Dundee boss John Brown admits he has great memories of the Scottish Cup as a player at Dundee.
When he was formerly at Dens, the Dark Blues took some notable scalps and came agonisingly close to making it all the way to the final in 1987.
They faced bitter rivals Dundee United at Tynecastle in the semi-final with the Tangerines ultimately running out 3-2 winners.
Shortly before the final whistle that day, Brown came mighty close to netting an equaliser with a stunning left-foot free-kick that looked destined to nestle in the back of the net before United keeper Billy Thomson produced a world-class fingertip save to break Dundee hearts.
Now, the manager is looking for his players to sample Scottish Cup glory of their own, starting against Raith Rovers at Dens.
Brown said: “I have great memories from the cup. We knocked out the Old Firm when I was a player with Dundee. I would like the boys to now experience that for themselves.
“I remember in 1987 we lost narrowly 3-2 to Dundee United at Tynecastle in the semi-final, before United went on to lose to St Mirren in the final. You don’t get too many chances to sample cup success.
“So that’s what I’ll be putting across to the players in the run up to Saturday. To be honest, it’s just good to get a home tie and hopefully we can progress.”
Brown is the first to admit that league success in the Championship is the No.1 priority for his team this season.
However, he insists that they will not be taking the Scottish Cup lightly.
Brown said: “We’re on a decent run and we’ve only had one defeat in eight games.
“You are happy with any home game in this cup and Raith are tough opponents. We’ve played them twice already in the league so know what they’re all about.
“No team treats the Scottish Cup lightly. It’s special and we know that. We have to approach this tie the same as we did the Hamilton game. Raith have no stand-outs. They all work hard for each other.
“So we have got to match their effort and roll the sleeves up as that’s what the cup can come down to on the day.”