Give it another few years and it will have overtaken his goal in the final in St Johnstone 2014 folklore.
Steven MacLean’s half-time Ibrox pep talk as Saints sought to overturn a one-goal deficit and avoid the Scottish Cup semi-final with Aberdeen going down as yet another last-four exit is already the stuff of legend, with team-mate David Wotherspoon the latest to reference the impact it had on the inspired performance Tommy Wright’s side produced over the subsequent 45 minutes.
At this rate, by the time the May 17 10th anniversary comes around, MacLean will be getting spoken about as a cross between Martin Luther King and Jim Telfer.
Now on the coaching staff as Saints prepare for another semi, in the Betfred Cup against Hibs, the former striker doesn’t recognise his off-the-cuff oratory as either out of the ordinary or responsible for what happened next.
But he is convinced that if the need arises for the Perth players to sort themselves out at Hampden Park in a similar fashion and seize the moment, there will be no lack of leaders ready to step up to the plate.
“Maybe it was because we came back and won that it gets referred to by players but I don’t recall it being anything special,” said MacLean. “Everyone has their bit to say in dressing rooms.
“You could look at loads of potential turning points in that semi-final – Mayso’s equaliser or Niall McGinn missing a chance.
“Football has changed and dressing rooms are different even from my days here.
“But you still have experienced guys like Liam Craig, Murray Davidson, David Wotherspoon, Stevie May, Chris Kane and Mikey O’Halloran.
“There are strong characters in this side as well. They have been around. They know what it takes and what semi-finals are all about.
“They know what it’s like to win and lose. They have experienced both and maybe that’s a good thing.”
Performance and good fortune are everything at this stage of a knock-out competition.
That comeback win is the ultimate St Johnstone example of grasping an opportunity.
Losing to Hibs two years later at Tynecastle, when their opponents were a Championship club, is at the other end of the scale and should serve as a warning to the current team that performance and good fortune are everything at this stage of a knock-out competition.
“I have a photo in the house from the last semi where I’m having a go at the ref,” said MacLean, referring to a soft early penalty that was awarded to the Easter Road team when Liam Henderson conned his refereeing namesake.
“Looking back on that game, it wasn’t a penalty but we weren’t good enough early in the game and didn’t start well enough.
“Hibs were on top of us in the first half and it was only in the last half hour we played.
“They got the luck with the decision that day and while we didn’t agree with it, we probably didn’t do enough to deserve to go through.
“Luck is a big thing in these games. You need it to get to a final.
“We got it when we won the Scottish Cup, when United hit the bar and Alan Mannus landed on top of it rather than it going in.
“You need things like that to go in your favour – the opposition missing a chance or someone giving away a silly foul.
“We haven’t had much luck this season so hopefully it can be our turn this weekend.”
MacLean won’t feel the urge to start berating a referee or an opposition player at Hampden on Saturday. The passion to win and the passion for St Johnstone are as intense as they were in his playing days but there is a recognition that his touchline role is to analyse and assist as opposed to bicker and engage.
“It’s been good making the transition,” said the former Rangers, Sheffield Wednesday and Hearts man. “It’s different but I’m really enjoying it.
“I don’t miss playing as much as I thought I would. That’s probably because I’m still involved.
“I still wake up thinking about football and can’t sleep at night for thinking about the game.
“It’s very similar to being a player. Win a game and you sleep easier. Lose it and you’re awake in the middle of the night thinking about it.
“The biggest difference is probably that you’re not as close to the players as you were as a player yourself.
“If the manager wants me out there he will tell me.
Learning curve for St Johnstone coach
“But it is important you watch the game so you can influence it as a coach.
“Obviously the manager makes the final decision but it’s important I’m not totally caught up in it and wanting to rip people’s heads off.
“I have to try and influence the game.
“You do get carried away at times and maybe early on that’s what was happening. But you have to take a step back as a coach and see what needs done. I have been learning along the way from Callum, Alec (Cleland) and Paul (Mathers).”
MacLean was registered as a player when he returned to McDiarmid Park in the summer but, even when all the strikers were getting their chance and none of the attacking combinations were producing regular goals, throwing him back on to the pitch was never under consideration.
“It is not very realistic,” said the 38-year-old.
“It was only if something drastic was to happen with Covid. I think you can tell I’m not needed!
“I don’t know if I would be able to play now anyway. The playing days are gone. It was never spoken about. It was always just coming in as a coach.”
The closely-fought games between the two sides this season are one factor to be considered when assessing how this semi will play out. But the fact that it is third in the Premiership against ninth, with 17 points between them in the table, can’t be discounted either.
“We have a big job on our hands,” said MacLean. “Hibs deserve to be where they are in the league and we are under no illusions about it.
“They are favourites. They’ve had a good season and strengthened their squad again last week.”
He added: “The pressure is on Hibs and the longer we can go in the game it will build on them.
“It will be in the back of their minds what the fans expect of them so if we do our jobs well then that might come into it.
“We will need to be at our best but hopefully we will be and we can get a result.”
