Paul Burns took part in two cup finals with former club Queen of the South and now wants to complete the full Scottish set with his new side Dunfermline but this time he hopes it will be third time lucky.
Burns spent nine years at Palmerston and, during his time there, appeared on the losing side in the Scottish Cup final against Rangers in 2008 and the Challenge Cup final last season when he faced Ross County.
He moved to East End Park in the summer and, as the Pars prepare for their first-round tie in the Scottish Communities League Cup at Annan on Saturday, he admitted he would like nothing better than to go all the way to Hampden again.
“It is a competitive game and it is a cup we want to do well in,” he said. “So we will give Annan the respect they deserve and we will go down there looking for the right result.
“A couple of the boys I used to play with at Queens Andy Aitken and Sean O’Connor are there. They were in the Scottish Cup final team with me so I know them well.
“Andy and Sean are good players and I am sure they and the rest of their team-mates will be relishing the chance of a cup upset and will give us a hard game. But Dunfermline are an SPL team and we are expected to do well in cups.
“I have played in the Scottish Cup final and the Challenge Cup final so it would be nice if I could complete the set. I have lost the two finals I have been in which is not a good omen but hopefully my luck will change with Dunfermline.”
Burns’ manager Jim McIntyre saw his side draw 0-0 with St Mirren in their eagerly-anticipated SPL curtain-raiser on Monday night in front of a big crowd and television cameras. However, he insists their preparations for the match against third division minnows Annan will be exactly the same.ApproachHe said, “I will not mix the team up greatly. I think you have to approach the game in the right manner. There may be some changes but they will not be wholesale ones.
“We arranged a bounce game against Hamilton on the Tuesday afternoon for the lads who did not play against St Mirren and their attitude was excellent. With no reserve league, that’s what we have to do to keep their fitness up.
“If I was still a player, I would use those opportunities to put myself in the gaffer’s thoughts. And that’s the way they do think as they are all good honest professionals. They know that 11 players can only be picked but their attitude is excellent and that’s what you are looking for.”
Reflecting on the St Mirren match, McIntyre added, “We gave them far too much time and space in the first half, which was definitely not the game plan.
“However, we should not detract from the positives we kept a clean sheet and we defended well. You have to remember we are the new boys in the league and are on a steep learning curve.
“Any time you face lower opposition, you are expected to win whether you are in the first division or the SPL. There are always shocks in the cups so we have to ensure we are right on the money.
“We will go down there, focus properly and give Annan the respect they deserve.”