NOBODY DOES IT QUITE LIKE JAMIE ?

CAN JAMIE COME UP TRUMPS AGAIN ?

When it comes to being successful in Scottish Junior Cup Finals ,` nobody does it quite like Jamie Wilson.`

Those very words may be used to describe the ball-winning Cumnock midfielder if he and his team mates can triumph over Rutherglen Glencairn in the 135^th staging of the famous old competition, nowadays sponsored by Clydebuilt Home Improvements, due to be played at Broadwood Stadium later tonight(7.35 PM Kick Off).

More than most, I don’t need any reminding that Auchinleck Talbot can list an array of playing greats, past and present, who have been multiple winners of the Holy Grail silverware however it’s not in a “How Many Medals ” sense that Jamie could be a standout on his own right tonight?

He was in Hurlford United’s engine room for their 3-0 Cup victory over Glenafton in 2014 and was the beating heart of Beith’s triumph two years later when the Johnny Millar steered Mighty beat Pollok 4-3 in a dramatic penalty kicks shoot-out following a 1-1 regulation time draw.

So if reckoning is correct and no less than the acclaimed Davie McGlone (author of The Juniors 100 Years) is in my corner on this one then should Cumnock prevail as fancied tonight ,bookmakers rate them 4/9 odds on favourites, then 33 year old Jamie is on the cusp of making a little bit of Junior Cup history as the only player to have won three Finals with three different clubs???

Others have come close to achieving this feat , none more so than the legendary Billy Patterson who accumulated four winners medals from playing in a total of seven Finals between 1971-82 with Cambuslang Rangers (4), Stonehouse Violet (1) and finally Bailleston (2) but Violet suffering a 1-0 defeat against Bonnyrigg Rose in 1978 scuppered his chances.

The prospect of personal glory was the last thing on the unassuming Jamie’s mind after he and his team mates got down to finalizing their Cup Final preparations with a light or should that be light-hearted training session down at Townhead Park.

He took time out to poke fun at his every bit as experienced midfield sidekick Findlay Frye in saying ,

“Thankfully the Fin is not a sensitive type because he’s been getting a bit of stick from the other guys over the fact he has been in opposition each time I’ve played in the Final.

“For the record, it’s much more preferable to have him lining up in the same side however I’m keeping fingers, toes and everything else crossed that my luck continues to be better than his?”

Jamie has the unwanted distinction of being the oldest player in the likely Cumnock starting X1 tonight but has only spent the last two seasons on the Nock books after arriving from St Cadocs however it did come out in our conversation that his early years in the Junior ranks were also at Townhead Park playing alongside Joe Gold, Jamie Morrison and most notably player/manager Stevie Farrell(nowadays Dumbarton’s team boss).

He briefly joined Troon when Kevin Biggart was looking after Portland Park team matters before the combination of Willie McMahon and coach John McTaggart persuaded him on the merits of signing for Hurlford United where he was to spend all of six years playing under Derek McCulloch and latterly Cup winning gaffer Darren Henderson.

A season further down the line found him at Beith where he and central midfield partner Paul Frize were the veritable anchors in a side that went on to win every possible silverware prize at Junior level over the ensuing six years before following Millar to St Cadocs .

Jamie as a Hurlford player, featured in the last Cup Final to go ahead on a grass pitch and was back at the same Rugby Park venue with Beith when it was an artificial surface so he is well placed to comment on the SJFA decision to play this season’s showpiece game at Broadwood on a Friday night.

The combative ace insisted,” Players will always prefer grass but the Cup Final is played at the end of the season when pitches are far from their best so it definitely helps produce a better spectacle to play on 3G rather than a chewed up grass surface in need of rest and repair.

“And as for the later kick off time , I remember the Rugby Park surface was actually too hot to touch on the Sunday afternoon when Beith went up against Pollok in blazing sunshine and I can only imagine Broadwood would have been similar given the recent hot weather so it’s no bad thing for the teams to be playing at night.”

Jamie’s viewpoint was shared by his Cumnock manager Brian McGinty, in full agreement that both sets of playing charges need to be sheltered from the scorching heat.

“ Anyone who has ever played in blazing sunshine will tell you it’s not a pleasant experience so a night time kick off is ideal from that perspective however I also have sympathies with both sets of supporters from missing out on lining up in the streets, whether it be Rutherglen or Cumnock, to await the players parading the Cup in front of them.

