In over 40 years associated with St Johnstone, Paul Smith has worn many different hats – often more than one at the same time.
Currently, on top of his full-time job as the lotto manager, he is also the club archivist.
Given Smith wrote for the match day programme in the 1980s, it is perhaps no surprise collecting memorabilia became a labour of love over subsequent decades.
And on Sunday, Saints fans will get the opportunity to wallow in that nostalgia, with a range of items assembled for a one-day St Johnstone Heritage exhibition at McDiarmid Park.
The event, free of charge, takes place between 9.30am and 4pm in the ground’s Muirton Suite and adjoining gymnasium.
“The collection started in 2001,” Smith recalled. “Then I put on a couple of exhibitions, a bit more modest than I’m hoping to achieve on Sunday.
“I had one planned for 2020, but Covid put an end to that. Here we are, five years later finally getting round to it.
“There’s such a range of things. A few of them are themed over specific events but a lot of it is items I’ll just lay out and let people browse over.
“It was 1984 I first became involved with the club – so 41 years this year.
“I was aware there were lot of bits of memorabilia just lying about the stadium.
“So I brought it all together and gathered it in a spare room.
“Since then, I’ve built on that.
“I’ve purchased a lot, personally – a couple of proper auctions but mostly stuff off eBay that pops up.
“As folk have got to know about the collection, we’ve received some nice donations as well.
“Sometimes it’s been after people have passed away and relatives haven’t known what to do with items.
“And Geoff Brown has given us all the medals and badges from during his time at the club.
“Over the last few years, I’ve made sure things were looked after from the cup finals and European games.
“When I was in the football administrator role, I made sure nothing of significance was binned.”
Two club greats
Sunday’s exhibition has been supplemented by the club being leant items by family members of two St Johnstone greats – Sandy McLaren, Scotland’s youngest ever goalkeeper, and Willie Coburn, a key member of Willie Ormond’s team which was the first to make their mark in Europe.
“Willie’s family have been very kind,” said Smith.
“They’ve given me a lot of stuff of his on loan.
“He picked up things around the European games and the friendly with Real Madrid.
“The family of Sandy have kindly helped us as well.
“There’s an international cap and other bits and pieces. He’s a huge figure in the club’s history.”
Smith has been heartened to see the interest young supporters share in the St Johnstone teams and grounds of old.
It won’t just be fans wanting to take a trip down memory lane who will head to McDiarmid this weekend.
And, with Saints’ top-flight status in serious jeopardy on the pitch, the exhibition serves as a timely reminder of the ups and downs associated with a lifetime of loyalty and devotion to your local football club.
“I know the last couple of seasons haven’t been great,” said Smith.
“But, in the main, we’ve got a generation of supporters who have known nothing but success.
“I’m hoping that we’ll get a lot of youngsters who come along and get a feel for all the different stages of the club’s history – good and bad.
“We’ve got a quiz trail for them to follow and prizes.
“As soon as fans hit their teens, they really want to hear about past players and teams.
“John Brogan was in one of my favourite teams and that’s now about 45 years ago!”
Poignant
The exhibition has been enhanced thanks to the purchase of display cases, made possible through the Scottish Football Museum Local Heritage Grants and the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
A poignant part of the event will be the commemoration of former players and people associated with the club who lost their lives in World War One and Two.
Smith said: “We did a wee exhibition in 2022 for the St Johnstone war dead.
“It will get another outing, and we’ve actually had a couple of people added to it since that time.
“As far as we know, every Saints player or person associated with Saints who died in the two world wars will be included.”
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