Tony Watt admits he was disappointed by the ‘stupid’ pitch invasions during Dundee United’s dramatic victory against Ross County.
The Tannadice striker was full of praise for the colourful, raucous atmosphere created by the 2,300-strong travelling support in Dingwall.
However, Watt was irked by the incursions onto the field following Nicky Clark’s dramatic late winner, revealing that one delirious punter came close to barrelling into his knee.
Midfielder Kevin McDonald did pick up a shoulder knock during the manic pile-on.
A further pitch invasion followed the full-time whistle and, while entirely good-natured (several players posed for selfies with fans) Watt would have rather saluted the supporters as a whole.
“The support was brilliant but I was a bit annoyed with the pitch invasions,” said Watt. “Somebody nearly took my knee out by sliding into me. I don’t like that.
“I would rather they stayed off and we could celebrate together. It cut the celebrations short.
“They just got a bit excited but I’d rather we’d had a longer time to just applaud them and let them know how much we appreciate their support.
“Kevin [McDonald] got hurt as well. I think it’s stupid; really, really daft and ruins it for other people.
“But it’s not the end of the world. I’m okay.”
Benchmark
However, the ‘over-zealous’ scenes — to quote United boss Tam Courts — did nothing to dampen the sense of achievement.
Watt, who joined the club from Motherwell in January, helped the Tangerines seal fourth spot in the Premiership for the first time since 2013/14.
They will enter the Europa Conference League at the third qualifying round stage; a return to continental competition after a decade.
“It’s a brilliant end to the season,” added Watt. “It’s mission accomplished.
“When I signed, I thought — realistically — finishing fourth was the best we could do. We’ve done that.
“This has to be the benchmark. We can’t stand still. We need to kick on again and build on this season.”
