Months of action boiled down to this one game, 90 (or 120 and penalties) separated us from a second League Cup triumph under my stewardship.
Standing in my way was a St. Mirren side who are having a decent season by their standards, sitting in eighth place in the Premiership and comfortably clear of the bottom two, hoping to better last season’s position of…eighth and comfortably away from any relegation trouble.
Gary Bowyer is in charge of the Buddies, taking over from Jack Ross, who returned to guide them back to the top flight in the 2023/24 season and return to Sunderland for a second spell.
Unlike us, they had to battle through the group stage to get to the final, defeating Bonnyrigg Rose, Queen of the South, Albion Rovers (on penalties) and Ayr United to finish top of their group.
Dundee United, relegated from the Premiership last season (24/25) were eliminated in the Round of 16 before the Buddies claimed their biggest scalp.
In the quarter-finals, faced with the challenge of Rangers, the Buddies showed no fear and stunned their visitors, gaining revenge for the painful defeat in the 2010 Final, when Rangers triumphed with just nine men.
Livingston, who are in the top half of the Premiership this season (so far) were then downed in the semis to set up the showpiece with us.
In all honesty, I was beginning to feel a bit like Jock Stein when he mentioned the dangers of thinking you have a game won before you play it, in which he lambasted his Celtic side’s performance when Thistle crushed them in the 1971 Final.
A/N: I have attached a link to a Facebook page with the interview, I have been unable to find it on YouTube to embed it.– Marc
Why? Because we came into it as favourites, and had all the pressure on us, at least when you face one of the Old Firm, there’s no pressure on you to perform, it’s all on them.
Getting off to a good start was imperative, and we pushed the Buddies up the park from the first whistle. We were rewarded in the fifth minute when Keiran Hamill, who was just about available for the showpiece after a knock earlier in the month, turned and fired beyond Ahamada in the St. Mirren goal.
Jack McMillan’s quickly-taken throw to Teddy Jenks caught them off guard. A quick one-two between them sent McMillan into the channel, and he found Scott Tiffoney practically at the byline. Finding a route to goal blocked by Marc Bola, Tiffoney slid in, Hamill pounced on Keanu Baccus’ dallying, offloading to Teddy Jenks in a crowded penalty box before Jenks teed Hamill up for a shot on the turn into the bottom corner.
Tiffoney and McMillan were their tormentors in chief, and their dominance down the St. Mirren left had them creaking under the pressure. They were lucky not to go 2-0 down in the 30th minute when Teddy Jenks broke into the box, but his effort was high and wide of goal.
That attempt did not work out, but our next foray forward punished the Buddies for a costly mistake that looked to put some breathing space between us and our opponents. Former Motherwell man James Scott’s attempted cross-field pass was intercepted by Owen Beck, who moved the ball forward to Greg Kiltie, and he slipped the ball through to Keiran Hamill to sweep the ball beyond Ahamada.
One thing that should be known about Partick Thistle, whether in reality or the virtual world, is the notion that if it’s going too well, it probably is.
The Buddies pulled one back a minute before the interval. It was a stunning individual effort, in fairness to James Scott, who beat half my team before eventually curling the ball home from inside the penalty area.
Not wanting to panic, I told the boys they were doing well and that they shouldn’t worry about their goal back, as it had been their first meaningful attack in a half we otherwise dominated and that we could regain control if we started the second half like we did the first.
And sure enough, we had the ball in the net for a third time in the 57th minute when Malachi Fagan-Walcott rifled home after a stramash inside the penalty area following a Scott Tiffoney corner. Unfortunately for us, the joy was cut short when VAR intervened and awarded an indirect free-kick after it showed Jack McMillan had diverted the ball into Mal’s path with his arm.
Three minutes later, we had another couple of close calls, the first being when Keiran Hamill was denied a hat-trick from a close range by an excellent save from Ahamada and then from the subsequent corner when the ball was worked back out to Greg Kiltie, but his shot from 25 yards sailed harmlessly into the ‘keeper’s arms.
With another chance spurned by Keiran Hamill in the 70th minute, it looked like a (legitimate) third goal was beyond us.
Until the 88th minute when Jack McMillan’s lung-bursting run to the byline and cross was nodded in by Mikey Johnston.
YASSSS!
For the second time in four seasons under my management, Partick Thistle have WON the Scottish League Cup.
December is always a hectic month in the Scottish Premiership with games crammed in before the small mercy of a couple of weeks off, if that, for a winter break that I think is unfair and should be extended to the entire SPFL and not just the top flight.
We began the month with a trip north to Dingwall to take on a Staggies side pushing hard for a place in the UEFA Europa Conference League this season under Malky Mackay.
The snow-dusted pitch made for sub-optimal conditions, although Max Haygarth can have no excuse for his horrific challenge on County’s Gavin Whyte that saw him headed for the changing rooms after just 18 minutes.
