GAVIN Hamilton's international career came full circle on Monday, and only a stone heart could have begrudged his enjoyment of the moment.

Called up for Scotland. Headhunted by England. Discarded by England. Picked up by Scotland. Almost discarded by Scotland. And, after all the highs and lows and heartaches, deployed for Scotland against England and rewarded with the chance to roll back the years.

The left-hander's innings of 60 in Monday's one-day international not only eliminated any prospect of a home defeat on a day that was always going to be curtailed by rain, prolonging as it did a Scotland innings that threatened to wind up quicker than an Edinburgh lilo manufacturer, it put two groups of know-all hacks in their place.

England were wrong to write off the Broxburn man in 1999, when a savage press corps seized on the fact a Scot was implicated in one of the worst-performing teams in their Test history, and the contrary selectors turned their backs on him, and northern correspondents such as this one were wrong to write him off last year, after he had brought so little to the table in three appearances at Scotland's second World Cup.

It said much about the character of the former Yorkshire and Durham player that he spoke on Monday night without a trace of bitterness when confronted by almost 20 tape recorders representing a branch of the media that has so long been a scourge.

Asked to compare his two international careers, one that lasted about four days and the other 15 years and counting, with a four-year mandatory hiatus in between, the 33-year-old said: "They are two very different memories. Obviously the England tour didn't quite go according to plan, but an England tour is an England tour. You can't take that away. But I make no bones of it: Scotland have been very good to me over the years, and the 1999 World Cup gave me the opportunity [to perform on the international stage].

"Then to play England, and a very, very good England side who are getting the balance [in one-day cricket] together, it was a good opportunity, not just to knuckle down at the crease, but also to show yourself you can still play a bit."

The two World Cup experiences that bookend Hamilton's service to his country of birth create a stark contrast. In 1999 his rollicking batting lit up the tournament, while last year in the Caribbean he looked utterly lost. It was important to his sanity that he proved on Monday he could still clatter top-class bowling out of the park.

"We play in the Friends Provident Trophy at the start of the year, every two or three weeks, but the bottom line is we go back and play some club cricket and you don't get guys bowling at 90mph on decent pitches at weekends," he said after an innings that featured big sixes off Jimmy Anderson, Samit Patel and Stuart Broad, before Andrew Flintoff engineered his demise. "That's obviously the uphill battle we have got to face, but to play against these guys who are preparing for a big series, they came at us hard and we put up a decent show.

"It was hard work, but you don't get that challenge very often. Not being a professional any more, you don't play against players like that and it's a nice occasion."

Asked about Flintoff's sporting gesture of appreciation for his innings, Hamilton told how the two went back a long way. "We toured together in 1999 but I grew up with him, day-in day-out at Yorkshire and Lancashire for a number of years, playing second-team cricket. There are a lot of stories to tell."

The only black mark on Hamilton's contribution to Monday's no-result was the mix-up that saw his partner in batting and business, Ryan Watson, run out for just one. Watson's fury at the missed opportunity was offset only by the sight of his fellow brewery salesman's catharsis.

"Gav's was a great knock, 60 against England, and he did it in the right sort of way. He knuckled down and then unleashed some nice shots at the death, and he can take a lot of positives out of that," said the Scotland captain, who returned to work yesterday contemplating a winter of distant preparation for the still unscheduled World Cup Qualifier, due to be held in the spring.

"It hasn't been a great year for the batters, because we haven't played in great conditions very often, but what we have done this year is uncover a few seamers, and Dewald Nel has really come to the party. We have had to cope without Hoffy [Paul Hoffmann] this year and Craig Wright for most of the time, but we have introduced five new players to the national team this year, which is quite a lot."

Some day before long, one of them will have to fill the boots of a Scotland batsman who has created a broad set of unforgettable memories.