Graeme Shinnie remains forever thankful to Terry Butcher for having faith in him as a teenager and putting him on the path to a successful career on both sides of the border.
Shinnie, who has returned to Wigan Athletic after a six-month loan move back to Aberdeen, has spoken about how important his early years were at Caley Thistle as he was struck with Crohn’s disease, meaning getting out of bed was a struggle.
He required a 10-hour operation to remove parts of his bowel and colon, which led to a careful recovery process.
Butcher backed Shinnie to recover
Thankfully for Shinnie, former England and Rangers captain Butcher was his boss and he’d seen enough from him before illness struck to allay any fears over his immediate footballing future.
Shinnie, who skippered ICT to 2015 Scottish Cup glory, said: “I have so many fond memories of Inverness and played under two managers, Terry Butcher and John Hughes, who did so much for me.
“Terry especially supported me through some of the toughest times in my life, but also through football.
“My health was the most important thing, but any young footballer just wants to get back playing. I wondered ‘can I get back?’
“To have the manager supporting me every step of the way and telling me once I was back to full fitness, I would be back into the first-team was brilliant.
“What Terry did for me football-wise was brilliant. He gave me my debut and had belief in me to be the captain at such a young age which was massive.
“He unfortunately left to go to Hibs, which was credit to him and how well he’d done at Inverness.
“John Hughes came in, who was another massive character. I still speak to John regularly, even when I’ve been playing down south, we were in constant contact.
“It was a contrast of two different managers, with two different styles of play. Both were very successful, and to go on and win the Scottish Cup under John Hughes was incredible.”
Dyce trial game led to ICT transfer
Shinnie, now 31, captained Aberdeen in the closing months of last season, helping the Dons finish third in the Premiership.
And he explained how impressing in a trial game at Inverness led to his first move to within a professional, full-time, club.
He said: “Caley Thistle were watching various players from Dyce, and we had a trial game against the Inverness under-17s and that’s how I got picked up. I played well in that game.
“I came to Caley Thistle, played a year at under-17s and a year at under-19s and then was straight into the first-team, so it was a fast-track route.
“The relegation season (of 2009), with hindsight, helped me. The youth team was scrapped, but luckily, I was one of the players kept on.
“As there was no youth side, it was a case of putting me in the first-team or releasing me. Thankfully it was the latter.
“That transition was good for me, and I never looked back. A loan move (to Forres Mechanics) helped me gain some experience and competitive first-team football. I came back from the loan to Inverness and the rest was history.”
Caley Jags was club ‘with no egos’
Shinnie left the Caledonian Stadium in 2015 and spent the next four years playing for Derek McInnes at Aberdeen.
He then made the move to Derby County, where he spent three years, including playing alongside then player-manager Wayne Rooney.
In January 2022, he made the move to Wigan, but a lack of game-time led to his Pittodrie return this year, which could become permanent this summer.
It has been a varied career for the full-back-turned midfielder, but he believes those solid foundations learned in the Highland capital put him on course for an impressive career.
He said: “Inverness was a club with no egos. Everybody was there to muck in, especially when I was a young lad coming through.
“Back then, you had loads of jobs to do within the club. Nick Ross and I were like kitmen, helped by John Docherty and Scott Kellacher, but those times gave me the foundations to keep my feet on the ground.
“Even when I went into the first-team, Terry Butcher was always a great one for a strong team spirit and keeping everyone’s feet on the ground.
“I have carried those values throughout my career, no matter how well things are going, always keep your feet on the ground.
“Caley Thistle was always a great family club. Terry welcomed my now-wife and my mum and dad into the club. It was a really good club to come through and learn within.
“I learned a lot of life skills there. I went from being a boy to a man at Caley Thistle. Also, I moved out from living at home with my parents and had to fend for myself. That set me up going forward.”
Great player connection at Inverness
And Shinnie is proud to have played for an Inverness side which reached European football eight years ago due to finishing third in the Premiership before also winning the Scottish Cup.
He added: “The style of play that Inverness team played is still talked about now.
“That’s testament to John Hughes and the squad. There was full belief. It was always going to be tough and go on and try to win the cup, especially given we had Celtic in the semi-finals. Playing the Old Firm at Hampden is always hard.
“The camaraderie was had in that dressing room was special. We were so together, and everyone was playing for one another.
“There was the back four of David Raven, Gary Warren, Josh Meekings and me. We played the majority of the season together and had such a good understanding.
“Yet, I ended up playing at right-back in the 2015 cup final (after Carl Tremarco was sent off) and I’m sure I played there in some of the other cup games.
“Every player had a connection with one another, and we done a lot of things off the pitch, like dog-walking and fishing. Everyone was away from their families, and we all got on.
“We had a lot of belief in one another on the pitch. That’s what carried us through most of that season.
“We were playing so well in the league, and we’d already secured a Europa League place before the cup final had come around.”
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