Tommy Wright will reach a St Johnstone managerial milestone at Tynecastle this afternoon.
And he wants to mark the occasion with a win.
The Perth boss will equal the legendary Willie Ormond’s total of 197 top flight games in the late 60s and early 70s.
Wright, who already has 78 wins in the Premiership (two more than Ormond) has got his eyes on number 79.
“When I came over here in November 2011, I couldn’t have expected things to go so well for me, first as an assistant and then getting the job,” he admitted.
“Coming up to seven years it has been a great time for me and for the club.
“I’m not the type to get overexcited about landmarks but longevity in the modern game is rare and this milestone a wee bit special, something to be proud of.
“I suppose I am only still here because I have done a reasonably good job.
“It’s a nice achievement. Willie Ormond did an incredible job here. He has a stand named after him here so he was something special at this football club.
“I like my football trivia and knew a lot about St Johnstone and Scottish football when I came in. I knew that two of the club’s managers – Ormond and Bobby Brown – had gone on to manage Scotland.
“I know I will look back on this fondly in years to come when I am finished with management.”
Wright certainly isn’t eyeing the McDiarmid Park exit door.
“It’s public knowledge my contract is up at the end of the season and we have been talking about a new deal,” he reported.
“I’m hoping to be here a lot longer but nothing has been agreed yet. I am comfortable but from a football club’s perspective in general you have the window coming up in January so it’s important there is some stability.”
Saints’ top scorer Tony Watt is an injury doubt for today’s match.
“It is wait and see with Tony’s rib injury,” said Wright. “He took a heavy whack and had to come off. He is feeling better but it is still painful.
“Brian (Easton) is getting a scan today so hopefully that will help us find out where he is. There has been improvement but not to the extent of getting him out on the grass.
“Murray (Davidson) is progressing. Connor Mitchell rolled his ankle in training and misses out. Mark Hurst will come in.”
Wright is confident that Wednesday night’s Celtic match won’t have taken too much out of his players’ legs for a clash with the Premiership pacesetters.
He said: “It’s about resting and recovering after the Celtic game.
“The turnaround might concern me slightly if Hearts hadn’t been playing in midweek as well.
“There was a recovery session in the pool on Thursday and most of them got their feet up after Thursday’s light training session to watch the Ryder Cup.”
This will be the first game against Hearts with ex-Saints Steven MacLean on the other side.
“It will be good to see Macca again,” said Wright.
“I’m not surprised he has played so many games so far. I rate him highly, always have done. I’ve nothing but praise for what he did for this club.
“Having worked with him for so long here I could fully understand what Hearts saw in him.
“Hearts have had an impressive start and you can sense the expectation levels going through the roof.
“Craig (Levein) had done a good job. It has been a revolving door there in recent seasons and this summer was no different.
“They have recruited well. The danger is that it can take time for them to settle but Craig is a happy with his signings and they are off to a great start.
“But we are going there to get three points. We have enough about our team to cause them problems.”
