Former Irish League star will 'take this weekend to the grave with me' after St Mirren's League Cup glory

Northern Ireland international Conor McMenamin admits he’ll “take this weekend to the grave with me” after helping St Mirren seal Premier Sports Cup glory by beating Celtic at Hampden Park.

McMenamin, who joined the Buddies after starring in the Irish League with Glentoran in 2023, started the showpiece decider and played 72 minutes as St Mirren lifted only their second competition crown.

placeholder image — Northern Ireland international Conor McMenamin (right) up against Celtic's Kieran Tierney yesterday on cup final duty for St Mirren (left) and St Mirren's Conor McMenamin battle for the ball during the Premier Sports Cup Final at Barclays Hampden, Glasgow. Picture date: Sunday December 14, 2025. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Jane Barlow/PA Wire. RESTRICTIONS: Use subject to restrictions. Editorial use only, no commercial use without prior consent from rights holder.

Led by Lisburn-born manager Stephen Robinson, St Mirren went ahead after only two minutes as captain Marcus Fraser headed home from a corner before Reo Hatate equalised.

However, Jonah Ayunga’s second half brace had the Paisley club in dreamland and McMenamin was savouring full-time celebrations on the pitch with daughter Daisy.

“It’s an unbelievable day for us,” said McMenamin on BBC Sport Scotland. “I’m proud of all the team.

"It was an amazing effort from us all. We worked hard all week on how we could nullify Celtic and play our own game. I thought we were brilliant.

"We came here and believed in ourselves...we believed we would beat Celtic. It wasn’t luck today, we were the best team and deserve to put our hands on that trophy.

"We’ll enjoy this. The belief we have in each other, we believe in what we do and what the manager tells us. Before the game he had emotional family messages and what it meant. It’s about seizing moments like this, they don’t come around too often when you’re at a club like this.

"You might never get another chance. Thankfully we grasped that. I’ll take this weekend to the grave with me and I’m going to enjoy it.”