Strike star eyes cup glory after injury comeback
Kristian Dennis admits he’s making the most of his unexpected second opportunity after initially believing his season was over.
St Mirren manager Jim Goodwin feared he wouldn’t see his striker again this term after he picked up an Achilles injury in February.
But the Englishman has returned ahead of schedule to net crucial Scottish Cup goals against Hamilton Accies and Inverness Caley Thistle.
His equaliser on Friday night against the Highland outfit helped set up a quarter-final tie away to Kilmarnock. And the 31 year-old is enjoying every minute of it.
He said: “I’m buzzing to be back, playing and scoring goals again. And having another cup game next weekend just gives me another chance to play and make up for lost time.
“I thought my season was over eight weeks ago so this has all been a bit of a bonus and I’m loving it.
“I’m finding a bit of form, which is good. I probably should have had more than one goal on Friday night but I was glad to get on the scoresheet after a few close things in the first half.
“I didn’t let my head go down after the missed chances as I always back myself to bounce back and get one eventually. And the chance that I got I knew I was definitely scoring.”
Dennis was disappointed when Saints’ League Cup run ended at the semi-final stage after knocking out Aberdeen and Rangers in the earlier rounds.
But now a return to Hampden is just one game away.
He added: “We know if we can beat Kilmarnock then we’ve got a second semi-final of the season to look forward to and that’s what we’re all hoping for.
“We want to see if we can take it a step or two further than the Betfred Cup. We knocked out Aberdeen and Rangers and should have done better against Livingston in the semi.
“There’s a decent chance there now. The big boys, Rangers and Celtic, play each other today so one of them will be out. And after that you just never know what can happen.”