“Some will argue this can still happen on the Saturday and I daresay it will but taking the Cup back to towns immediately after games has been the way of things in every Junior Cup Final up to now so it just doesn’t feel right to be asking the very people we need to be engaging in the competition to put their celebrations on hold .”

McGINTY IS URGING HIS TROOPS TO HIT TOP FORM

Turning to team matters ,Gints added , “ We’ve not played competitively for a number of weeks which might have been problematic but for Gavin Friels offering a friendly match against his Ardrossan Winton Rovers side.

“We ran out 2-1 winners but the result was incidental to the game being a proper work out for the guys and one we clearly needed given the overall rustiness seen in our performance.

“Put it this way, I wouldn’t have liked to be going in against Glencairn without having had the opportunity to blow away the cobwebs.”

Defensive cornerstone Greg Ferry featured against the Winton to show he has completely recovered from the dislocated shoulder injury picked up in Cumnock’s semi- final victory over Glenafton so one time Rangers protégé McGinty is in the pleasant position of having a clean bill of health ahead of the Ayrshiremen’s attempt to lift the Scottish trophy for only the third time in their 111 year history.

Asking the seasoned team boss if he was of a like mind to bookmakers in discounting the Ru’Glonians as 3/1 rank outsiders evoked a guarded and respectful McGinty comment

“ Anything is possible when there are two teams playing in a Cup Final so my players cannot be complacent however Glencairn will need to play some if we get to the levels we are capable of reaching.” He said.

Gints is well aware of the playing resources at dugout adversary Willie Harvey’s disposal not least from having previously managed Glens pair Anton McDowall ( at Rossvale) and Reece Pearson(Irvine Meadow).

He said , “ I’ve a lot of time for Willie and what he has achieved in the Junior game in and he has once again put together a strong side with players in key positions and though it’s hard to gauge how his team will line up, I’m expecting some intriguing match-ups over the 90 minutes.”

AITCHY…CUMNOCK’S MAN IN THE KNOW ABOUT GLENCAIRN

Gints’ belief he should concentrate on his own team’s playing strengths has not prevented him from acquiring a considerable dossier on the First Division outfit…most of it from his No 2 Stevie Aitchison formerly a Glens player and member of Willie Harvey’s backroom team .

The nowadays 46 year old has fond memories of being part of the 2013 Glencairn side whose stirring Scottish Cup run set up a penultimate stage double-header against Auchinleck Talbot which the Ayrshire cracks narrowly won 2-1 on their way to winning the coveted silverware.

Aitchy recalled , “Willie , Joe Pryce and Rab Torrance were in charge of the Glens team I played in and it’s always been one of my biggest regrets to have missed out in the games against Talbot through injury.

“Nevertheless we gave them the fright of their lives through drawing 1-1 in the Beechwood Park first game thanks to a Mark McCarry equalizer from a penalty kick so we had high hopes of coming good when bringing Talbot back to Rutherglen but an unfortunate Brain Welsh own goal did for us and they went on to beat Linlithgow Rose (I think ?).

He went on to be McGinty’s right hand man at both Rossvale and Irvine Meadow before the tendering of his close friend’s resignation in 2020 sparked him into making a return in an Under 20’s coaching capacity to the Rutherglen outfit.

With characteristic Aitchy understatement, the forever to be renowned Pollok playing legend added,

” Working at close quarters with Willie was an eye-opener after he asked for my help when Joe needed to go into Hospital for a minor operation and Glencairn’s current striking sensation Jack McIlveen was just one of the younger players we helped develop.”

Cumnock’s thrilling Cup run has required them to put much vaunted Premier Division trio Auchinleck Talbot, Hurlford United and Glenafton to the sword and is in stark contrast to Glencairn’s journey which has not asked the Ru’Glonians to face a higher league side …until now.

Aitchy admitted, “Such is the luck of the draw and our tough time of it in getting to this stage will not matter a jot come tomorrow night .

“Glencairn have managed to do exactly the same as us in beating the teams put before them and nobody can deny they are in the Final on merit.”

PLAYING TONIGHT FRIDAY 2^nd JUNE 2023 Clydebuilt Homes Scottish Junior Cup Final.Rutherglen Glencairn v Cumnock (Broadwood Stadium 7.35PM)).

Regards Jim O’Donnell