East Fife chairman Sid Collumbine has revealed how he missed his club’s historic cup victory because he was on holiday on Gran Canaria.
The Fifers recorded what has been accepted as their greatest result since winning the League Cup in 1954 when they knocked Aberdeen out of the same tournament on Tuesday night.
John Robertson’s part-time players were leading the Dons 3-2 going into stoppage time at Pittodrie before suffering the heartbreak of conceding a penalty to take the tie into extra-time.
The division two side stayed strong, though, matching their full-time SPL opponents for fitness and ability until it came down to spotkicks to decide who would be going through to the quarter-finals.
Having been two kicks ahead they were pegged back again but goalkeeper Mark Ridgers was eventually the hero as he saved from Chris Clark to send the Fife fans wild.
Also going crazy was chairman Collumbine, although he was celebrating in a bar on the Canary Islands rather than dancing around the directors’ box.’So proud’Talking to Courier Sport as he prepared to board a plane back to Scotland on Wednesday, he said: “I can’t believe I missed it all and I am kicking myself.
“The holiday was all arranged a while ago and even when I looked at the draw I thought I would be OK because the game would be on the Wednesday night.
“Sadly, it didn’t work out that way and I had to rely on calls from our people at the game to keep me updated. The phone bill will cost a fortune.”
He added: “Being honest, when Aberdeen got that last-minute penalty in normal time I nearly had a heart attack!
“I am so proud of the players because they took that blow on the chin when most other teams would have struggled to recover.”‘Funny start’Victory over the Dons at Pittodrie could net the Bayview side a windfall well in excess of £100,000, depending on who they draw and if the fixture is televised.
For Tuesday night’s heroes, though, there was little time to bask in the glory as most were back in their ‘normal’ jobs.
Landscape gardener Bobby Linn played his part in the win and said: “It’s just the romance of the cup really.
“It’s been a funny start to the season but in the cups we seem to have upped our game.”
Bobby has juggled his main job with his football but, unlike others, has also had to contend with daughter Blaike, who is just five weeks old.