John Rankin admits the pain of cup final defeats will be driving him to succeed with Hamilton Accies in the SPFL Trust Trophy final on Sunday.
The Accies gaffer made it to three finals as a player and came out on the losing side on each occasion, so he is determined to make sure his team come out on top in the battle with Championship rivals Raith Rovers.
As a 21-year-old at Ross County, Rankin lost in the final of the very same competition back in 2004 against Falkirk and more heartache followed in the 2014 Scottish Cup final when St Johnstone defeated his Dundee United side at Celtic Park.
A year later, Rankin’s Dundee United were denied again when Celtic ran out victors in the League Cup final.
So having only tasted defeat in showpieces as a player, he hopes to change the record in his first final as a gaffer.
The 39-year-old said: “Losing those three finals still hurt, even to this day.
“When you lose a final, you get so close, you have all the build up and then you lose. It is painful. The memories I have aren’t good ones.
“I think the Scottish Cup final in 2014 was the worst.
“You grow up with finals at Hampden but this one was at Celtic Park which wasn’t ideal.
“Having lost to St Johnstone was the one we felt we could have won.
“We got caught up in the team we had that day rather than performing. That is still disappointing.
“The next day we had a celebration but it was more like a funeral for us. It was that bad.
“I remember those days and I don’t want to sample that again.
“If I can share my memories with the players and they get a better experience, then great.”
Rankin also revealed his lasting memory of getting to the 2014 Scottish Cup final was almost being hit by a golf ball by team-mate Paul Paton in the build-up to the game.
He said: “I remember before the Scottish Cup final in 2014 Paul Paton nearly hit me with a golf ball and Brian Graham nearly ran me over.
“We were at St Andrews golf course and it is amazing that is the memory that I have.
“It relaxed us and gave us a good laugh, but ultimately we never won the game and that would have been the thing I should have remembered.
“It’s not the build-up, it is the 90 minutes and making sure you have a lasting memory.”
Rankin’s men will be underdogs against the current holders, who have won the trophy three times in the last nine years, including sharing the silverware with Inverness in 2020 when the final wasn’t contested due to Covid.
Accies needed extra-time in the semi-final to see off Queen of the South and in the Scottish Cup fourth round they sent Premiership Ross County crashing out on penalties after a perfect shootout display, so they have shown they can go the distance and also upset the odds in knockout football.
Asked if his side had been brushing up on spot-kicks ahead of facing Ian Murray side, Rankin said: “No. We haven’t practiced penalties.
“Certain players practice them anyway and they felt confident the last time.
“Going by experience I don’t think it makes any difference practicing.
“Once you are on that pitch, with the environment around you and how hostile it is, it doesn’t have any bearing. It’s how cool you can be.
“You can be as cool as you want in front of your peers and colleagues.
“But in a cup final when you have a ball and a goalkeeper in front of you it’s irrelevant.”
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