Captain Richard Brittain believes keeping Ross County in the Scottish Premiership for a third season is his greatest achievement in football.
The 30-year-old scored the penalty which defeated Hibs 1-0 in Dingwall on Tuesday night, a result which ensured the Staggies will avoid the end-of-season play-off.
While his team-mates and supporters celebrated, Brittain’s overwhelming emotion was relief as he will be suspended for the final match of the season at Partick Thistle on Saturday.
Asked how important top flight football for a third year in a row was to the club, the County captain said: “It’s without a doubt my biggest achievement in football.
“People might find that surprising after getting to the Scottish Cup final. But that was five or six games. This is 38 games over the course of a full season and we have been struggling hard for the majority of it.
“To finally get the win that secures our league status is a massive achievement for us.
“It’s a massive relief not to have to go through a final day with the play-off hanging over us. I am suspended but I’d still have been there to support the players.
“It is nerve-wracking when you have something like a play-off hanging over you. The players don’t have that now so they can go out and enjoy themselves on Saturday and hopefully put on a show.”
County manager Derek Adams and everyone associated with the club celebrated in jubilant fashion at the full-time whistle on Tuesday.
For Brittain, keeping his club in the top flight is an achievement worthy of the party atmosphere which followed the end of the match.
He added: “It would have been really tough to sit in the stand if it was all still in the balance. I had a similar situation in my time at St Mirren when I had to sit in the stand for a vital game at Fir Park (a 3-2 comeback win against Motherwell in the penultimate game of the season which kept St Mirren up in 2006-07).
“We have to keep striving. The manager is the type of person who wants to keep pushing on and I’m sure we’ll do that with the type of players the manager wants at the club.
“I feel we can do that over the coming seasons and I want to be a part of it.”