Ryan McGowan had not played for two months but showed no signs of rust as he earned Dundee United a place in the League Cup final.
The Australia international made his debut for the Tangerines in Saturday’s semi-final against Aberdeen after signing from Chinese side Shandong Luneng Taishan last week.
The former Hearts defender had not played since November but was desperate to get his United career off to a flying start at Hampden.
He said: “It’s been eight weeks since I last played – it’s a long time between drinks as they say. All the players have been great, Calum Butcher and Paul Paton did a great job protecting and covering me.
“It was a solid defensive look and it’s great to be back playing. I came here because of the chance to work with Jackie McNamara.
“I have a great relationship with him and he didn’t really have to sell the club to me.
“It’s a well-run club and it’s one that is producing a lot of young players. It’s an attacking side too and you saw that against Aberdeen.
“I wasn’t sure if I’d be starting but I’m delighted to get 90 minutes.”
McGowan scored for Hearts in their 5-1 Scottish Cup final win against Hibernian in 2012 and is eager to add another winner’s medal to his collection.
The 25-year-old added: “I have a decent record at Hampden with this making it three wins out of three. The final for Hearts against Hibs is going to be hard to beat. It was such a huge win and something I don’t think is going to happen again for another 100-odd years.”