It was seeing familiar faces in a foreign land after one of the greatest nights of his life which did it for Grant Hanley.
Not normally a man given to public shows of emotion, the enormity of it all suddenly hit the man from Dumfries like a tidal wave.
He’d spent his entire life dreaming of representing his country on the biggest stage of all.
He finally pulled on the dark blue shirt 15 years ago only to spend three years in international exile before picking up where he left off under Steve Clarke.
Despite not always playing at club level, he’d always been one of first names on the manager’s team sheet. But at the age of 34, his hopes of playing in a World Cup were fading.
Just a month ago, after being taken off early for Hibs in their final league game of the season against Motherwell, there was a real concern that this – his first and last dance – wouldn’t materialise.
Scotland defender Grant Hanley savoured their World Cup victory with his children afterwards
Hanley’s ‘old-school’ defending was crucial in Scotland’s hard-fought win against Haiti
Midfielder John McGinn scores the game’s only goal at the end of a move started by Hanley
But he survived that scare. He boarded the flight to Florida. And having played superbly in the final warm-up game with Bolivia, he was nailed on to start against Haiti.
The men from the Caribbean had physicality, pace and talent. But they did not have a plan shrewd enough to get the better of Hanley.
The biggest night of his career? He survived that too. It’s just what he tends to do.
After characteristically digging deep to earn the clean sheet which gave Scotland a platform for a crucial victory, little wonder the post-match embrace with his nearest and dearest cut deep.
‘I’m finding it a bit hard to know what to say right now,’ he said. ‘I’ve just seen my weans and it all feels a bit raw.
‘I was quite emotional seeing my family… it was amazing.
‘When you play tournaments and you’re away in a hotel for long periods, you spend a lot of time away from them.
‘So, when you’ve got young kids, it’s really special to have them there, especially after a positive result.
‘My wee girl Lottie is just two and my son Albie’s six.
‘It was a great night for us in terms of the result, because we knew it was a must-win game and we got the win.’
The collective performance was far from being a thing of beauty. Truth be told, a game devoid of rhythm and much quality would probably have had the neutrals reaching for the remote control.
But when it’s your first appearance at a World Cup in 28 years and an opportunity to win an opening game for the first time in 44 years, tension plays a huge factor.
You could see it in the body language of Clarke’s players throughout. As the clock ticked down, at times, top international footballers struggled with the basics. The sense of relief at full-time was extraordinary.
‘There was a lot of pressure on us,’ added Hanley. ‘But when you play on the international stage there’s always pressure.
‘And when you come into games like this where the expectation is to win, the pressure’s a little bit greater.
‘So, sometimes, winning boils down to a performance that isn’t really free and isn’t as flowing as you’d like it to be. Maybe a bit tense and maybe a bit cagey.
‘I actually thought we were good until we scored, then we maybe came off it a wee bit. Maybe subconsciously we tried to protect it a wee bit.
‘It’s hard to put into words the feeling this has given us. All I know is that we had a must-win game and we won it. That’s the main thing.’
Hanley was brilliant throughout. Channelling all his years of experience in the game, he was invariably in the right place at the right time to keep Haiti at bay.
‘I think I’ve said before that I don’t really enjoy speaking myself too much,’ he added.
‘But, I do enjoy defending. I’m a bit old-school that way.’
In years to come, though, it will be his contribution to Scotland’s first goal at the World Cup this century which will be replayed time and again.
Hanley’s brilliant long searching pass turned Haiti’s hulking defenders and gave Clarke’s side the overload which led to the chance from which John McGinn scored.
‘It came just after the water break, when we had a word with ourselves,’ he recalled.
‘We knew Haiti had got their press right, so we thought we’d go a bit longer, stretch it a bit, maybe make a bit more space for ourselves in the middle of the pitch.
‘So, that’s what I did, I went a wee bit longer – and obviously from there you’ve got boys further up the pitch with that kind of quality.
‘Che (Adams) brings it down then brings Ben (Gannon-Doak) into play.
‘Next thing it falls to McGinn, who kicks it into the ground and hits someone on the knee and it goes in. Sometimes that’s just the way it works.’
By hook or by crook, Scotland did what they had to do. They won a must-win game. Not only are they on the board, they are top of the group.
Next comes Morocco on Friday. A different opponent presenting a different challenge.
Amid the joy at winning the opening game, no one within the camp will need telling that they’ll have to play much better.
‘I’m sure we will,’ Hanley said.
‘We’ll have a wee bit of time to recover, to let the dust settle, then we’ll go through it to see what we’ve done well and what we could have done better.
‘What’s for certain is that the challenges coming up will be totally different to what we faced against Haiti.
‘There’s also no doubt we’ll be ready for that.’
