Neil Lennon fought back the tears after his Dunfermline side booked their place in the Scottish Cup Final — dedicating the result to his late father and wider family.
Lennon cut an emotional figure after the Pars beat their bitter rivals Falkirk in a penalty shootout at the end of 120 goalless minutes in a tense and cagey semi-final at Hampden.
It secured the club’s first Scottish Cup final appearance in 19 years and they are now only one game away from winning the competition for the first time since 1968.
Dunfermline will face either Celtic or St Mirren in the final on May 23, with Lennon facing a potential reunion with his former club and old mentor Martin O’Neill.
It was also the third Premiership scalp they have claimed on their run to this season’s final, with Falkirk joining Hibs and Aberdeen as top-flight clubs vanquished by Lennon’s men.
Lennon lost his father, Gerry, back in December and he spoke candidly last night about his old man being very much at the forefront of his thoughts.
Neil Lennon savours Dunfermline’s win at Hampden with his customary airplane celebration
‘I was thinking about my father after the penalty shootout,’ he said. ‘We lost him in December. He would have loved this, so that was for him.
‘He was the biggest influence in my life, both professionally and personally. He’d have loved this. He’d be outside with a cigarette, his fedora and walking stick telling everyone: “I told you”.
‘I’m hoping the family take a bit of solace from this. It’s been difficult but I feel really calm when I think about him. He’s been a huge loss to me but I feel him sometimes.’
In a game of few clear-cut chances, Dunfermline did a good job of stifling a Falkirk side who have lit up the Premiership with their attacking play for much of the season.
It was actually Dunfermline who had the better chances to win it, especially through Callumn Morrison and teenage substitute Lucas Fyfe.
Fyfe had two golden opportunities to win it in extra-time, one of which came crashing back off the crossbar. But it was the Pars who would prevail in the penalty shootout.
Tashan Oakley-Boothe slammed the winning penalty into the net after Brad Spencer and Liam Henderson had both missed for Falkirk.
Lennon enjoys the moment with Pars forward Andrew Tod, whose dad is also a club icon
‘It’s amazing, I thought we were great,’ added Lennon, whose side are well-placed to challenge for promotion back to the top flight with three matches left to play in the Championship.
‘It was attritional but we had the better chances. You could tell the pitch and the occasion was getting to both sets of players.
‘It’s a hell of an achievement for the club — these players have covered themselves in glory all the way through this and now we have one to go.
‘We started well but then got a bit scrappy. We should have been home and hosed in the second half of extra time. I felt calm all day, our mentality and fitness levels were amazing.
‘I haven’t told the players the bad news yet — they are in tomorrow for recovery. The one thing about this lot is they can fall off a cliff quickly, but they are talented and it’s so exciting.
‘What this will do for them and the city — I’m lost for words. We have beaten Aberdeen, Hibs, and now Falkirk — all on merit. It’s as good as it gets. I want to take this club forward.’
Falkirk boss John McGlynn admitted his team simply did not hit the heights. Despite being strong favourites at the start of play, the Bairns just never got going.
In the final third especially, they were unusually blunt and wasteful. It was a far cry from the free-flowing football they have played for much of the season on their way to clinching a place in the top six.
Dunfermline players race off to celebrate after their penalty shoot-out triumph was confirmed
‘We didn’t show enough quality going forward,’ said McGlynn. ‘I think game started very nervily and chaotic, players just kicking the ball up in the air.
‘Once it settled down, we took a little bit of control of the game and put Dunfermline under pressure. But our crosses were poor, our set-plays were poor.
‘We can score five against Kilmarnock, four against Hibs, three last week against Rangers. We had 120 minutes to score a goal and we didn’t do it, we didn’t produce it. Dunfermline were well organised.
‘It didn’t surprise me watching it, the quality was rubbish, you know, it was poor. Any penetrating pass, we ended up turning possession over.
‘We were the makers of our own downfall, to an extent, with regards to getting caught on the ball. It’s painful for us, a real sore one.’
