IT’S WRIGHT TIME TO GO
“But I’ve always been like that with players because honesty is a big thing and the relationship with the chairman is fine.
“There are some things I’ll miss about him and some things I won’t but he’s extremely funny, although he years in charge. Emotional Wright, who had two years left on his deal, admitted it was a tough decision to leave. After stepping up from No. 2 when Steve Lomas left in 2013, he guided Saints to a first major trophy with the 2014 Scottish Cup. He also has Saints in position for a fifth topsix finish under him but believes it was the right time to go. Wright, 56, said: “I read the statement
“We kept going and going, playing darts and drinking away, and ended up in a bar that was like the Hells Angels. We were suited and booted sso we took our jajackets and ties off tto relax us a bit.
“These guys had leleather sleeveless jajackets, tattoos, big bbeards. We ended up pplaying dar ts in tthere with two ppeople who we’d ggiven a lesson to.
“It turned out one oof them was a decent pplayer and got took tthe hump because wwe kept beating tthem so I said to SSteve, ‘ We better let hhim win.’
“We beat him again and he stormed off without buying us a drink which was the deal. And he returned with new darts and a new partner.
“We both ended up on double one – by this stage I could barely hit the board but I hit it to win again and to be fair to the boy he bought us a drink.”
Wright was the toast of Perth at the end of that season when his side lifted the Scottish Cup thanks to a 2- 0 victory over the Terrors. And he out to my wife Anne and it was quite tearful.
“That shows how much the club means to me but it’s the right decision and I hope the fans understand it’s the right time for me to leave.
“We are sitting nicely and might even get top six..
“It was an extremely difficult decision but it was something that was being considered for a while. I feel the timing is right for the club to get some breathing said: “I am a wee bit superstitious. In the previous game the fitness coach had missed the bus and I drove on.
“He phoned the bus. It was a long stretch and he caught up with it.
“On the day of the final I made him walk a few hundred yards before we let him on. There was a lot going on that week in the build up, it was quite hectic.
“But once we got on the bus I felt fine, everyone was quite relaxed. We weren’t over confident, we probably thought they were a wee bit over confident.
“We’d lost 4- 0 up there that season but we learned a lot from it. We were confident going into the game. I actually had no doubt we were going to win it.
“I had this feeling. It goes back to being superstitious. It was written in the stars, my first season, my 50th game in charge.
“I just felt we were going to win. I had total trust in the players and their ability to do the job.
“When the final whistle went it was the happiest moment of my life. My mum and dad couldn’t make it over, my mum passed away in the July of 2014.
“They were glued to the TV. I had plenty of other family members there and that was really special. I managed to take the Cup, it might have been the replica, up the lounge where all my family were.
“The cup final squad will always have a special place for me in terms of what they achieved that season but overall the players have been magnificent and I can’t praise them highly enough.
“I want to say a big thank you to everyone who supported me – players, coaches, my family, my wife Anne – but the game is nothing without supporters.
“We might have a small fan base but it’s a loyal one that gets behind their team and they certainly got behind me as I never felt under pressure from them.
“They’ve deserved all the success that they’ve experienced over the last 10 years.
“There might be clubs with more money, bigger resources and a bigger support than St Johnstone but none with a bigger heart.
“I’ll miss them but I’ll be back to hopefully watch games.
“I’ll be back at functions for the club. It hasn’t been an easy decision. It’s not an easy time but I think it’s the right decision.” space and decide what they want to do.”
Wright is now the bookies frontrunner to land the Northern I reland job vacated by Michael O’Neill.
Fans last night backed calls for the east stand to be named after Wright. Blair Kaylor, who launched the campaign, said: “Tommy is our best ever manager. I’ve never been alone in thinking it would be appropriate.
“If I had my way there’d be a 10-foot statue at the front door to the stadium.”