Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Jackie and Dillo always knew Andy was special
shared by the man who was on the park when he made his competitive debut for United in a goalless draw at Partick Thistle on the opening night of the 2013/14 season.
He is Sean Dillon, who was assuming the club captain’s duties for the first time that same evening and admits he’ll watch tomorrow’s final with a sense of pride over being able to call himself a former team-mate.
“I get a buzz from speaking about Andy because he’s a special player and it was quickly obvious how good he was going to be,” said Dillo.
“Would I say I thought one day I’d be watching him in a Champions League Final? The honest answer to that is no, because you can never tell about things like that.
“What I always knew was he was a lad who was going to go to a higher level, not just because he had talent, but because he worked very hard.
“There was a group of them, Andy, Ryan Gauld and the young keeper Joe McGovern, who were close mates.
“They liked a laugh and a good time but everything was always geared up to do all they could to make it in the game and it was great to see.
“The thing that pleases me most about Andy is that more even important to him than football was being a decent person.
“He was always very generous with his time and helped people whenever he could. Actually, I was at the PFA dinner the other week and spent a big chunk of the evening chatting to his mum and dad. I know how proud they are of him, and rightly so.”