From Annan Athletic to the World Cup: The Scot playing for New Zealand

Every footballing parent puts in the miles to watch their child play but Steve and Susan Elliot can probably trump most of them.

Their son, Callan, first started kicking a ball with Annan Athletic - currently in Scottish League 2 - at their Galabank ground.

Since the family moved to New Zealand when he was just seven, he has risen through the ranks and is now in the squad for his new homeland at the World Cup.

His parents have travelled about 6,500 miles (10,500km) to watch their opening game against Iran at the SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles.

They kick off in the early hours of Tuesday morning UK-time.

Dad Steve said it would be quite something to see his boy set foot on the game's biggest stage.

"It's not easy to put into words how both his mum and I feel - proud, amazed, a football parent's dream," he said.

"It's truly surreal - so looking forward to this."

Their son has certainly come a long way - in every sense - since he first took up the game.

"He is one of four brothers - number three - and started his journey at four years old at Annan Athletic, he just so enjoyed playing so much," said Steve.

"We as a family moved to Nelson in New Zealand when he was just turning seven."

Last year, Callan spoke to BBC Scotland about his World Cup dream and how he got into the game.

"My dad played a lot - never professionally - just locally and so he just got me into it from a young age," he said.

"I was at Annan Athletic when I was young.

"When I moved to New Zealand I started picking up cricket, rugby, tennis - all those sports - and then probably at the age of 12, I just decided to just stick with football."

It proved a smart decision and he has now completed what he admitted was his "big goal" - getting into the squad for the tournament in the USA, Mexico and Canada.

Callan - an attacking right-back - knew he could play for either country but decided to go for the nation that developed him as a player rather than the one of his birth.

His father said: "Being realistic is he up to Scotland squad standard?

"I'm not sure, but maybe after this World Cup will tell us the answer.

"I do know, though, that he wouldn't have been to the Under 20s World Cup or Olympics with Scotland as they didn't qualify - so perhaps New Zealand's been the best choice."

And what would success look like at the World Cup?

Steve said he had been "pushing hard" to make the right-back spot in the team his own.

"So, getting that done and getting through the group stage would be tremendous," he said.

After their opening fixture with Iran, New Zealand will face Egypt and Belgium in their bid to make it to the knockout stages.

Callan will have plenty of supporters as his parents have flown out, as has one of his brothers. Another sibling already lives in the United States.

His partner, Keany Morey, originally from Edinburgh but now living in New Zealand, was also travelling to see him.

Other relatives, meanwhile, will be glued to the television in Dumfries and Galloway to wish him well.

If Scotland let them down, they could always have the All Whites as a fallback option.