St Johnstone boss Steve Lomas admits that when he takes his side north to face Inverness, he will be pitting his wits against the man he believes should win this season’s Scottish manager of the year award.
That’s how highly the Northern Irishman rates the job Terry Butcher has done this season, masterminding an attractive and successful brand of football that has taken the Highland outfit up to third place in the SPL.
However, Lomas and his Saints players will travel to the Highlands buoyed by the late, late draw with Dundee United on Monday night that secured a top-six finish for the second season in a row, knowing that if they can beat Inverness, they will have closed the gap between the two sides to just two points.
He said: “Terry has done a brilliant job and for me is probably manager of the year.
“They were flying and then they had a little dip but he has re-energised them again unfortunately in the last three or four weeks.
“But from my point of view for what he has done over the course of the season, he has to be the favourite (for manager of the year). I think what he has done is nothing short of miraculous.
Between Andrew Shinnie, Richie Foran and Billy McKay, they have probably scored almost 50 goals which is very impressive.
“They have a lot of good footballers and a nice mix with a big physical presence. A major bonus for Terry is that he has been able to keep most of his lads fit which is important with a small squad.
“There is no doubt they are a decent team but so are we when we play like we did second half against Dundee United.
Lomas added: “So it is set up to be a good game between two sides who like to attack. I would be surprised if there are no goals.”
It was an extra-time headed counter from Liam Craig that secured the precious point on Monday and Lomas insists his players deserve enormous credit for keeping going right to the final whistle.
He said: “I think that just typifies what they are all about.
“We lost a poor goal from our point of view and it maybe allowed United to sit back a bit and hit us on the counter. I think second half we were dominant even before their sending-off and I believe we fully warranted at least a point.
“Liam isn’t exactly renowned for his heading but it was a great goal.
“Early on, I feel the lads were a bit over-anxious. The pitch is almost anti-football and when they got the first goal, the crowd became nervous and the players got a bit more edgy and started doing things they normally wouldn’t do.
“So we said at half-time that they just needed to show a little bit more composure and I think they did better second half.”
David McCracken, who missed Monday’s game, is still suffering the ill-effects of a stomach bug, while the two Davidsons, Callum and Murray, are nursing hamstring and ankle injuries respectively and will be monitored.