A combination of illness and the bald fact that Scotland have failed to qualify for any major finals during his career, means that Darren Fletcher may never reach 100 caps for his country.

That milestone doesn't matter to the national skipper though as he prepares to rack up his 75th appearance against Lithuania tonight, he’s just happy to be among the stellar company near the top of the all-time appearance list.

Fletcher’s personal battle with ulcerative colitis that almost ended his career is well-documented.

Perhaps that experience, and a ferocious will to never rest on his laurels ingrained in him whilst at Manchester United, is why he doesn’t like to look back too much at what he has achieved in his career.

Maybe one day, when it is all over, he will. For now though, there is still a boyish, infectious enthusiasm about the 32-year-old as he prepares for the next step in yet another attempt to qualify for a major championship.

No more is this apparent than when he name-checks the icons he grew up watching, illustrious names that he can now justifiably be considered the equal of.

“Paul McStay is ahead of me on 76 and he’s someone I grew up watching and was something of an early idol, an early hero,” Fletcher said. “Stuff like that makes you very humble.

“There’s been a number of challenges. A lot of ups and downs. I wouldn’t change any of that.

“It makes you the person you are today. I’m still in the position where I’m still the captain of my country in a massive World Cup qualifier.

“I still get the same excitement. Driving to Hampden today for training, you look at the stadium and you still get that little bit of excitement you did back then. Stuff like that is really good. It makes you appreciate the position you are in.

"We’ve not carried much success but at the same time I’ve enjoyed every minute of playing for my country and I take great pride in it.

“The first 50 came really quickly and that period sailed by but since then, due to a range of factors, it has been more difficult to pick them up but that’s part and parcel of football.

“I doubt [I’ll reach 100 caps]. I don’t really think about it too much, I never set goals like that, whatever number of caps I get I’ll be very happy.

“Who knows? But it was always going to be very difficult. You’d have to qualify for a few tournaments and things like that.

“I missed a good chunk of [my career] and there were games I missed, but I’m very grateful to still be sitting here. I faced my own battles, I came through them, so there’s no regret or anything like that.

“It’s disappointing, yeah, but at the same time I’m still here, I’m still representing my country and that’s great.

“Caps don’t get handed out easily, and I’ve realised that in the last few years, so I’ve got to keep performing well.

“The fact I’ve got 75 caps is a great honour. It puts me beside some great names which is the most important memento when you see it alongside some of the guys up at that level. It’s humbling.”

The second of Fletcher’s caps gave him one of his happiest memories in a Scotland jersey, as he hit a volleyed winner from the edge of the area against tonight’s opponents, Lithuania, back in 2003.

“It does seem a lifetime ago,” he said. “It was my second game and I scored the winning goal in my first game at Hampden. It was a special moment and when you look back on it in your career, having achieved quite a bit, it’s one of those memories that really sticks out. It gave me great confidence, a real starting point in my career.”

The convincing nature of the score-line in the win over Malta in the opening qualifier has given preparations for tonight’s game an extra spark according to Fletcher.

Another win tonight, and he hopes that momentum will continue to build going into a tricky tie away to Slovakia on Tuesday night.

“We’ve always got a buzz around the squad and a positive mind-set but off the back of a good victory, it always helps,” Fletcher added.

“It was a difficult game, everyone expected that sort of result but you have to go out there and do it and we came through the scare at 1-1.

“It sets us up nicely. There’s still a long way to go in the campaign, but we have a positive group.”