St Johnstone cup hero Shaun Rooney is in the club, but admits he’ll never be Larsson

Shaun Rooney was ecstatic last night after taking his place alongside a fantastic foursome of players who have scored in both cup finals.

Until yesterday only Barry Ferguson, Kris Boyd, Tom Rogic and Henrik Larsson had managed the feat this century.

And for Rooney, a Celtic fan as a boy, that was the icing on the cake of an afternoon that saw him extend the tally to five.

“That’s not bad company to be in, especially the one name – Larsson,” he said with a grin. “I’ve never been compared to Larsson and I never will be!

“I remember his final game and Seville too. Then obviously when he’s come back to Celtic Park for testimonials.

“I have probably seen a good three years of him and then he went to Barca and Man United.

“I’ll take big Tom Rogic too. He is more recent. Amazing. It’s a great stat to have.

“Both (cup wins) were good but I’d say today’s was my favourite. You want to win cups. It’s been an enjoyable day.

“I saw on Twitter the other day that it was 10,000-1 for us to win both cups. That’s impossible really, isn’t it?

“It was a great ball from David. He just hung it up to the back post and that’s where I want it.

“I just had to go and stick my head on it, and I’ll do that no bother.”

As the Scot admitted, things all looked very different earlier in the season when the team struggled as they tried to adapt to Callum Davidson’s demands.

“We were bottom of the league in December but nobody panicked,”
said Rooney.

“We always thought we were doing well and these things happen in football.

“People speak about what happened to Neil McCann at Dundee.

“They played nice football under his charge but they got relegated – it happens in football.

“But the whole changing room did not worry about it. We never spoke about it we just focused on trying to get up the league. And thankfully we did that and we finished fifth.

“And now look at us – we are at the end of what has been an incredible season for Callum and for the whole squad.”

Glenn Middleton, the winger on loan from Rangers, admitted he broke down after the game.

“I was in tears, I was so happy,” he said. “This means so much to everyone… to the boys, the club.

“This is a special place. As soon as you turn up on a day-to-day basis everyone’s smiling at each other, everyone’s there for each other.

“The respect for everyone in the club, the minute you go in the building, is great.

“Everyone respects each other, whether it’s the kitman, the dinner lady or the manager.

“Everyone’s the same, no one gets treated any differently.

“I know I wasn’t involved in the League Cup win but it really gave me the hunger. I was desperate to be a part of something like that.

“To have the celebrations out on the pitch and in the changing room, it’s just been amazing.

“All in all it is unbelievable what this club’s done this season and it is great for me to go back to Rangers after this.

“I knew myself I needed to come here and impress and make a big impression. I’d like to think I’ve done that.”