Roddy: That team loved to go on attack
It will be one of those games that nobody will ever forget.
Roddy Grant certainly won’t.
The Perth striker netted a memorable brace to help kick-start the 7-2 New Year’s Day demolition job on Dundee.
“People still fondly remember the game and it was good to be a part of it,” Grant told the PA this week.
“Against your local rivals, obviously 7-2 was a great result. We’d got to them and they were fighting amongst themselves.
“Back then it was very important over the festive period. There were a lot of games and the Dundee result kept us ticking over nicely.
“It galvanised us and helped us to run away with the league by 20 points. It kept our momentum going.”
A second half blitz sent Saints clear and Grant revealed some strong half-time words from manager Paul Sturrock and assistant John Blackley were ringing in the ears as the second half got under way.
“It was always quite tight games against Dundee,”said Grant.
“We went in at half-time a little dejected and I think the manager and John Blackley had a go at everyone.
“We came back out and I think it was one of those days where everything clicked. If I remember correctly, it could’ve been more.
“We had an exciting side going forward at that time. When we had the momentum we were hard to stop.
“Leigh Jenkinson was an out-and-out winger and John O’Neil played on the right of the four.
“Link-up was really important and you knew that, if you could lay it off, Philip Scott and Steve Tosh would be down the middle on the end of it.
“Leigh was a massive part of the system we played. He was so quick. You’d give him it and he would knock it past someone down to the byline.
“He used to say to me:‘I’ve done my job’and that it was up to us to get on the end of it.
“We scored a lot of goals from that.”
Grant loved playing in this title-winning team packed full of attacking intent.
He added:“George O’Boyle and I had a good partnership.
“We weren’t the quickest so we were always looking for the third man runner.
“We felt defensively we were decent enough to go gung-ho at times.
“When we did and it clicked, you saw what happened.
“It was all geared to attacking football. Flair and hitting teams on the break with pace.”