Jimmy Nicholl admits his managerial career peaked with Raith Rovers’ Coca-Cola Cup triumph – and he is thrilled to grasp every chance to celebrate that shock success.
Today marks the 30th anniversary of the Stark’s Park outfit’s sensational victory over Celtic at Ibrox to land their first major silverware in 1994.
That the win was secured courtesy of a penalty-kicks decider simply added a fairytale finish to the remarkable drama of the see-saw 2-2 draw that had gone before.
Nicholl has confessed to Courier Sport that one of his biggest hopes ahead of kick-off was that his First Division side would not be embarrassed by their star-studded opponents.
However, as one of the Northern Ireland underdogs who famously stunned hosts Spain at the 1982 World Cup, he should have known that anything was possible.
Three decades down the line, he has no doubt Raith’s achievement should be fondly remembered and heartily celebrated.
“As a player, you want to try and achieve things, not just play football and take the money and run,” said Nicholl, who led the commemorations at a special lunch with fans on Sunday.
“And you want to give the supporters something to remember.
“I told the supporters on Sunday, never be embarrassed about having an occasion like this every ten years, because we do it with Northern Ireland.
Nicholl: ‘Appreciate the good times’
“We celebrate winning one game of football. And it wasn’t even a cup final. It was beating Spain 1-0 with ten men.
“I’ve been to clubs where we don’t celebrate every ten years winning something because you’re expected to win things.
“It’s at clubs like Raith that you do appreciate the good times.
“And as for achievements, personally, I would say, yes, that would be the one for me.”
Memories of special moments can be personal, even when the occasion is shared with thousands of others. It made for an interesting – and revelatory – afternoon at the weekend.
“I also got to find out things I never knew for 30 years,” added the former Rangers and Manchester United full-back
“I tried to be professional when I was manager and my missus was doing pasta and [assistant] Martin Harvey’s wife was doing nice soups and pasta dishes.
“And then I found out the players were going to McDonald’s on a Saturday morning before games!
“They did it once. And then they felt good and they won the game, so they thought we’ll need to keep that up.”
Relaxed
Trying to ensure the players felt good – and calm – was all part of the preparations for the cup final showdown. And there were plenty of little things that all added up to success on the day.
There was the visit to Ibrox the day before the game and the relaxing tray of drinks that appeared in the hotel that night. There was the comfort, for some, of the Rangers home dressing room.
When it came down to it, Rovers’ blend of youthful energy and experienced knowhow was full of belief and able to complete the ‘unthinkable’ when Scott Thomson saved Paul McStay’s pivotal penalty.
After the dressing-room delivery of Rangers champagne from John Greig and Ally McCoist, it was back to Fife for the party.
“We went through to the hotel in Kirkcaldy to celebrate with the wives and partners and family,” continued 67-year-old Nicholl, now the Northern Ireland assistant-manager.
“And then the police came to the hotel and said, ‘you’d better get down to the ground’ because all the supporters were there waiting for us.
“There was no way we could get down there at that point after a few drinks. So all the supporters had to come back up to the Dean Park.
“I remember just going out to the front steps of the hotel and the car park was full of supporters.
“And then some of them came into the dancing and to celebrate. It was a great night.”
Conversation