Special night as supporters make return
And the Saints give them plenty to cheer men
ST JOHNSTONE ................... 1 PRESTON ............................... 1
For the supporters, this was the moment they had waited for.
It had been 16 months since they had stepped foot inside McDiarmid Park.
Sixteen months of watching from home as the team they adore did the unthinkable and lifted both the Scottish Cup and League Cup.
As young and old filtered back into the Perth stadium, this was special. Underneath the masks there were smiles. And perhaps the odd tear.
Cheers echoed all around as the starting line-up was read aloud. With every name the cheer appeared louder.
Zander Clark, Jason Kerr, Liam Gordon, Jamie
McCart, Shaun Rooney, Callum Booth, Ali McCann, Murray Davidson, Michael O’Halloran, David Wotherspoon and Stevie May.
It was a night for showing appreciation to the greatest of Saints who helped lift spirits throughout a coronavirusimpacted year.
There was also excitement simply to see certain individuals in the flesh.
Remember, this was Callum Davidson’s first match with a crowd as manager of the Perth club. Flying full-back Rooney the same.
Fans briefly rose from their seats to applaud and bellow his name with 32 minutes played in recognition of his cup final scoring exploits.
English Championship side Preston had carved out comfortable spells of possession but it required a wonder strike for them to break the deadlock in the 35th minute. Ben Whiteman, from 30 yards, whipped the ball up and over Clark into the top corner. It was exquisite.
Saints returned for the start of the second half with an unchanged line-up and opened on the front foot.
And it was O’Halloran’s determined running on 50 minutes that saw him block goalkeeper Mathew Hudson’s clearance - the ball dropping for Wotherspoon.
He showed lovely composure to pick his moment and guide into the bottom corner to tie up the game.
Wotherspoon needed that sort of composure from the penalty spot just four minutes later after O’Halloran had been downed in the box. But his effort from 12 yards climbed high over the crossbar and the scoreboard remained at 1-1.
A number of changes arrived on the hour mark with Rooney, McCart, Booth, Davidson and May all exiting the action.
On ran James Brown, Hayden Muller, Reece Devine, Liam Craig and Callum Hendry.
Davidson continued to freshen things up and introduced Cammy Ballantyne and Jordan Northcott in place of McCann and Wotherspoon.
Both youngsters wasted little time in getting a touch.
A final home change then saw the impressive O’Halloran - he has really bulked up replaced by Max Kucheriavyi.
As the full-time whistle sounded, the 1000-strong McDiarmid Park crowd voiced their pleasure. Having the fans back was a joy to witness - emotional too - and after this promising performance they will be itching to return in the coming weeks.
David Wotherspoon celebrates his goal (main), before Jordan Northcott impressed after entering the action (above left). Below, it was great to see a crowd of 1000 back
Michael O’Halloran has added muscle in the short break and looked in terrific shape. His energy was excellent.
Skipper Jason Kerr looked to step out of defence whenever possible. The Perth backline was rarely troubled.
It was no surprise to watch Ali McCann produce a composed display in the middle of the park. A gem of a player.