After last season’s disastrous Highland League Cup final, Academy have now earned the right to banish those bad memories at the first possible opportunity after they defeated Inverness Caledonian Thistle to reach the final of the North of Scotland Cup.
In what was a terrific collective performance, there were two players who stood out; Grant Campbell and Joe Steven.
Campbell was magnificent in the middle of the park, an embodiment of commitment and tenacity as he threw himself into challenges all over the pitch in a tough but fair manner. The Inverness midfielders will be delighted that they won’t have to come up against him again.
And without Joe we simply would not be in this final. Twice he saved certain goals by getting himself in the right place at the right time to clear off the line. The second, in particular, was outstanding and with only five minutes left at the time, it almost certainly saved the game from going to penalties.
After a rare fumble from Sean McCarthy Caley Thistle forward Andrew Macrae was left with a near empty net and an ocean of time in which to pick his spot. But somehow Joe managed to get his knee in the way of his shot and, almost against the laws of physics, direct the ball over the crossbar.
It was as crucial a moment as our two goals, which came from Joe’s brother Grant and a Richard Macadie penalty.
In each of our three victories so far in this cup campaign, we have been very reliant on penalties: the shoot-out win over Brora, Sam Mackay’s injury time winner against Clach and Macadie’s goal on Tuesday night.
There is obviously an element of fortune there, but as the old saying goes – you make your own luck and with the dynamic attacking players we have it is only natural that they are going to draw fouls in dangerous areas of the pitch.
We now face a repeat of our last NOS Cup final, in 2012, against Nairn County when we came agonisingly close to claiming that coveted first piece of senior silverware but we were beaten in extra time.
Having suffered three disappointments in cup finals in the last five years, it is important to stay realistic as we head for another massive fixture and not raise our expectations too high.
Many of the current squad have been part of all three cup final defeats and what could prove a crucial factor in the outcome of this game is how our players deal with that stigma. However difficult it may be, they have to erase those memories from their minds and just play their normal game. If that can happen then we’re in with a chance.
‘Mon Academy!