Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Inverness CT v St Johnstone: Vital game for returning Croft

Lee Croft in action for St Johnstone.
Lee Croft in action for St Johnstone.

Try telling Lee Croft that St Johnstone’s clash with Inverness Caledonian Thistle is meaningless.

Nothing could be further from the truth, with the winger insisting it is actually one of the most important games of his season.

Croft, who along with Steven MacLean penned new deals with the Perth club, has a Scottish Cup final place to earn.

And the best way to do that would be putting his best foot forward in the Highlands.

Some certain May 17 starters will be rested with the final in mind, but the former Manchester City man, who has signed a one-year deal, admitted: “It’s different for me.”

He added: “Because I’ve been out of the team through injury and only started one game in a month (against Celtic in midweek) I want another game.

“The injury couldn’t have come at a worse time.

“I missed the semi-final and a few games after it, so Sunday is really important for me.

“When I’ve been out of the team other lads have done really well, which says a lot about our squad. I’m not one of those who is guaranteed a place. This match really matters.

“Before the semi-final we faced Kilmarnock and we were playing for places against Aberdeen that day. That’s how I’ll be approaching the Inverness match.”

After experiencing the low of not finding a club last summer Croft appreciates what he’s got at Perth. He knows only too well that the grass isn’t necessarily greener away from McDiarmid Park.

He said: “It’s been dragging on for a while, so it’s nice to get it sorted. I can relax now and concentrate on my football.

“There was other interest but I’ve been at so many places in my career where it’s not been enjoyable. Now I can see the worth of staying somewhere when you like it.

“I value what I’ve got here. I enjoy my football, it’s a great dressing room and the staff are good to work for. I’m enjoying living in the area as well, so everything’s good.”

Croft credited manager Tommy Wright with getting his career back on track.

“Tommy brought me up here a few months ago,” he recalled. “He was hard on me at the beginning, telling me I needed to get myself fit. I think I needed that. I worked hard, did as he asked and I’ve reaped the rewards of getting back playing.

“The first part of the season was horrible. Since I first turned pro as a 17-year-old I’ve never been out of the game like that. Things are back on track now. St Johnstone gave me a chance and I’ve taken it.

“It’s been a great year, and now we’ve got the Scottish Cup final to look forward to.”

The Croft family were left disappointed when a hamstring injury prevented him from playing at Ibrox against Aberdeen, and the Englishman is hoping next Saturday’s trip north will be more fruitful for him and them.

He said: “I had a lot of people coming up for the semi-final and it’s the same for the final. Hopefully if we win it that will be pay back to them for me not playing in the semi.”