Released from Blackburn Rovers and with two horrible knee injuries already behind him, Callum Hendry was ready to give up on his footballing dream.
It was 2017, he was still young, although there remained a lingering thought about packing the boots away for good and exploring alternative options.
“I was fit again after doing my knee for the second time and actually said to my dad that I wanted to call it a day,” revealed Hendry, beginning a lengthy interview with The PA this week.
Determined in nature and not one to shy away from a challenge, there was to be one more crack at making it.
Contact had been made with St Johnstone and a trial was arranged. There was a week to show off his ability.
“It was probably the best I’ve ever trained,” Hendry laughed.
“I went home after the week and I was then offered a one-year deal. It was more of a youth deal and not a lot of money, but I thought why not?”
He moved into digs, was playing primarily for the club’s under-20 team and was homesick.
But away from the club, two people played a particularly special role in keeping his spirits high and providing the platform for an enjoyable journey.
“I moved into digs with Rich and Shona in Almondbank,” Hendry smiled.
“They played a massive part in me being in Scotland for as long as I was. I was so homesick. Away from training and McDiarmid Park, they were massive for me and made me feel right at home.”
Gradually, Hendry would edge closer to Tommy Wright’s first team and would net his first goal in professional football on August 18, 2018. It arrived in Dumfries in a 4-2 (after extra time) League Cup win against Queen of the South.
He pointed to the sky in celebration, bursting with pride and thinking only of his mum who had sadly passed away when he was a youngster.
“I never thought I would score a professional goal,” he said. “I remember it vividly - we had the purple BLK kit on.
“In the warm-up that day, I got pooed on by a bird and everyone was saying it was good luck.
“I didn’t think I would even get on but the game went to extra time. The gaffer chucked me on, there was a short pass back to the keeper, I knocked it past him and had a tap-in.
“It was big for me and, after I scored, I ended up pointing to the sky and started thinking about mum.
“That first goal was real special for me. You always dream of it and think: ‘Is it really going to happen?’
“There was a sense of relief, I was just so proud of myself and excited for the future.”
Fast forward to April 2019 for another milestone moment. Hendry scored his first Premiership goal for the club.
And who better to produce it against than local rivals Dundee.
“I’ve scuffed it to be fair,” recalled Hendry with a laugh. “The ball went into the ground and up into the top corner. My dad was actually at that game and scoring against Dundee is always good. I enjoyed the rest of that season.”
As time wore on Hendry would pick up the label of ‘super sub’. He had a terrific knack of impacting games off the bench.
He said: “Football is a team game and I didn’t mind the super sub tag. If I scored the winner or helped the team, then that was perfect.
“But of course you would always rather do it from the start. I think I was only playing 20 or so minutes but was managing to get goals. I was still involved and even that was a dream.”
With Callum Davidson now in the Perth hot-seat, Hendry was sent on loan to fellow Premiership side Aberdeen for the second half of the 2020/21 season.
That, of course, meant he missed out on playing in both of the cup final triumphs at Hampden Park.
“It was a bit bittersweet missing out on the cups but I was delighted for the boys and the club,” he said.
“It was amazing and I was just happy for the people involved in the
club. I probably played more at Aberdeen than I was at Saints, but still not as much as I would’ve liked.
“It was a good experience for me as a person – a different place and meeting a new group again.
“I knew I was going on loan somewhere, maybe the Championship or I think Hibs were interested too.
“But I gave Aberdeen a crack, enjoyed it and feel I scored enough goals for the time I got.”
Back at McDiarmid Park in the summer, soon Hendry was jetting off with his team-mates for a Europa League challenge against Turkish giants Galatasaray. This was very much a young footballer living the dream.
“There I was warming up for a game against Galatasaray,” Hendry said. “It was just mental.
“It was surreal going out to warm-up in Turkey and the whistles from the Galatasaray fans.”
Hendry was on the bench – he got on – as Saints stunned their hosts to draw 1-1 thanks to a Jason Kerr penalty.
“The club deserved to be there and the gaffer made it apparent to us that there was every chance we could do it,” continued Hendry.
“For Jason to score a penalty and for us to draw over there was just crazy. He won’t admit it, but he’s scuffed that penalty. He stuck it away like a striker though.
“I remember big Liam Gordon was fist-pumping their fans. I’m thinking: ‘What is he doing here?’”
After also featuring against Austrians LASK in the Europa Conference League, Hendry was on the move again for a brief stint in the Championship with Kilmarnock. He returned in January to a Saints side in deep trouble and lingering ominously close to the Premiership trap door.
It would not be exaggerating to say that his goals – eight in the league – kept the Perth club in the top division.
“I felt really hungry and was desperate to prove a point,” Hendry explained.
“Dundee was my first game back and I didn’t score but I felt it was the best I’d played for a long time.
“The changing room needed a lift. You aren’t going to be a confident team when going through a run like that.”
One particular occasion that gave team-mates and Perth fans alike a monumental lift was a last-minute winner against Motherwell in March. A stunning first-time volley from the corner of the box.
“I’d take any last minute winner, whether a tap-in or off my back,” he beamed.
“But will I score a better goal, at a better time, with my weak foot? Probably not. It was some feeling.
“I couldn’t breathe because I was knackered and then big Gordy jumps on me in the celebrations.
“From day dot, I thought there was no chance that this team would go down.”
They came close and needed a play-off win over Inverness to retain top-flight status.
“We were all fuming about being in the play-off and probably a bit nervous,” Hendry admitted.
“At half-time in the first leg it was perfect. It was exactly the position we wanted to be in.
“But we needed to make it tougher for ourselves and give the gaffer a heart attack. I’m just glad we got the job done in the second leg.”
A comfortable 4-0 win in the reverse fixture in front of an electric McDiarmid Park was a fitting end to Hendry’s Perth adventure. He even scored, although was hacked off that team-mate Shaun Rooney went one better.
He chuckled: “I never thought I would chip a goalkeeper like that. I was buzzing with it. Then two minutes later Shaun Rooney goes and does a better version. I was fuming.”
The celebratory scenes in the aftermath of that successful safety mission would be his last with the club.
As he left the field of play, his name echoed around the stadium to the tune of Lady Gaga hit ‘Paparazzi’.
“I’m your biggest fan, I’ll follow you until you love me, Callum, Callum Hendry,” the home fans chanted.
“That far corner at McDiarmid Park was just unbelievable,” he said of the Fair City Unity group of supporters.
“All credit to the fans because I’m not sure the club would still be in the league if it wasn’t for them.
“I didn’t think I’d have my own song, neither did my family. My nieces and nephews have been singing it.
“I’m glad the last game against Inverness went how it did for the fans. They deserve it as much as anyone else.”
Hendry, “forever indebted to the club” after signing for Salford City, had some final words for a man who started as a team-mate but became a best pal.
“If every club had someone like Liam Gordon, they would be very lucky,” Hendry said.
“He is from the city, went to the local school, knows everyone and has a love for the club. There aren’t many like that.
“Everyone knows they are getting 110 per cent off him and he’ll run through brick walls for the club.
“I love the guy to bits and he is my best pal. It was tough saying goodbye. He might be six foot three but he has a soft side too.
“Saints are in good hands with that guy as skipper.”
