The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Saints’ 900th goal honour is ‘pretty cool’ for McCann
Two Northern Ireland caps, a first goal of the season and a small piece of St Johnstone history – it’s been quite a fortnight for Ali McCann.
In an ideal world the midfielder’s opener at Easter Road would have been the match-winner against Hibs but at least it was part of a Perth performance that secured a point at a tough Premiership venue.
And scoring Saints’ 900th top-flight goal will be a memory to cherish.
“It’s quite cool to be honest,” said McCann, who guided the ball past Ofir Marciano in the first half on Tuesday night after good work by Stevie May.
“I saw it on Tw i t t e r before the game and saw that we could score our 900 th goal and I thought it would be nice to be the one to score it! And thankfully it happened.
“The ball came to me in the right place at the right time and it was great to score the 900th.
“People like Cuptie (Dave Mackay), a club legend, will be remembered for achieving the milestone of 600 goals so it’s pretty cool to be alongside him and others.
“He’s someone who achieved great things for the club in the past and hopefully I can do the same.”
David Wotherspoon scored Saints’ second but both his and his team-mate’s efforts were cancelled out by Paul McGinn.
McCann added: “I thought we could have won the game actually, but to say we would get a 2-2 draw before the game we probably would have been happy.
“To go up twice is still disappointing but it’s not easy going there - they’re flying - but we matched them department.
“It’s good to challenge teams like that who are in the top three or four in the league - it proves we belong up there.”
McCann’s face is becoming better known outwith Perth thanks to h is impressive displays in the Nations League against Austria and Romania for Northern Ireland.
And h e’ l l be on a f ew kitchen walls now that he’s made the front cover of the annual Saints charity calendar that is now available for purchase. in every
“It’ll be good to have it up in the house!” joked 20-year-old McCann.
“Thankfully, it’s a decent photo they’ve used – it’s not the worst one, so it ’ s alright!
“I t ’s great t h e r e’s a donation being made to CHAS. Any sort of thing the club can do to help a charity in the community is brilliant.
“Especially because it’s been a tough time for everyone, particularly charities, so every little helps and it’s great to do something positive for the local community.”
McCann has his eyes on Hampden Park, with the Betfred Cup last-16 clash against Motherwell up next for Saints tomorrow.
“Obviously, it’s a huge cup game and a chance for us to get into the quarterfinals,” he said.
“All fans – and the lads – love a cup run and we showed at the weekend we can match Motherwell and hopefully we can beat them and progress to the next round.
“You saw in 2014, when the team won the Scottish Cup, that the players who won that became legends.
“The league cup is a major trophy, too, and to play in the final of that would be an unreal day out.
“It all starts on Saturday and if we can progress through that then that’s a great step, and we have every chance.”
Meanwhile, Saints striker Stevie May is delighted with his return to the goal trail.
Now, the 2014 Scottish Cup winner is eyeing-up a Betfred Cup success against Motherwell to stretch an unbeaten run to 10 games.
Speaking at the launch of the club calendar, which will support kids’ hospice charity CHAS, the former Sheffield We d n e s d a y, Preston and Aberdeen centre-forward said: “I’m really enjoying my football, more than in a long time.
“I’m playing regularly and scoring puts the cherry on the top.
“We would love a cup run and to keep this unbeaten run going.
“With the fans not able to get to games, it would be great if we can advance.
“Maybe the y will be allowed back in towards the end of the tournament if it is safe.”
The teams were locked at 1-1 in a recent league game, with May netting from the penalty spot, and Well secured a 1-0 win earlier in the season.
“Fir Park tough place said.
“Motherwell and ourselves have shown a lot of character this season and t h e r e’s not much between us. We are pretty evenly matched.
“The results show that and we are both battling for the top six in the league.
“Both teams have quality players in their ranks. We have to make sure we are right at it to go through.
“We have played a lot of games recently but our fitness levels have been very good. is to always a go,” May
“We have bounced back we l l from the disappointment of losing two late goals to Celtic, especially as a young squad getting used to a new formation.
“That says a lot for the players and the coaching staff. We are a tough team to get a result against now.
“We just have to be that little bit more clinical.”
May teamed up with Israeli striker Guy Melamed for an hour in the midweek 2-2 draw with Hibs.
And the former Maccabi Netanya centre showed he will be an asset to Callum Davidson’s squad.
“Guy definitely has quality and offers something different for us.
“He showed flashes of the class he has got against Hibs and he’ll be looking to build on that.”
The official calendar for 2021 goes on sale today from 9am through the Saints online shop.
It features the full first
team squad as well as manager Callum Davidson and first team coaches Steven MacLean and Alec Cleland.
The club has also decided that 5% from each calendar sold will be donated to CHAS, Saints’ o ff i c i a l charity partners, ensuring that around £500 will go to the charity if all calendars are sold.
Each calendar is £ 10, with a limited number of signed calendars available for £15.
A CHAS spokesperson said: “We are so grateful to St Johnstone for supporting CHAS by donating a percentage of the sales from their 2021 calendar.
“We know that these are difficult and unprecedented times, which makes us even more grateful for their kindness and support.
“Thank you for choosing to support children and families across Scotland who need help now, more than ever.”