Liam Craig’s team-mates weren’t able to help him mark his record-equalling appearance for St Johnstone by beating Hibs.
And that will make them even more determined to make sure his record-breaking one is a Perth victory.
If selected, the veteran midfielder will go past the 441 total he now shares with Steven Anderson against Dundee on Saturday.
And the prospect of turning it into a perfect afternoon for the club legend adds an extra layer of motivation for players who felt aggrieved at the controversial manner of their weekend defeat at Easter Road.
Delighted to join @stevenando85 on 441 appearances for this club. I was fortunate enough to play along side him for a lot of those games and to do it over such a successful period for the club makes it even more special ⚽️💙 https://t.co/RgoFrBD3TB
— Liam Craig (@lc10media) September 26, 2021
“We have a massive game on Saturday now,” said Callum Booth.
“Liam has been unbelievable for this club and is great about the changing room.
“Before games in the warm-up he is in our ear and gets us going. He really is a leader around the place.
“He is still fit as a fiddle and playing a huge part in this squad.
“Hopefully he can break the appearance record this week and we can get a win for him. He is such a good person and player.”
Parking their anger at the John Beaton penalty decision that defined Sunday’s 1-0 loss against Hibs will have been the first task of the working week at McDiarmid Park.
First chance to see penalty incident back. These things happen but twice they've gone against us against Hibs with John Beaton in charge in the past two seasons. pic.twitter.com/02xncySxo6
— St Johnstone 1884 (@stjohnstone1884) September 26, 2021
“We’d had a brilliant run against Hibs and really had the upper hand recently,” said Booth.
“It is disappointing to lose in any fashion but it hurts even more when it’s a decision the ref has made against us.
“You get them in the season and you hope they level themselves out. But sitting after the game it is hard to take.
“At the time I didn’t think it was a penalty. I’ve watched it back – it’s not a penalty.
“He is literally half a yard away and Boyle has volleyed it against him. Jamie’s hand is in against his body. There is nothing he can do.
“I just can’t see how it can be given when it’s so close.
“We were right in the game and the first goal was always going to be massive.
“Even when we went down to 10 men we created a couple of chances.”
No Jamie McCart
Saints will face Dundee without suspended centre-back, Jamie McCart.
“It’s frustrating and he was obviously angry and annoyed,” said Booth. “Rightly so.
“But Jamie will know himself that he shouldn’t have reacted like that for the second card.
“He has been such a good player for us so we will look forward to getting him back.”
Losing their first league game to Hibs as a result of Beaton’s spot-kick intervention is familiar territory for Saints.
The 2020/21 bounce-back against Jack Ross’s side wasn’t too bad, mind you.
“It’s so similar,” said Booth. “There was the penalty up at McDiarmid against Hibs in the last minute last season which was very soft.
“That lost us the game and the exact same happened on Sunday. It’s deja vu. So hopefully we can win the double again!”
