Aberdeen fans will have to come up with a new tactic to unsettle St Johnstone striker Stevie May after the last one spectacularly backfired, according to team-mate Chris Millar.
A less than polite chant about the Perth frontman, which was used to taunt him at Tynecastle during the League Cup semi-final as he continued his goal drought against the Reds, didn’t carry the same weight all of a sudden when May fired the Dons out of the Scottish Cup a couple of weeks ago.
Millar praised the Scotland under-21 star for being inspired rather than cowed by the abuse, and suggested a Red Army rethink might be in order.
“I think they know who he is now!” the midfielder pointed out. “Mayso took it in the right way.
“It was a test of character. You forget he’s still a young man. That experience will stand him in good stead, because he came through it.
“He’s got natural self-confidence. He took the abuse and scored two great goals.”
Millar revealed that former boss Derek McInnes showed a touch of class in the wake of the Ibrox semi.
“He congratulated me after the game,” he said. “You could see he was gutted. Del wants to win every game he’s involved in. Then he texted afterwards to say, ‘go on and win it’. That’s the type of guy he is.
“They’ve got their own agenda on Saturday. They won’t see it as a revenge match for the semi-final but they’ve got second place in their sights.
“We had a period when Dundee United were our bogey team. This year it’s been Aberdeen. Maybe subconsciously it will help us if we go behind that we know we can beat them. There’s no fear there.”
Perth manager Tommy Wright will have selection dilemmas week on week as he seeks to balance maintaining form with keeping players fresh for the May 17 final.
“I can see it both ways,” Millar said. “Obviously the last thing you want is to pick up an injury before the final but you also want to be as sharp as you can be going into the game.
“The manager gets paid to make these decisions. From a player’s point of view I’m probably the same as all the rest of the boys I want to keep playing games.
“That’s especially true for the midfield. There’s been lots of competition there all season. On Saturday there Padge (Paddy Cregg) came in for me and did a great job.
“Every time you’re not in the team it’s somebody else’s chance to do well.
“There was a spell of a few weeks when I was out, and it was frustrating. But I got a run of games and my form has been good.
“The players want to finish in fourth. Financially for the club it’s a lot better, and for the players as well.
“We want this to be remembered as a great season, and finishing fourth would play a part in that.”