Pat Nevin: I may be in my forties and have two metal hips but I could never say no to my country like my old friend Lee McCulloch has done

NOW THAT the frenzy of international week has subsided, I think we all realise that we are in for a roller-coaster ride with George Burley's team. In retrospect, a poor first 45 minutes, as happened in Macedonia, can happen to any team, but it is more likely to happen to a side that has been asked to be positive.

One player has, however, decided not to join his team-mates for the ride. Lee McCulloch announced his international retirement and it leaked out at a rather inopportune moment for the Scotland manager.

There is the small matter that you cannot actually retire from international football while you are playing for a club side. If Burley so demands, he can call Lee up and if he doesn't arrive Burley can demand that Rangers do not play him during the following five days. It is an unlikely scenario as the door has been left open for his return, and it is an unwritten rule that players can "retire" for a number of reasons. The problem is I am struggling to find one I consider acceptable.

I recently offended a number of people down south by suggesting that even Alan Shearer had a cheek to retire early from playing for his country, when he was patently still needed. "What about all the great service he gave in the past?" they said. Well, what about it? Isn't that what you are supposed give if you are in any way patriotic?

Even if you are not overly patriotic, that is still not good enough in my eyes. These days international players in England, and the vast majority in Scotland as well, will earn enough from their careers in the game to live comfortably for the rest of their lives. Is there no longer any feeling of duty towards the game that has helped the players earn these riches?

It is particularly galling for me as a good number of the players who have retired early are men who I either like, admire or both. The usual reason for giving up international football is that they feel they can prolong their domestic careers by a year or two. This may be true and certainly when you pull on that blue jersey in a qualifier nothing less than 100% effort is demanded, but is that an acceptable reason? Not in my eyes.

If they argued that they wanted that extra season only because they loved the game, adored playing and wanted it to last as long as possible, I'd have a glimmer of understanding, but usually it comes down to how much money will be squeezed out of their careers during that final flourish.

In the past when fans asked me, "who do these prima donnas think they are?" I often tried coming up with explanations for some players. I remember Gary McAllister retiring when he was still a top standard player, but he had major family considerations and large sections of the Tartan Army had turned against him as well as much of the media. There comes a moment then when a player might reasonably think: "I'm not sure they really want me any more." Maybe Gary had just cause.

I talked to another top international who retired far too early, citing the McAllister case and saying, "I want good memories of my Scotland career. I know that the press, and following them maybe the fans too, will eventually turn on me and I don't want to have all the memories soured." So off he went years before he should have and a gap was left that we struggled to fill, all because of the fear of what a vicious press might do at some indeterminate point in the future.

I still do not think that's a good enough excuse. Is it really so naïve or anachronistic to suggest that it should be more about what you can do for your country and not what your country can do for you, even if that means a level of self sacrifice?

I never did count how many Scotland squads I was in, but it was certainly more than double the 28 occasions that I managed to get on to the pitch. Even so, I never once considered pulling out of a squad unless I was totally incapable of playing, and that meant no chance of turning out for the club side on Saturday either. I would religiously come up from Chelsea and Brian McClair also came up from Manchester United every time and more often than not we would end up sitting together on the bench.

We often chatted about it – neither of us felt particularly liked by the Scottish press in general. One journalist wrote at the time that he had nightmares about me being picked for Scotland. And even though both of us started every week for major clubs in England, there was never a consideration that we would spit our dummies out and demand a game or else.

Neither would we sit on the bench in a huff the way very average players sometimes do because of a rather self-deluded view of their own importance or indeed ability. Even great players should accept being a substitute if that is what the country needs in the circumstances. I can exclusively reveal some of our finest haven't necessarily agreed with that point of view.

Maybe there are one or two very odd occasions when it is almost acceptable to retire from international football. A massive fall-out with the coach can be understandable grounds. David Weir found himself in precisely this situation with Berti Vogts, but of course came back into the fold once that particular problem was resolved/sacked.

Scotland has a very limited supply of players capable of cutting it at the top level and each time one refuses to play for his country prematurely it seriously damages our chances of qualification for major tournaments. I worked with Lee McCulloch at Motherwell, have found him in every way the perfect professional and think of him as a friend.

He is hard working, unstintingly helpful and has maximised his potential throughout his career. I can honestly say that, for the first time in my many years of knowing him, I am feeling a bit disappointed in him. There are others who make these decisions for what I would argue are selfish concerns; I just hope the big man has good reasons for turning his back on his country and I wouldn't be surprised if he does.

Doubtless we will find out in the fullness of time what the problems are and it will be the first question I ask when I next meet him. I will then go on to explain that I am well in to my forties and have two metal hips, but in the unthinkable event that my country came calling for me I would still endeavour to do whatever was asked and so, I believe, should anyone else.