This season should have been the one in which Tony Watt made his real breakthrough, taking a tight grip on a starting place in Neil Lennon’s Celtic side.

Having seen Gary Hooper and others depart in the summer, and on the back of that most celebrated winning goal against Barcelona last November, the 19-year-old would have been hopeful of making considerable progress.

Instead he has been farmed out to Lierse of Belgium and condemned by their coach as “lazy” and “unfit.” Those comments have been backed up — to an extent — by Lennon himself so we can hardly dispute their legitimacy.

The narrative being prepared here is of a shooting star who burned brightly for a moment then faded from view. Let us just hold on there.

In the first place it is good, at least, that Celtic are aware that their player has an issue with his fitness even if it is slightly concerning that they were unable to tackle it within the privacy of Lennoxtown.

Watt puts all of this down to a back complaint which was only really sorted once he’d arrived in Belgium.

There does seem to be some merit in that argument, though he must work hard now on all aspects of his professionalism in order to win passage back to Paradise.

Life at the top of any sport can be brutally tough and it is interesting to note that Watt freely admits that he “did struggle” for confidence after the perception grew that he was nothing more than a one-hit wonder against Barca.

The former Airdrie striker, who was playing amateur football four years ago, should not lose heart for he remains highly prized.

Celtic fought hard for his signature with the likes of Liverpool, Fulham and Rangers hovering. They have not given up on him — not in the least.

After all Watt continues to show all the hallmarks of a dead-eyed finisher, scoring on his debut for his new club after just a couple of minutes.

Indeed he seems his old zestful self again having settled quickly into the calm of Flemish life.

Also, as Scotland found to their cost, there is much we could all learn from the game in Belgium. This is no football backwater, quite the opposite in fact.

There is also an echo here for Celtic. More than a decade back Liam Miller was loaned to Aarhus in Denmark. He returned much improved and was soon poached from Parkhead by Manchester United.

The whole enterprise could be the making of Watt and we should all be thankful if that is so for Scottish talent is thin enough on the ground these days.

Tour of Britain has found a natural home in Scotland’s Border Lands

It's not new by any means, but it has still been wonderful to see the Tour of Britain winding its merry (if rather wet) way through southern Scotland.

Borderers, and I am one, well know the great love of sport which exists in this often neglected corner of the country.

Away from concentrated populations of the central belt and lacking the same resources it has still managed to produce, from farm and mill, many great rugby internationals plus the likes of David Coulthard and John Collins in other realms.

Cycling, however, has natural assistance from the environment here. The rolling green countryside and narrow lanes, the winds and the rain are a kind of Brittany on the border.

The stars of the sport get this, as do the people of both Dumfries and Galloway and the Borders who turned out in their numbers to cheer on Bradley Wiggins, Mark Cavendish and the rest.

Something is stirring here, young and old alike are taking to their bikes as never before and there is little coincidence in that. Put simply having the greats of cycling coming to villages and towns nearby year after year is rubbing off on the local population.

Think Castle Douglas, Dumfries, Gretna, Peebles, Jedburgh and Hawick — all have seen the peloton in recent years — but few of these spots make the headlines all that much.

The Tour generates the kind of publicity that southern Scotland, which has suffered from the loss of textile jobs in recent years, can badly do with.

Who indeed could argue with Olympic and world champions on show for free? They are heroes all of course — and heroes are much sought after, and cherished, in these parts.

Paul di Resta should take comfort from crash probe

Substantial questions remain about the reasons for Paul di Resta’s second crash in as many Formula 1 races last weekend. In a sport full of danger there is an urgent need to find out exactly what the trouble is.

Thankfully his Force India team have announced an investigation into how their man came to grief, hitting a barrier in the Singapore Grand Prix with just seven laps remaining.

The 27-year-old should welcome that move no matter how personally frustrating. After all, without a point in five successive races, he has now seen too many opportunities slip past.

Di Resta knows this. Having been as high as third spot in Singapore he described what then happened as “galling.”

The good news is that there are enough races left this year for him to get back on track and make that maiden podium finish that he is most certainly capable of.