St Johnstone's Jamie McCart reflects on 'fairytale' triumph as he emulates dad Chris' Scottish Cup success

Like father, like son. Jamie McCart doesn’t subscribe to the notion he was destined to become a Scottish Cup winner but he is more than happy to believe in fairytales.

St Johnstone defender Jamie McCart holds the Scottish Cup aloft during the post-match celebrations at Hampden. (Photo by Craig Williamson / SNS Group)

Just as there is a storybook feel to St Johnstone’s remarkable 2020-21 season, the same sense can be applied to McCart winning the country’s most famous trophy 30 years after his dad Chris did so with Motherwell.

If that 1991 final will always retain a special place in Scottish Cup folklore, so too will the Perth club’s 1-0 win over Hibs on Saturday which saw them complete their historic domestic cup double.

“It’s ridiculous how it has happened like this, 30 years on,” said Saints defender McCart, who was a Man of the Match contender at Hampden.

St Johnstone defender Jamie McCart helped nullify the threat of Hibs striker Kevin Nisbet during the Scottish Cup Final. (Photo by Craig Williamson / SNS Group)

“I managed to FaceTime my dad on the park after the game, so that was good. I don’t believe in all that stuff when people say it’s written in the stars or whatever. I’m not in any way superstitious. The other Saints boys will tell you I don’t do anything like that.

“But it’s been a fairytale season and to win the Scottish Cup exactly 30 years after my dad did it is just amazing. I don’t think it will really sink in for quite some time.

“I honestly can’t put this into words, it’s just incredible. All the boys were saying afterwards in the dressing room that if you honestly think about it, it probably won’t sink in for years.

“A team outside the Old Firm winning the cup double is almost unheard of, certainly in modern times.

“We’ve knocked out the league Invincibles team in Rangers in the quarter-finals and then we have beaten a very good Hibs side in the final.”

McCart played a key role in subduing Hibs’ attacking threats in a contest which summed up the resilience of a St Johnstone squad impacted by coronavirus issues in the weeks leading up to the big day.

“We were pretty comfortable but you always have to be aware because Hibs have really good players, their front three especially,” added the 23-year-old.

“They’ve got quality all over the park and some of the best strikers in the country. So I think that’s a huge credit to our team, the way we handled it. Even after we missed the penalty which would have made it 2-0, we just regrouped and settled again.

“You have to give us credit for how we’ve played. I wouldn’t say we were comfortable throughout but to play that well in a game this big was amazing.

“I think we showed real focus in the build-up. We’d only managed to train as a team once in seven days after the Covid outbreak so it’s incredible we have managed to maintain our levels.

“We were down to the bare bones going to Parkhead for the league game against Celtic recently but all the boys who have come in have played their part this season. It has been a real squad effort and I think it’s important to remember that.”

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