Stevie May doesn’t need anything to change in his game between last season and the next one, after the St Johnstone striker hit double figures in 2022/23.
But making the transition from ‘Macca’ to ‘gaffer’ when he’s speaking to his manager is the one thing the Perth club’s top scorer needs to get to grips with!
May enjoyed his most successful season playing alongside Steven MacLean nearly a decade ago.
And he’s now completed his second best one with his former strike-partner in the dugout.
Old habits die hard, though.
May joked: “I’ve slipped up a couple of times already!
“It’s been ‘Macca’ for a long time.
“This has happened to me a few times now – it was Callum for a while and Del back in the day before he stepped up.
“I find myself saying ‘alright’ instead of putting a name on it!
“I’ll need to get used to ‘gaffer’ or whatever he wants to go by.”
Freshness
Whatever he’s called by the Saints players, there’s been no doubting the impact MacLean has made at McDiarmid Park in his six games in charge.
“He’s been great,” said May. “We knew he would be a real leader and that’s how it’s turned out.
“That’s nothing against the old manager. Sometimes it’s just a freshness that gets things going again – you’ve seen it at a few clubs.
“He gave us the lift we needed and that will continue now he can bring in players he wants to fit into the way he wants to play.
“He’s got clear ideas on how he wants us to go about things – the fans will have seen that.
“It’s 100% and high pressing.
“Anybody who knows him will know that he won’t be afraid to make decisions that he thinks are right.
“That’s what you need as a manager. Sometimes you have to be ruthless.”
‘Really pleased’
May finished the season on a total of 10 goals, with a few dramatic winners among them.
“I’ve had better seasons in terms of the number of goals I got in the lower leagues but in terms of how this one has gone for me personally, overall, I’m really pleased,” he said.
“I’ve been involved a lot more, scored goals and enjoyed my football.
“I’m looking forward to building on it next season.
“I started a few games on the bench early on, which was disappointing.
“At that point it was about making an impact when I came on – which I did – and fighting for a start.
“Since I’ve got in I feel I’ve done really well and helped the team.
Determination ✅
2nd of the match ⚽️⚽️
Derby winner 😮💨
Behind the goal footage 🤩@Stevie__may 💙Enjoy 🤝 #SJFC | @spfl | Chris Logan 📷 pic.twitter.com/MqtMYQBsFk
— St. Johnstone FC (@StJohnstone) February 20, 2023
“There are a lot of good seasons left in me hopefully. I’m still feeling really good.
“I’ve ended a long year with three games in eight days but I don’t feel as if I need to stop.
“I’ve got mixed emotions about this season ending.
“But pre-season starts pretty soon so I’ll not be away for too long!
Three wins and a draw out of their five post-split fixtures gives Saints the chance to pick up where they left off in the next campaign, according to May.
“It is important to finish the season on a high because it’s a short break these days,” he said. “We’ve done that.
“Other teams had stronger middle parts to the season but didn’t finish as well as us.
“Hopefully that’s a factor when the new one gets underway.
“We’ve got some certainty in terms of who will be the manager.
“Macca’s got a platform to get us well prepared for next season.”
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