From then on, the hosts dominated with their man advantage and should have taken the lead in the 30th minute when Jack Moylan fired wide after a superb run and cutback from Zach Awe.
With the game goalless at the break, we were up against it, but the only noteworthy moment of the second half was a shot from Jack Moylan which clipped the crossbar as it went over.
Outshot 21 shots to two with ten men for nearly 70 minutes, we got away with it, and now we’re missing a key squad player for three games.
Very lucky to escape with a point after the early red card.
After a battling performance midweek in the Highlands, we were back in Maryhill for a Sunday lunchtime tussle on the telly with Rangers.
The visitors were on a good run of form domestically, having last lost on the 24th of September when they lost in the League Cup to St. Mirren.
Stuart Bannigan replaced the suspended Max Haygarth. Owen Beck also replaced Harry Milne at left-back in the only changes from the draw at Ross County.
With the rain pouring down in G20, we went at them from the off, forcing a corner after Kwadwo Baah’s mazy run and shot was tipped around the post by Finn Dahmen.
Stuart Bannigan took the corner, which created panic at the back for the visitors, who could not clear their lines. This led to Kwadwo Baah having a shot from inside the penalty area that Finn Dahmen did well to divert over his crossbar for a second consecutive corner kick.
Once again, the visiting defenders were all at sea as Scott Tiffoney floated in a sumptuous cross that Malachi Fagan headed home after seeing off the challenges of multiple Rangers markers.
Sadly, the good mood around Firhill after the goal quickly turned much darker in the 14th minute when Keiran Hamill hobbled off with an injury that could see him miss out on the League Cup Final against St. Mirren.
Rangers had no answer for our obdurate defending in the first 45. The closest they came to equalising before the interval was a Conor Goldson header from a corner that flew well wide of goal.
Any hopes the visitors had of second-half improvement to kick-start any potential comeback, however, were dented ten minutes into the second half when a free-kick from out wide picked out an unmarked Malachi Fagan-Walcott, who headed home his second goal of the afternoon.
Rangers took that second goal as a wake-up call and immediately began putting us under significant and sustained pressure, with Kawabe firing just over the crossbar and a curling strike from the edge of the box from Sam Lammers that struck the post.
Desperately lacking ideas, the best effort that Rangers could muster towards the end was a strike from distance by Zurkowski that flew into the John Lambie Stand behind the goal.
What a performance and what a win! But not without disappointment, as another important player will be missing in the short term.
Can we?!
After handsomely seeing off Rangers to remain in contention for the Scottish Premiership title, we travelled to Florence knowing that a win at the Stadio Artemio Franchi would ensure direct passage to the Round of 16 of the Europa Conference League.
With Keiran Hamill injured, it was Max Haygarth’s turn to lead the line as we chased history against the Italian giants in the only change to the side from the one that defeated Rangers.
The first half was a total non-event, the closest either side came to looking like scoring was a header from a tight angle by Teddy Jenks after an Owen Beck free-kick towards the far post.
Fiorentina came out all guns blazing in the second half, but the game turned in the 52nd minute.
Jack McMillan launched the ball hopefully up the park, where it found Max Haygarth running through before the summer arrival from Linfield rifled home to give us a shock lead.
Enter VAR, who judged Max to be marginally offside when the ball was played through, and as such, our dreams were crushed.
After that, the game completely fell apart for us.
Two goals in a minute from Ruben Sottil and Igor had us on the ropes before Josip Brekalo delivered the coup de grace in the 90th minute.
An absolute sickener.
There Arno words.
After our chastening loss in Florence, we returned to domestic matters with a trip to Easter Road to take on Hibs, whose manager Luigi Di Biagio’s jacket was, to use a Scottish phrase, on a shoogly peg (meaning his employment position was precarious).
Despite a win against Aberdeen on December 3rd, the Hibees form had been wretched and hadn’t won a game before that since the 29th of October against St. Mirren.
The home side dominated the first half and looked like they had given their embattled manager some respite in the fifth minute when Elias Hoff Melkersen side-footed Hibs into the lead, only for VAR to intervene and deny the Norwegian (yet) another goal against us.
Moments later they had another good chance to take the lead when Kyle Magennis headed just over the crossbar from a Luca Connell corner.
Just as Hibs were faster out of the traps in the first half, we were in the ascendency early on in the second half, culminating in the game’s opening goal when Mikey Johnston’s deep cross found the head of Kwadwo Baah. But he found Oliveira in the Hibs goal equal to his effort.
That was until the slick ball squirmed out of his gloves and back to Kwadwo, and he coolly slotted into an unguarded net.
Try as they might, Hibs could not find an equaliser and we warmed up for our Europa Conference League decider with Anderlecht with a scrappy win.
