Stephen Robinson is optimistic that St Mirren’s remarkable rise could culminate in an unexpected victory against Celtic in the Premier Sports Cup final.

Under Robinson’s impressive leadership, the Northern Irish manager has guided the Saints to three consecutive top-six league finishes and a return to European competition after a 37-year hiatus. With silverware now within reach, the team stands poised to make their mark at Hampden today.

When questioned about whether his squad deserved a trophy to complement their Premiership successes over his four-year leadership, Robinson expressed, “It would certainly be nice.”

“Our journey in the cup competition began quite some time ago,” he reflected. “Since then, we’ve navigated through some tough matches against Hearts, Kilmarnock, and Motherwell. We truly feel we’ve earned our place in the final.”

Acknowledging the challenge ahead, Robinson stated, “We know we’re up against a formidable Celtic side, packed with individual talent capable of deciding the match. Still, we carry a lot of belief. We’ve had a really good three or four years.”

Robinson is confident of his side’s chances ahead of the Premier Sports Cup final this weekend

The Saints boss failed in his two previous attempts at Hampden, against Celtic in the 2017/18 season

He concluded, “The club’s trajectory has been consistently upward, and securing this trophy would be a fitting culmination to our progress.”

‘Somebody said to me the other day that people in England don’t understand that getting a top-six position or Europe with a club like St Mirren is incredible. It’s like Northern Ireland qualifying for the Euros.

‘So, actually, to put silverware on it… I’ve had two opportunities before and we weren’t able to do it. I’m hoping third time lucky.’

Robinson, who guided Motherwell to a third-place finish in 2019/20, lost both national cup finals to Celtic in 2017/18.

‘When I first got to the final, I was very early on in management,’ he recalled. ‘You’re very reactive to things. You want to solve every single problem all the time.

‘I don’t do that anymore. I give a lot of power to others. I believe I’m a lot calmer in terms of decisions.

‘I think maturity helps. Managing over 400 games, it certainly helps you manage situations better.’

Robinson would love to see stalwarts like Alex Gogic, Marcus Fraser and skipper Mark O’Hara lift the trophy.

Gogic and Fraser were in the squad when he took over from Jim Goodwin in February 2022. And O’Hara was his first summer signing three months later.

Robinson’s fine recruitment has added a string of successful cut-price signings, often in need of a career reboot.

Motherwell and Robinson were left to suffer having gone down to Celtic at the national stadium in 2017

This time, however, Saints come into the showpiece on the back of a 2-0 win over Dundee United, Keanu Baccus on the scoresheet

‘We can’t sign a finished article with the finances we have,’ said Robinson. ‘But we try and have people with points to prove.

‘Look at people like Killian Phillips who went on a couple of loans and didn’t really get accepted. He’s made a home for himself.

‘There’s Miguel Freckleton, Dan Nlundulu, I could go through the whole list. You want good characters that’ll fight for each other — and they certainly do.

‘There’s players and staff that’s been with me the whole time I’ve been here. It would mean more to me for them to win it.

‘I’d love to get a trophy for these people — the boys who’ve had another chance at life, so to speak, and the loyal staff who’ve worked so hard to give everything to this club.’

Stephen Robinson was promoting Premier Sports’ coverage of St Mirren v Celtic in the Premier Sports Cup Final. Premier Sports is available on Sky, Virgin, STV Player and Amazon Prime as an add on subscription.