It is less than two months since we all left the national stadium following that thrilling win over Celtic in the semis, but it feels like a heck of a lot longer. The players that day were heroes but tomorrow they have the chance to become legends. The Scottish Cup winning sides of 1926, 1959 and 1987 are still fondly remembered and tomorrow the class of 2013 will have a chance to join them. A few people have turned up their noses because this is only the League Cup, but when you support St Mirren you have to savour every big occasion because cup finals don't come around very often.
With that in mind few of us could have expected another bite at this particularly cherry so quickly. 2010 was only the second time the club had ever made the final of the League Cup and it ended in bitter disappointment. I am surely not the only Buddie out there who sees this as a chance at redemption, to put things right, to lay some ghosts to rest - in our own heads if nothing else. If it was bad for us, imagine how bad it was for the players involved that day. A few of them are still here and for this is really the chance to right a wrong.
Usually for big games like these I like to have a look at omens - previous sequences of results, coincidences, lucky ends and all the rest of it that point to a Saints win. This time around I'm not going to do that. It's pointless. You can probably find hundreds of small things that prove we're going to win - and just as many that suggest Hearts' name is in the cup. What has happened before makes absolutely no difference to what will happen this time around. Having said that our form is considerably better than three years ago - we have managed a few wins since the semis after all - while our squad is definitely better on paper. But the more things change the more things stay the same, like Hearts changing manager between a league game against us and a big League Cup match...
The other big difference from 2010 is what's been going on behind the scenes. Publicly, we are unaware of any row over bonuses, club suits, hotel stays and all the rest of it. Let's hope that's because they don't exist rather than they're being swept under the carpet. It was a ridiculous situation that overshadowed the build up to the game and made you wonder about certain players. The chance to win a trophy at Hampden for a small club should be incentive enough - money shouldn't come into it. Admittedly there has been some nonsense going on lately but that's to do with the SFL and tickets rather than the squad doing anything silly.
Can we do it? Absolutely - if we perform. Play as we did against Celtic and we could well walk away with the trophy. But it must be drummed into the players that just because we've beaten the best team in the country the job is not done. Acting like we only need to turn up to secure some silverware will see us destroyed by half time. Every single player has to be on top of their game, play to their best and not give Hearts a moment's peace. Leave everything on the pitch, don't have any regrets and I'll be happy enough with that. If Hearts beat us in those circumstances then fair play to them.
It's been funny watching Hearts and Saints fans on forums play down their own sides in the build up to this, a mixture of reverse psychology and the truth. I know I've done it with some of my friends and they've repaid the compliment. In all seriousness there probably is no overall favourite. The only reason some bookies fancy Hearts is because of their bigger standing and their Scottish Cup triumph last season - and the fact they're a point better off in the league. That aside there is little between the two teams, but if we can go in as slight underdogs that will suit us just fine. We don't perform when we're favourites!
So, to the Saints team. Most fans would be quite happy if we went with the same side that beat Celtic in the semi-final as it poses a nice combination of defensive solidity and attacking threat. This is now possible as Jim Goodwin has declared himself fit enough to start - we just need to hope his lack of match fitness doesn't cost him. That means the only other real stumbling block preventing the semi-final line-up is whether to start Graham Carey or Paul Dummett at leftback. Dummett would be more solid but Carey is more of a goal threat.
Then there is the Sander Puri debate. The Estonian signed yesterday and is supposedly in contention for a place in the squad. Considering we rushed through the international clearance yesterday you have to think there's a fair chance he'll be involved at some point. It's rather unfair on those guys who have got us here but you could make the same point about Esmael Goncalves starting the semi-final and that went well. Danny Lennon is probably in a sod's law situation as whatever he does could well end up being the wrong move and attract criticism from the fans - unless we win!
On the whole seven places are pretty much set in stone assuming no one got injured during the week. Craig Samson, David van Zanten, Marc McAusland, a fit Goodwin, Steven Thompson, Paul McGowan and Gary Teale will all start. Goncalves will probably be in from the off as well. That really leaves the midfield and the leftback slots up for debate. It's likely that Conor Newton and John McGinn will start in the middle but Kenny McLean could be brought in, while playing Dougie Imrie or Puri down the left is another option. It's a tough decision and I don't envy Danny Lennon one bit. On the injury front it looks like Lee Mair will be fit enough to make the squad but David Barron won't. Darren McGregor and Thomas Reilly are back in training but almost certainly won't feature.
I've watched and groaned at events at Tynecastle in the last few weeks. They've been on a poor run of form and we usually like helping teams in those situations, although thankfully they ended their wait for a win by beating St Johnstone last week. A few players have left, meaning the squad is weaker, while we beat them in the league - meaning that while we have a psychological edge they may well be out for revenge. That was followed by John McGlynn getting the boot, meaning not only will they have fans favourite Gary Locke in charge but someone who more tactically astute - and they'll have the inevitable dead cat bounce you get when you change manager. To cap it all, problems with the Lithuanian banking system saw rumours of administration, which would no doubt pull the squad together. To just about every other club these would be good things to happen to your opponents. For us it's a recipe for disaster!
On display in maroon jerseys tomorrow will be reminders of glory and heartache past. Since McGlynn got the boot John Sutton seems to have worked his way back into the reckoning, Locke realising that playing a second striker might not actually be such a stupid idea. As well as helping us to the first division title and SPL, Sutton also got the winner in the Challenge Cup Final and it wouldn't be a surprise to see the old club jinx come back to haunt us once more as he's scored a couple of goals lately. As for the heartache? Step forward Danny Wilson. The defender, who is on loan from Liverpool, was the second Rangers player to be sent off in 2010. It was at that point we became clear favourites - and it was at that point you just knew we'd mess things up.
Despite having won the Scottish Cup in May Hearts will only have three members of that starting 11 available tomorrow - Jamie MacDonald, Andy Webster and first goalscorer Darren Barr. What's happened to the rest? Well, Danny Grainger and Marius Zaliukas are injured - although the latter is suspended anyway - while Rudi Skacel, Stephen Elliott, Suso Santana and Ian Black all left in the summer. Since then Ryan McGowan and Andrew Driver have also gone through the exit door. At least subs Mehdi Taouil, Mark Ridgers and Denis Prychynenko are all still about, although Scott Robinson is also injured.
Not too many folk have come in to replace them, although the arrivals of Wilson and Michael Ngoo in January have helped out. Ngoo is a robust striker who is a bit like Goncalves in that his power, strength and trickery can cause defences all sorts of problems. He will need to be watched closely tomorrow, especially if he's paired with Sutton as he'll be able to take some of the pressure off him. Ryan Stevenson will be looking to make up for missing the last cup final which came during his brief spell at Ipswich, while the likes of Prychynenko and Arvydas Novikovas have also been used a bit more.
But most of the gaps have been taken by youngsters, increasingly so since the transfer embargo and the departures that followed. However, despite being kids they are still pretty handy. Callum Tapping, Jason Holt and Dylan McGowan have impressed in midfield, while Jamie Walker and Billy King look like prospects supporting the attack. It seems like years since Gordon Smith forced his way into the first team but he is still doing a job while fellow youngster Dale Carrick has broken through up front, with Fraser Mullen and Kevin McHattie looking handy at the back. However, Mullen has broken his ankle could be replaced by Brad McKay, who made his debut last week. It's led to a pretty handy mix of youth and experience - and one that certainly should not be taken lightly just because of various other problems.
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