St Johnstone club captain Dave ‘CupTie’ Mackay this week announced his retirement from the game after admitting defeat to a long-running battle with a hip injury.
The 35-year-old joined the Saints from Livingston alongside midfielder Murray Davidson for a combined fee of £50,000 by then manager Derek McInnes after the Perth side had gained promotion from Divison One.
The defender last played at the end of January this year and in total made 268 appearances for the McDiarmid Park side. Mackay was written in St Johnstone folklore when he captained them to Scottish Cup victory in 2014 after defeating Dundee United. However, he did have to wear a daft Go Pro strapped around his stomach when lifting the trophy.
Tributes have flooded in for a living legend, who will continue to coach the under 20’s side at McDiarmid Park.
The man himself on his decision
“The decision hasn’t been an easy one but I’ve had to take into consideration that I don’t want to do irreversible damage that affects me away from football.
“I’ll obviously miss playing but my decision opens up plenty of other opportunities.
“The club has done everything it could have to help in my recovery and I thank them for that and I thank the fans for their support over the past seven years and assure them I’ll be around the club for some time yet.”
St Johnstone manager Tommy Wright
“I could go on all day about what Dave has done for Saints but that is well documented in the club history books.
“The simple truth is that I’m losing a great player and my captain. Very few players can be described as irreplaceable but Dave comes close.
“He’ll be missed in the dressing room with his leadership qualities and dry sense of humour and on behalf of myself, my staff and the players we wish him every success in the future.”
Derek McInnes who brought Mackay to St Johnstone
“Dave was a perfect signing.
“Everybody who has managed him will say the same thing – he never lets you down. He was always more than a six or seven out of 10 – you never got worse than a solid performance and a lot of the time it was outstanding.
“Technically he was never found wanting. He had two good feet, was a good size, could get up and down the pitch and was a good boy in the dressing room.
“If every player was like Cuptie management would be a lot easier.”
Former team-mate Jody Morris
Saints Midfielder Chris Millar
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