, Kenny has been outstanding, Shinnie is a top player, Jonny Hayes is flying high, Ryan Jack is back to his best, Niall McGinn can destroy teams when he is on form, Rooney is back in amongst the goals and will get more between now and the end of the season. Pittodrie is a good place be. It always has been but it is getting better and better.

“No matter who we play in the league, we go out with the attitude we can win the game. We enjoy playing any team because we know that whoever plays, we can put a starting XI on the field that can win. Even the games against Celtic, although we have not beaten them this season, we have had some close games. They are always good, physical battles.

“We have some of the best players in the league. We have a good manager, a great assistant, we also have Paul and Barry in there as well. It is good to have Barry about the place. He has been a very good addition to the managerial team. He plays a different role to the manager and Tony.

“Consistency is something I have tried to achieve my whole career. I think it is because of my mindset, that is the way I go out and play games. I don’t like anyone to think I am a bad player. I am always looking to prove myself. If the manager picks me, I need to repay that faith by giving everything I have got. Playing well every week is hard to do, but working hard and giving my all was something that was instilled in me from a young age”.

Shay has got himself on the scoresheet again of late, leading to that remarkable celebration against Hearts. Can you talk us through it Shay?!

“I normally throw a little back flip out there, but against Hearts all my mates were in the Main Stand box. As we all know, Aberdeen is quite an expensive place to get to from England and they are not up that often, so I really appreciate when they do make the trip. I think every time they have been up, I have scored. Certainly on seven or eight occasions when they have been up I have notched a goal. It was just me showing appreciation to them because they are my best friends and have always been there for me.

“As well as the “fox in the box”, I am now the “ghost in the box”! My friends call me the ghost! I know my job is not to score goals, but if I can chip in throughout the season with a few, it will help the team. We do have a bit of banter among the defenders, who scores the most.

“We are all up there inside the box at some point during the game, whether it be open play or set pieces. If I score I make sure they know – Ash, Anto, Reynolds, Andy! I particularly have a bit of a competition with Ash about who scores the most goals. I have beaten him the past two seasons and will do so again this season!”
Teams can lose momentum during the international breaks, but that wasn’t the case with the Dons who simply smashed Dundee at Dens in the first game back. For Shay, those breaks are invaluable.

“The international breaks are needed to be honest as we get so little time off during the summer, so therefore the manager makes sure we get enough rest when we can. We have played a lot of games this season, we are already at 45 or 46. It is a lot, but it’s what we do and it is a job we love.

“You get physically tired but it is more the mental side of things, doing the same job day in, day out, you need a few days to get away. As I have said before, football is a job, a very good job, but it is a job and it is mentally tough. It is nice to get away and see the family.

“You see your teammates in the dressing room more than you see your family. With my kids down the road, I see the players a lot more, so for me personally, the international breaks are important. You can’t choose your work colleagues but thankfully we all get on very well!”

There’s already an addition in the ranks for when we return for next season, Greg Tansey having signed a pre-contract with the club last week. He’s someone Shay knows a bit about.

“I played with Greg at Stockport when I was around 18. He is a very good player. He is a good technical player. He will be a good addition to the squad. Fair play to him, he is one of the better players in the league. Any time we play Inverness, he always seems to have a good game.

“And it’s another English lad in the dressing room. Keep them coming! A Scouser, so Ash will think he is his best mate. And Ash is not even a Scouser, he just thinks he is!”