Dundee United manager Peter Houston has revealed that his side have a lucky charm which could help them triumph over Raith Rovers in their Active Nation Scottish Cup semi-final the Kirkcaldy club’s boss John McGlynn.
Houston, who is friends with McGlynn, discovered that his Raith counterpart has watched United several times recently and has yet to see them lose.
However, the Tannadice boss has insisted that despite the lucky omens, his players will be taking nothing for granted against their first division opponents on Sunday.
“We will give Raith Rovers great respect as they have had some really difficult ties to get this far, including knocking out SPL Aberdeen at Pittodrie and then away again at Dundee,” Houston said on Wednesday.
“I have worked with John McGlynn before and he is thorough and professional and he will know everything about Dundee United.
“In fact, I got a text from him the other night asking if he wanted me to have him come to all our games, as every match he has watched we have won.
“So I am delighted John will be there on Sunday to hopefully see the same thing again.
“On the day, we will know a lot about Raith Rovers ourselves as we have Gary Kirk who was assistant to John before he came here.
“Stevie Campbell and Paul Hegarty have watched them and I will see them tonight at Ayr.
“So we will give our players as much information about Raith as we can.Respect”But one thing about us in recent years is that we have had hard games at Ross County, Dunfermline and Airdrie and we have never gone out with the attitude that we are the SPL side playing against lower league opposition.
“We have gone about our business in the right way and I think that the squad of players we have at the moment do not know any different.
“It is a tremendous opportunity for them as you never know, they might not have the chance ever again in their careers to reach a Scottish Cup final and it would be sad if we did not give it our best shot.”
Houston said he owes a debt of gratitude to the tournament after his initial spell in charge of the team, when Craig Levein left, began disastrously.
That all changed during the Scottish Cup tie at Partick which United won thanks partly to a contentious handball goal by Damian Casalinuovo.
“The Scottish Cup means a lot to me because my first victory as caretaker boss came at Partick Thistle,” said Houston.
“It was a goal which was an accidental handball, although Cally (Partick boss Ian McCall) will say different, but that changed things.
“Where would I have been if we hadn’t won at Partick? United would probably have hired another manager that very same week.
“We had drawn against Kilmarnock, lost heavily at Rangers and were defeated at home to Aberdeen.”
Houston continued, “Things looked like they were falling apart but I would have taken it as a major insult to my own capabilities if I hadn’t been able to turn it around.
“I said all along we had a good squad and we needed to sort ourselves out and calm down.
“We had to make sure we didn’t go under because we were a good side up until Christmas when Craig left and it was about getting it back on track and improving on last year.
“We finished on 53 points last season and now we are on 58, so that’s great.”
Meanwhile United have received a major boost with the news that Andy Webster could be fit for Sunday.
Webster has been dogged by calf trouble for the last three months and had to be replaced by Darren Dods against St Johnstone on Monday night amidst concerns he was on the verge of suffering a muscle tear.
However, Houston has revealed that the on-loan Rangers defender may now be able to lead United out at Hampden.
“Webby had a scan on Tuesday because he feared his calf was ready to tear at Saints,” said Houston.
“But the really good news is that the muscle is fine. It is a nerve problem coming from his lower back that he’s suffering from.
“Andy is seeing a chiropractor and is also going to get some acupuncture. He is really hopeful he is going to be fit for the semi-final.”
Houston continued, “Things looked like they were falling apart but I would have taken it as a major insult to my own capabilities if I hadn’t been able to turn it around.
“I said all along we had a good squad and we needed to sort ourselves out and calm down.
“We had to make sure we didn’t go under because we were a good side up until Christmas when Craig left and it was about getting it back on track and improving on last year.
“We finished on 53 points last season and now we are on 58, so that’s great.”
Meanwhile United have received a major boost with the news that Andy Webster could be fit for Sunday.
Webster has been dogged by calf trouble for the last three months and had to be replaced by Darren Dods against St Johnstone on Monday night amidst concerns he was on the verge of suffering a muscle tear.
However, Houston has revealed that the on-loan Rangers defender may now be able to lead United out at Hampden.
“Webby had a scan on Tuesday because he feared his calf was ready to tear at Saints,” said Houston.
“But the really good news is that the muscle is fine. It is a nerve problem coming from his lower back that he’s suffering from.
“Andy is seeing a chiropractor and is also going to get some acupuncture. He is really hopeful he is going to be fit for the semi-final.”