Hampden hero Glenn Middleton admitted St Johnstone were galvanised by their Covid chaos as the loan Ranger helped keep the Perth men on course for a dream double.
Scotland Under-21 man Middleton climbed off the bench to set up Chris Kane for the opener before a stunning free-kick sent them on their way to the final despite Conor McCarthy pulling one back for St Mirren in their Scottish Cup semi-final.
Callum Davidson’s bid to add this season’s Betfred Cup to the trophy cabinet at McDiarmid Park was rocked after four players were ruled out as two tested positive for coronavirus and two more forced to self isolate.
Middleton admitted he was frustrated not to start but came up with the perfect response as St Johnstone set up a final clash with his former club Hibs, where he also had a loan spell from Ibrox last season.
And the 21-year-old said: “A lot of the boys missed out through coronavirus so it’s massive for them and we pulled together really well as a squad and we knew we had to do that to make everyone proud.
“When the team is named and you get to the ground and you’re not starting you are of course naturally disappointed.
“But you know it’s your job to make the difference if you come off the bench and thankfully it went to plan.
“When I get the chance to come on I need to make the most of it and whenever I get the ball I need to be direct and as positive as I can.
“I’ve practiced free kicks quite a lot and it’s nice when it comes off. I had one at Hibs last week which didn’t quite go to plan but this did and I’m delighted.
“I need to make the most of every chance I get on the pitch and that’s about being confident and positive and doing the right things in training every day and hope to catch the manager’s eye and earn his trust.”
Middleton moved to Gers from Norwich City and is now in his third loan spell with his contract at Ibrox running until 2023.
But he could have decision over his future with the winger unlikely to force his way into Steven Gerrard's champions.
Record Sport columnist Chris Sutton said: “He made the right decision going out on loan. He wasn't going to get a game at Rangers and getting game time at St Johnstone and really improving the team this season has benefited him.
“He made an impact - he was the big difference. He made the goal and the free kick was exceptional and a big decision is to be made.”
Fellow Premier Sports pundit Michael Stewart believes he will have options after his performance and said: “He was on loan at Hibs as well and didn’t really make the impact you would have expected.
“When you see performances like that you can understand why teams are interested in getting him in to their squad.
“He’s still young and the important thing for a wide, creative player is just to bring a bit more consistency because the performance level is there and just needs to come more often and he would have plenty of options to go to.”
