Assistants seek cup redemption

Published on Friday 20 November 2009 22:57

JOCKY Scott will send his Dundee side out to lift the ALBA Challenge Cup tomorrow to show how well they have knitted together since their high- profile summer spending spree. His Inverness Caledonian Thistle counterpart, Terry Butcher, will be out to show his team are bouncing back after relegation from the SPL.

However, their respective assistants have another reason for wanting their clubs to lift the silverware.

Dundee's Ray Farningham and Caley Thistle's Maurice Malpas both share Challenge Cup final heartache after losing in successive finals. Farningham, who returned to Dens Park along with Scott just over a year ago, lost out as a Dundee player in November 1994 when Airdrie emerged victorious 3-2 after extra time. Malpas' cup disappointment came 12 months later, when he was part of a Dundee United side that was spending a solitary season in the First Division, and they were on the end of a Terry Christie-inspired cup shock.

Farningham recalled what happened directly after his final: "Gerry Britton came into the dressing-room and just threw his medal away saying; 'This is no use to me.' Gerry, who had scored in the game, was not interested in the loser's medal and, if anyone ever talks about whether players are up for winning the Challenge Cup, I tell them that story."

Farningham is expecting a similar passionate approach from the current Dundee players, saying: "This is a competition we want to win. We have played through three rounds to get there and it would be a great way to mark our first anniversary of coming back."

There has seen a significant turnaround in the playing squad at Dens Park and the 48-year-old former midfielder is happy to have played his part in building a new-look squad. "The players that were here a year ago were not our players and we started rebuilding during the summer. We now have a bigger squad and it is a squad that is full of ability," said Farningham.

"We see their ability in training every day and we are stressing to the players to show that on the pitch on a more regular basis. We are not there just yet as a unit and need to be more consistent, but in a one-off game like Sunday's we could reach great heights."

The former Forfar manager will be telling his players not to copy Britton – now assistant manager at Partick Thistle – saying: "Getting to a final is an achievement in itself, we played in front of a packed McDiarmid Park, and I still have my medal from the Challenge Cup at home. However, the boys will be told to get a winner's medal to avoid any problems."

Malpas' United were expected to deal easily with the threat of part-time Stenhousemuir, who were in the division below them when they met, also at McDiarmid Park 12 months later.

It never turned out that way, and just 18 months after winning the Scottish Cup following a 1-0 win over Rangers at Hampden, the Tannadice men slumped to a 5-4 penalty defeat after a goalless 120 minutes. Malpas reckons missed opportunities cost his side. "On the day we simply never had our shooting boots on and it was a really disappointing occasion as we were definitely expected to win," he said.

United, with six Scottish internationalists in their side along with Republic of Ireland cap – and now manager of Burnley – Owen Coyle, were rarely threatened in the game, according to Malpas. "Terry Christie was their manager and was famous for having his sides threaten at set-pieces and we restricted them to that. It went to penalties and I scored mine but we were beaten and it was terribly disappointing," he said.

"Cup finals are great occasions if you win. However, they are not good occasions if you get beat. We got terrible criticism for it, but we ended up winning promotion back to the Premier League via the play-offs so it (the season) was not a total write-off."

After being involved in one goalless Challenge Cup final, Malpas is expecting the goals to flow more easily this time around. "This is a one-off game and I do not think either of us will set up defensively and look to hit on the break. It will be about who takes their chances better, as I am convinced there will be chances," said Malpas.

The Inverness assistant reckons the biggest hurdle his side will face tomorrow is themselves, as they have found a youthful side to be somewhat inconsistent. Malpas said: "We have a lot of new, exciting players at the club and some of them have not played week in, week out before and that could possibly explain why we reach great highs and then disappoint. Hopefully, in the final they will hit the heights they are capable of and I will finally get my hands on the Challenge Cup."

&#149 Further interviews on the ALBA Challenge Cup Final can be read at The Co-operative Insurance League Insider at theleagueinsider.com.