The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Added incentive for United striker
Murray hopes to give mum a winner’s medal
Simon Murray is planning to give his mum a medal for Mother’s Day.
What the Dundee United striker has in mind is a winner’s medal from today’s Irn-Bru Cup at Fir Park.
The Tangerines line-up against St Mirren in Motherwell, and Murray’s family will be well represented when the game gets under way at 12.30pm.
The United striker said about 25 friends and family, all United fans, are meeting at his mother’s house in the morning, travelling down on the bus and then going back for what they hope will be a victory party at night.
He said his parents hardly miss a match he plays in.
“I think my dad (Gary) has been at every one, going back to when I was playing for Arbroath.
“That gives you an extra buzz. You are playing for yourself and your club but you also don’t want to let your family down,” he said.
You could say some mums should get a medal for putting up with their children and that is exactly what Simon Murray has planned for Mother’s Day.
It’s not that the Dundee United striker has anything against the traditional flowers or chocolates when it comes to that special Sunday, when sons and daughters across the land honour the special ladies in their lives.
Indeed, a bouquet of roses tomorrow would be just fine.
However, Murray knows his mum Paula would prefer her boy’s gift to be a winner’s medal, received for helping the Tangerines lift the Irn-Bru Cup at Fir Park this afternoon.
United face St Mirren in the showpiece occasion in Motherwell, which kicks off at 12.30pm, and it seems the Murray clan will be well represented.
They hope it will be thumbs-up for Ray McKinnon’s men at full-time and then back home for a knees-up.
Murray said: “My mum Paula planning on having a cup final party.
“There are about 25 people – friends and family, who are all United fans – and they are meeting at her house in the morning, travelling down on the bus and then going back for what they hope will be a party at night.
“I hope to join them all later and maybe I will have a wee medal to show them.
“We have a game on Tuesday (against Ayr United) so I won’t be celebrating too much but it should be a good night as long as we win.
“I can give my mum my medal and a card for Mother’s Day on Sunday – there’s an idea! That would be better than some flowers.”
Murray has always benefited from family backing and today will be no different.
He added: “It will be great for me to know that I have all that support.
“My mum, dad and granddad try to go to every game I play.
“They hardly miss a match and I think my dad (Gary) has been at every one, going back to when I was playing for Arbroath.
“That gives you an extra buzz. You are playing for yourself and your club but you also don’t want to let your family down.
“They have made sacrifices to help me.
“When I was younger I was playing football nearly every night and they would be running me back and forth to games. So I am obviously grateful for that and hope to pay them back.”
Murray shot down suggestions that this final doesn’t really matter and that for United it is all about trying to get promotion.
Instead, he feels achieving one thing can help the other.
“It will be my first cup final in professional football so I am desperate to win it,” he said.
“That is what everybody dreams about – scoring in a cup final.
“If, as a striker like me, you can score the winner then that’s a memory you will keep for the rest of your life.
“I think that desire to win goes for everyone else in the team.
“We have been on a bad run so this could be good for us and help get the confidence up.
“It is like a double target. We want to win a cup and we want to help our league form. If we can put on a good performance and get the victory then hopefully we can kick on from there.”
Murray and his team-mates have been redoubling their efforts at defending setpieces after a clear weakness in that area during their poor run of results.
He said: “We have been conceding too many silly goals.
“We have looked over things and sat down as a team the other day to discuss it.
“The manager got us together to watch the videos and it’s clear that we have been making individual errors at the set-pieces.
“Of the last 10 goals we have lost, eight have come from set-pieces.
“I think if we can rectify that then we can make progress.
“We have been working on it at training and preparing for the game.
“We have goals in the team so if we can get clean sheets – like we were doing earlier on – then we can kick on.
“We are not just blaming the back four here because it’s about the whole team.
“Maybe we have taken our eye off the ball as a team and the confidence has gone down as a result.
“Hopefully, we can get a clean sheet in the final and I can get a hat-trick.”
Meanwhile, former Rangers winger David Templeton, who had been training with United, has joined Hamilton Accies on a deal until the end of the season.