Jason has shown he is a leader of men
Mark Reilly
they are capable. I don’t think you would get a club outwith the Old Firm doing it again in the one season.
“The players have a great opportunity to make history and they will probably never get a better one.”
Reilly joined Saints in 2002 and was determined to help the Perth club to promotion to the top-flight. It didn’t quite happen at that time.
“The big thing was trying to get promotion back to the Premier League and we didn’t quite manage it,”he recalled this week.
“I remember I was desperate to win the league at that time.
“I’ve never wanted to win something as badly I don’t think.
“It was overwhelming disappointment that we didn’t achieve that. But I loved my time at St Johnstone - a well run club.
“I was coming towards the end of my career but I thoroughly enjoyed it.”
Jason Kerr has this season helped guide St Johnstone to a top six finish, League Cup win and Scottish Cup semi-final.
He was handed the skipper’s armband two years ago aged just 22 and has continued to grow into the role with every passing week.
His performances on the field of play have been consistently impressive and, off the park, he carries a professional persona and is proud to hold his position.
Someone who has watched on with admiration is former fullback Danny Griffin — a player who definitely knows what it is like to captain the Perth club at a young age.
Griffin was only 18 when he led Saints out against St Mirren on August 26, 1995.
“Jim Weir was out injured,” recalls Griffin. “It got to the stage where Paul Sturrock was looking to see who they’d give the armband to.
“I think it was actually George O’Boyle who said I deserved it because I’d been playing well and working hard. That’s how it came about. “It was a great honour to be given the chance and having the backing of your team-mates at a young age. You had the likes of O’Boyle and Roddy Grant. I just took it in my stride and was wanting to go out and play a game of football.
“Yes I was captain of the team. But you had 10 other guys shouting at you if you made a mistake. “Was I big enough at that age to shout at people? Yeah I was. If they weren’t doing their job I was willing to do that.”
Griffin continued: “Jason had been out on loan and got the experience, then was given his chance under Tommy Wright.
“It was a time of making the transition from being an older, experienced team to bringing in some of the youngsters.
“It was a lot of responsibility put on his shoulders at that time. Steven Anderson wasn’t playing, Frazer Wright had left.
“Jason has shown he can be a leader and, knowing the way he is, he always strives to be better. That was even the way when he was playing for the youth academy and he hasn’t changed.
“He is a young man who has already gone on to lift the League Cup. He’ll never forget that.”
Former Northern Ireland international Griffin, who continues to do great work with Saints in the Community, has been closer to the action than most this season. He has often taken up duties as co-commentator on SaintsTV to give fans a passionate and honest assessment.
A brilliant defender in his own right, Griffin thinks the unit of Kerr, Liam Gordon and Jamie McCart have been “absolutely outstanding.”
“When they need to stand up, they do it big time,” Griffin told the PA.
“The back three are keeping teams out, but you also have eight other guys doing their job.
“You think of Ali McCann in front and Liam Craig.
“The strikers work tirelessly. When we do work with the kids, you say that the strikers are your first defenders.
“The team is well-drilled. I know when I played you always took great pride in keeping a clean sheet. You would be chuffed to bits.
“Callum Davidson went to three at the back and he stuck with it. The team are reaping the benefits of that now.”
It goes without saying that Griffin would love to watch Kerr lift the Scottish Cup later this month.
But of course nobody will be looking beyond a tough game against St Mirren on Sunday afternoon.
“At the start of the season some people were calling for Callum’s head,” Griffin said. “But all of a sudden that changed.
“It’s going to be a tough game against St Mirren. They won’t make it easy.
“There is probably no pressure on Saints having already won the League Cup this season. They have the experience of being at Hampden and know what it’s all about.
“And they will be going into the weekend with positivity having beaten Rangers in the quarterfinal and winning against Hibs on Saturday with making seven changes.
“It would be some achievement for the club, Callum and the players to get to the final. Some achievement.”
It would be some achievement for the club, Callum and the players to get to the final