Born and raised in Melbourne, Maclaren holds a British passport through his Scottish father.

His dad Don had stints with Hearts, Dunfermline, New York and then Canberra City and Sunshine Cross in the NSL in the 1970s and 80s.

The younger Maclaren played two times for Scotland's Under-19s in 2011, while on the books at Blackburn Rovers, before switching permanently to Australia.

Since then the striker has represented the green and gold at Under-20 and Under-23 level, before making his debut for the Socceroos in 2016.

Maclaren has opened up about his time as an international representative for Scotland, his troubled departure as a teenager from Australia to Blackburn and how Malta were also after his services.

“My first international call-up was for Scotland," the 24-year-old told The Scotsman.

"I couldn’t believe it, but I hadn’t been picked for Australia, so I thought, ‘why not?’

"As soon as I played for Scotland, the Aussies were straight on the phone, asking me to make a decision. I thought it was a bit cheeky from them.

"I was just 17 at the time and I’d already had some problems with Australia when I moved to Blackburn.

"They had this rule that, if you didn’t have a British passport, they made it difficult for you. But I had a British passport – and they still made my registration difficult.

"I was out of football for five months without a competitive game because the Australian federation stopped me. I was a bit annoyed about that.

"They stopped me for playing for five months and now they wanted me to play for them.

"I delayed it a bit but eventually I called Billy Stark – who was a good coach – and I told him I was choosing 
Australia. But I loved playing for Scotland and the Flower of Scotland song beforehand. It was a fantastic experience.

"Dylan McGeouch, Callum McGregor, Callum Tapping and Joe 
McKee were all in the squad that played Denmark twice over there. I’ve kept close with some of those boys and it’s great to see them kicking on in their careers."

Maclaren, who left Green Gully at the age of 15 to sign for Rovers, now has five senior caps for Australia and recently moved on loan to Hibernian.

"The call from Australia probably would have come somewhere down the line but it’s funny how one thing happens and then they got in touch," the former Brisbane Roar forward said.

"But I believe everything happens for a 
reason and I’m thankful my first international games were for Scotland because it’s a country I’m familiar with and fond of.

"I’ve still got my Scotland shirt, signed and up on the wall at home. It’s something I will always be proud of.

"I’ve actually got three nationalities. My mum was born in Malta and before I played for the Socceroos I got a call asking me to play for them."