Loan star Jay Henderson is grateful for the experience gained at Caley Thistle as he seeks to kick on with a return to the Premiership with St Mirren – or elsewhere.
The 21-year-old wide midfielder played 21 times for Inverness following his New Year loan move to the Championship club.
It was a brilliant piece of business for head coach Billy Dodds, who couldn’t believe his luck at landing such a talented prospect at the second time of asking.
Henderson’s creative spark, including four goals, took injury-ravaged ICT to within one game of the promotion play-offs.
The season ended on Saturday on the dramatic stage of Hampden, as the Highland side pushed Premiership champions Celtic in the Scottish Cup final, before losing 3-1 against the treble winners.
Although Dodds would love to keep hold of the starlet, a top-table return is most likely – be it with his parent club, or a move elsewhere.
Henderson’s contract is up with St Mirren, so talks will kick off now.
Henderson’s ‘can’t buy’ Inverness experience
The Scotland under-21 cap is still on a high after being involved in such a fantastic match to cap his time at ICT.
He said: “In January, if you said I’d be playing in a Scottish Cup final as your last game at Inverness, I’d probably have laughed.
“But it’s what dreams are made of. It might only happen once in my career, but hopefully there’ll be more.
“It’s a great learning experience playing against top, top players and I know the result wasn’t what we wanted, but in terms of experience levels, I can only take positives from it. I’m buzzing to have had the opportunity.
“I can only thank Inverness, the coaching staff and all the boys for the way they’ve been with me since I came here. It’s given me vital experience and you can’t buy that at Hampden.
“It’s a massive occasion, the stadium was packed out and it’s a great occasion. It’ll make me a better player.”
New St Mirren deal on the table for Henderson
It’s understood there is a deal on the table at St Mirren for Henderson, but he knows he needs to be at a club where he’ll gain game-time.
It will be a short summer now for the player, but he’s keen to get his future resolved.
He said: “I’ll speak with the people I need to. I’m a St Mirren player at the moment and that’s still there (the deal offer).
“It feels like I’ve been there since maybe nine years old, so the club means a lot to me. They’ve been brilliant with me, it’s not like I’ve come here and lost all contact.
“They moulded me into the player I was before I came to Inverness. I’m thankful for them letting me come here and getting experiences like this, when I came the plan certainly wasn’t to play in a Scottish Cup final.
“Summer will be interesting, I don’t know what will happen – I might stay there.
“I will speak with the people I need to speak to and with the quick turnaround we’ll soon see.
“It’ll be good, I’m looking forward to seeing what’s happening.”
Hampden day will never be forgotten
And, no matter what happens, warming the bench and kicking his heels is not an option for Henderson
He added: “I want to play again next season. Anyone at my age – it’s vital to go and play and develop. If you’re sitting on the bench and just watching there’s only so many learning points to take.
“You’ll never learn more than I did from the exposure of Hampden on Saturday. It’s massive for me in terms of my career.
“It’ll live with me for the rest of my life.”
Aiming high by taking tips from Celts
Henderson felt Saturday’s ultimate test against Ange Postecoglou’s champions was a terrific opportunity as he seeks to show he can mix it in such company.
He said: “It proves a point to myself and anyone else watching that I can play at this level. That’s the most important thing for me – I want to play at the highest level possible.
“I’m striving to be at the level those boys are at, winning the trophies they’re winning and being so successful. Every player wants that, and if you don’t, you’re in the wrong game.
“The final showed the levels you need to aspire to get to. You look at Celtic and take tips off them or whatever. They’re full internationals and that’s where you want to be further in your career.”
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