File under “scrappy”.
After five differently challenging games, our Europa Conference League odyssey concluded at Firhill in the rain against the Belgian heavyweights Anderlecht.
The remit was simple, win and you’re in the Round of 16 or a playoff would await should we not.
Keiran Hamill was back in full training but was not risked, with the gamble being I’d rather him be fit for the League Cup Final rather than this.
We began brightly, getting up the park and well inside their half from the off, the early pressure paying off when Sardella gave away a penalty for chopping Kwadwo Baah down in the box after Jack McMillan’s pass inside had picked him out.
Verbruggen in the Anderlecht goal guessed correctly but was beaten all the same by Scott Tiffoney’s emphatic spot-kick.
Just two minutes later, with Anderlecht licking their wounds, we pounced again and doubled our lead through Mikey Johnston.
Greg Kiltie’s stunning reverse pass on the break caught Anderlecht napping and Johnston cut inside from the left and drilled the ball beyond Verbruggen. Thistle in dreamland.
After two goals in the first 12 minutes, it took until the last 20 minutes for the game to come back to any semblance of life – but boy would it.
First, Anderlecht got themselves together and grabbed a deserved goal through a slick move from back to front that was finished off by Yari Verschaeren.
Then it all got a bit silly.
Sensing a possible equaliser, Anderlecht committed men forward and found themselves on the receiving end of a devastating counter-attack as Toby Tarrant’s hoof clear found Greg Kiltie just inside the Anderlecht half. The former Killie man passed wide to Mikey Johnston, who took it inside before playing a cross-field ball to Kwadwo Baah and his daisy cutter of a cross was tapped in by Scott Tiffoney for his second of the game.
Still unrelenting, Anderlecht took the game to us once again and we pounced on an attempt to play out from the back to score again. Teddy Jenks intercepted a pass intended for Yari Verschaeren and fed it to Scott Tiffoney who squared it for Max Haygarth to get in on the act.
We were far from done, in the 80th minute Greg Kiltie prodded the ball into space for Kwadwo Baah to run onto and fire home a sensational fifth goal before eventually settling for six when Baah added a second with a scintillating solo goal.
Astonishingly, we are through to the Round of 16 of the Europa Conference League.
Hopefully, we will get a better tie than Man United, like we did last year in the Europa League.
Straight through to the Round of 16 in style.
Our penultimate league match of 2025 was a trip to Almondvale to face a Livi side whose recent run of three successive wins had catapulted them into contention for a place in the Europa Conference League.
Despite that good form, we started the better and almost had the lead inside the first couple of minutes when Shamal George had to be at his best to tip a Scott Tiffoney effort around his far post for a corner that was initially poorly dealt with by the Livi defence but Greg Kiltie’s attempted cross sailed into George’s grateful arms and the danger was cleared.
The majority of the first half was dominated by us and we were unlucky not to score a second time when Tiffoney burst into a dangerous area and, once again, George had to be at his best to keep him out.
Livi’s best chance of the entire game came in the 62nd minute when a low, whipped corner from former Jag James Penrice was headed towards goal by Jack Fitzwater but Daniel Rose was on hand to deny the big defender.
It would prove to be a costly miss, as moments later Keiran Hamill marked his return to league action with the goal we had been threatening to score all game.
Jack McMillan’s persistence paid off and he won the ball high up the park and, after a one-two with Teddy Jenks, played the ball down the line for Scott Tiffoney whose deep cross was headed back across Shamal George’s goal by Hamill to break the deadlock.
Livi pushed hard for an equaliser, and they nearly got one in the 82nd minute when Josh Kayode’s turn and shot cannoned back off the crossbar.
A deserved win in the end with our main man back in the team for the league games.
Shooting practice needed, methinks.
Hogmanay and our final game of 2025 brought a trip to Motherwell knowing a win would ensure we ended the year on top of the league and have a game in hand.
The home side had won two games since the beginning of October and it showed as a first-half blitz had us cruising towards top spot and dreaming of Champagne wishes and Caviar dreams.
Scott Tiffoney opened the scoring in the 28th minute when he headed home an Owen Beck cross that left the Motherwell defence flat-footed.
Three minutes later a tidy finish from Keiran Hamill doubled our lead before a thumping strike from the edge of the box by Teddy Jenks made it three.
The majority of the people left in Fir Park were wearing Red and Yellow by the 84th minute, and they were treated to a lovely fourth goal as Greg Kiltie raced through and fired past Liam Kelly.
The Jags are looking up, but the January transfer window will be huge for Derek McInnes’ Motherwell side.
Drubberwell.
A glorious December that brought us great success domestically and in Europe, means that the cinch Premiership looks like this going into a World Cup year*.
*A World Cuo that Scotland (again) will not be going to, sadly.
Wallace 'Til I Die 