The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
Tremarco’s transfer from guilt trip to a jovial journey home
“I wasn’t supposed to be playing and if I wasn’t, this wouldn’t have happened.”
The long walk back to the dressing room, the thud of the ball off Peter Grant’s forehead. Twin prompts for the negative thoughts to creep into Carl Tremarco’s head.
He had not watched the 2015 Scottish Cup final back until Caley Thistle streamed it again last month during lockdown. Tremarco needs little reminding of his role; the trapping of the ball, the wriggling of it away from him like a stray egg rolling off the kitchen counter, followed by the crack of him bringing Blair Alston to the ground.
“I knew straight away. I didn’t even try to plead my case–the red was on me before I was even off the floor. He (referee Willie Collum) could have sent me off twice because if you look, I’ve took one out then I think I’ve took another out just to be on the safe side.
“The sending off was just a stupid thing. It was a decent first touch then the ball got stuck under my foot. As I’ve gone to look for it, that’s when I’ve backheeled it and had to just bring the guy down. I don’t think it changed the outcome of the game at the time, because they had a lot of the ball anyway.”
His dismissal came with the Caley Jags 1-0 up. They were far from comfortable, Falkirk sensing an even greater opportunity with a man advantage.
Grant’s resounding intervention gave Inverness a sinking feeling. Bettering Danny Devine in the air, battering the ball beyond Ryan Esson, Grant wheels away, face pulsating with determination.
Contrast that to Tremarco, who was sat a few hundred yards away with walls in between him and the pitch. It may as well have been oceans between them, the way the defender was feeling.
“I could feel Yogi (John Hughes) burning holes in me as I walked off. I felt like I’d messed things up. I hadn’t thought about us getting another goal. When they equalised, that’s when the doubts started, that I’d let everyone down.
“I had my head in my shirt – Dean, the doorman, was in there as well and I didn’t want him to see me blubbering. I can’t remember who came in after that. What I do remember is when we did score, if there’d been a camera it’d have been so good to watch. I’d look like an absolute lunatic.”
The man redeployed in defence to take his place is the man he is still happy to buy drinks for to this day. James Vincent, ostensibly a midfielder, was shuffled back to right-back, with skipper Graeme Shinnie moved over to Tremarco’s vacant spot.
His decision to surge forward in support of Marley Watkins is effectively the difference between Tremarco being cast as a villain or a sympathetic figure. He acknowledges that himself. Jamie MacDonald spilling the ball into Vincent’s path paved the way for him to get out of jail.
“I was creeping out towards the tunnel to see if the board had gone up. The steward grabbed me and said ‘where you going? You’re not allowed!’ so as soon as the whistle went, it was relief. I was more happy that I hadn’t let everyone down.
“I spoke to the keeper afterwards and said ‘you’ve bailed me right out’. I was buzzing Vinny was there to tap it in.”
There were no serious debriefs with Hughes, just a mutual acknowledgement he had got away with one. That is, aside from an impromptu bus interview.
“We were on the bus going home, everyone’ s buzzing and beers are flying about. He comes over with a mic and I thought he was taking the mick. He says ‘how does it feel to be the luckiest man in Scotland?’ and I’m e ff ing and blinding back at him. He says‘ we’ re live on air!’ – he was on the radio. I’m about five or six beers deep at this point, so my emotions are all over the place.”