Kevin Dabrowski has revealed Raith Rovers will battle for the Premiership with the inspirational words of a real-life premier ringing in their ears.
The Stark’s Park outfit host Ross County on Thursday night in their play-off final first-leg hoping to realise dreams of promotion to the top-flight.
Those hopes looked like they could be dashed in Friday night’s semi-final before a gripping penalty shoot-out sealed victory over Partick Thistle.
Within seconds of Lewis Vaughan’s decisive spot-kick, Dabrowski was mobbed at the heart of a jubilant pitch invasion as emotions got the better of the Rovers faithful.
Watching the drama unfold from his seat in the main stand was Gordon Brown, the country’s former prime minister and a lifelong Raith fan.
And Dabrowski has told how the Labour politician has been doling out advice to the players ahead of the biggest tie in the club’s history for decades.
“I had a chat with Gordon Brown,” said the goalkeeper. “It’s a privilege to have such a big figure as a Raith Rovers supporter.
“He was in the stadium moving around in the tunnel, so a few of the players saw him.
“He just told us to keep our foot on the accelerator, keep going, do what we have been doing and believe we can do it.
Dabrowski: ‘It feels good’
“If we do that, hopefully we’ll get over the line.
“Having someone of that stature wishing you luck helps drive you on to do better. It feels good.”
What also felt good for Dabrowski were the celebrations that followed the triumph over Thistle.
The popular Pole has heard some ‘party-poopers’ claim Raith should have kept a lid on the excitement, given they have not yet achieved anything tangible.
He does not agree.
“It was incredible last week,” he added. “That was my first experience of that, seeing all the happiness on the fans’ faces. It was incredible.
“Some people have said we shouldn’t have celebrated like that because we’ve not won anything yet.
“But the club hasn’t been in the Premiership for 27 years so why not? They are memories and they brought us together as a community and a club.
“We should cherish them because we won a game on penalty kicks. That’s what football is about, it should make you happy. Everyone should understand that.
“The fans have been right behind us, we will need them again over the next two games.
Dabrowski: ‘A Rover-coaster!’
“It will be a rollercoaster – or maybe a Rover-coaster, I should say!
“Would I be out in Kirkcaldy celebrating if we do it? Certainly, until sunrise!”
When the dust had settled on Friday night, most were anticipating that Raith would be facing St Johnstone in the play-off final.
Instead, it is County who are making the trip to Kirkcaldy for Thursday’s first-leg before Sunday’s decider in Dingwall.
The Staggies were close to sealing their safety in their head-to-head with Saints last midweek, only to suffer a double dose of disappointment in the space of a few days.
Dabrowski hopes that could help Raith’s chances of pulling off a shock against their top-flight opponents.
“We can go into these two games looking to enjoy it,” he commented. “I’m not sure Ross County will be enjoying it as much.
“The pressure is on them. There’s a little bit for us, but not too much.
“Ross County will be disappointed they ended up in the play-offs. Hopefully we can use that to our advantage.
“We deserve to be where we are because we have worked hard the entire season to get this chance. We will go out to enjoy ourselves, every minute of it.
“It’s very exciting. It has been 27 years since Raith Rovers were last in the Premiership, so to be only two games away from it is exciting.”
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