NARRATIVE klaxon! It was a busy week for the scriptwriters in Livingston and, in the end, they came up with a fitting finale.
Max Stryjek, the Lions' goalkeeper, completed his remarkable journey from zero to hero when his two penalty shoot out saves secured Livi's route into the League Cup quarter finals at the expense of St Mirren on Saturday.
Just seven days earlier it had been his late mistake which had cost his side a point against Aberdeen and the Pole was only too happy to complete his redemption tale.
“I’m just happy because my goal was to prove to myself that I’m a good goalkeeper after the last game," the former Sunderland goalkeeper said. “Everyone says you are always judged on your last game and hopefully that was a good performance for me and for the team in general.
"In the first two hours [after the Aberdeen game], I didn’t even talk to my girlfriend at home and then basically I just get on with it.
“I felt that everyone makes mistakes, you just have to learn from them and then put it behind you.
“And then go and prove to yourself and everyone that you are worth something."
Stryjek, who found himself in and out of the team last season as he competed with Robby McCrorie, produced a fine display on Saturday as Livingston once again got the better of the Buddies in the League Cup.
Crucial stops from Greg Kiltie and Eamon Brophy kept the Lions in the contest, before his heroics foiled Cammy MacPherson and Kyle McAllister when it mattered most.
“I had a sheet of paper with who would be taking their penalties and where he would put them, but I didn’t really I didn’t look at it," the 25-year-old said. "I just went with my gut.
“I just decided whether I was going left or right on each penalty taker. I think it was worth it.
“It was instinct."
When asked about his emotions in the moments after his save from McAllister, Stryjek revealed: “I don’t know because, first of all, I thought the referee was going to ask one of our boys to take another one!
“I was thinking, ‘what is he doing? Surely we have won?’.
“Things stopped for like five seconds and then I thought, ‘okay, we have won’, that’s all I was thinking."
While it was a day for Stryjek and Livingston – who had taken the lead through Alan Forrest – to savour, it was another for St Mirren to forget.
Beaten by the Lions in last year's semi-finals, they failed to gain revenge just 201 days later, despite Conor McCarthy scoring late to force extra-time and penalties.
"It’s not a nice way to lose the game," said McCarthy, 23. "I know we did well to get back into it but we were unlucky when it came to the penalty shoot-out.
"It’s disappointing to have scored that late equaliser and then for it to count for nothing. It was even more disappointing because we’d done well in both cups last season."
McCarthy's goal came amid speculation that St Mirren have fended off bids for his signature in recent weeks, with the highly touted Irishman said to be interesting clubs down south.
“This is a period I haven’t gone through before and it remains to be seen what will happen," said the defender. "All I can do is focusing on doing well in training every day to the best of my ability and, if the gaffer picks me, great. I treat every week as a normal week – there’s no other choice, really.
“If you allow yourself to get distracted in this game, it can easily pass you by so I’m just working hard every day. As for signing an extension, the club has been in talks with my agent for a couple of months now but I leave that to them."
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