A FOUR-GONE CONCLUSION

JOHN O'NEIL'S man-of-the-match award was of little consolation as the veteran Gretna midfielder lost his FOURTH final.

The 34-year-old had already tasted defeat in Scottish Cup finals with Dundee United and Hibs as well as a League Cup Final with St Johnstone.

O'Neil was desperate to end his run as the bridesmaid by helping Gretna defy the odds against Hearts at Hampden.

But it wasn't to be as the plucky Second Division champions went down on penalties.

The spot-kick agony though couldn't take anything away from Gretna's achievements this season.

They romped home by 18 points in the league to win promotion to the First Division and earned a place in Europe through their run to Hampden.

Here, in an exclusive diary for MailSport, O'Neil takes us through the build-up to the Cup Final in the biggest week of Gretna's history.

SUNDAY: A day off for the lads so it was like the calm before the storm and a welcome break after our training camp in Spain.

When you get to my age it's always good to get some relaxation time and I lazed around with my wife Lorraine and the kids.

Spain was brilliant, with an excellent hotel in the mountains. But the trip was as serious as it was relaxed and I found that out to my cost.

We had to get up early for training and one morning James Grady and I were late - but it was all his fault. I was sharing a room with him and he'd promised to set the alarm on his mobile phone to get us up.

But the dozy numpty forgot to put the clock forward an hour when we left Scotland so we slept in.

The manager phoned to tell us everyone was in the foyer waiting for us to go for a run. We were hit in the pocket, 50 Euros each.

MONDAY: The final fitting for our Cup Final kilts and I looked quite fetching in mine.

Then again, even Hen Broon would have looked good compared to big Derek Townsley.

It can't be easy wearing a kilt when you're 6ft 5in and even worse when you're an Englishman.

That must be why Degsy and the rest of the guys from south of the Border are threatening to wear St George's Cross underwear.

No doubt I'll be a REAL Scotsman but I better watch out for those damn photographers on the pitch before the game hoping to catch an eyeful.

At night I had to sort out the tickets I promised people for the match. I wanted to do it at the weekend but couldn't find the time to sort everything out.

TUESDAY: Raydale Park threw its doors open to the press and - as always - the journalists were made to feel welcome

The Scottish Cup was at the stadium but a lot of the boys refused to have their picture taken with the famous trophy.

It's a superstition lots of players have but it has never worked for me. So I thought, "Sod it" and had a go at holding it.

Went home at night and sat down to watch the BBC documentary Gretna's Field of Dreams.

It showed the club in a good light and made me realise what a massive story we had become.

A lot of it was filmed before I joined in January from Falkirk but it gave me a wee buzz to see how the whole community gets involved with the club.

WEDNESDAY: Normally a day off but we were in for a training session - showing just how serious everyone was about the Final.

But it was hard to take Grady's Hampden hair cut seriously.

I've always said he looks like boxer Ricky Hatton and when I caught sight of his dodgy barnet the resemblance was uncanny.

Training became a bit more intense and we were working on a lot of things tactically.

The manager is thorough in his preparation for games and Hearts would have been watched for well over a month ahead of the Final.

At night I watched the UEFA Cup Final to get myself in the mood for our own day of destiny.

When I saw the Seville players lifting the trophy I let my mind drift away ... and dream.

THURSDAY: The boys headed off to the Crutherland House Hotel in East Kilbride - our base camp until the showdown with Hearts.

It's always good to get the players together because it can help create a crucial bond in the build-up.

That sounds good in theory but it's not quite the same when you're sharing with wee James.

He never brings any sweets or juice to feast on - it's always left to me to provide everything.

James is tighter than a photofinish and I swear that's why he's teetotal - so he doesn't have to buy a round.

He stole the double bed -I don't know why he needs it, the size of him - as usual and left me to cram into the single.

The room was like a sauna but James refused to open the window because there was a wasps' nest up above and he was terrified.

The wee man was jumping up and down on his bed like a baby. Talk about a fuss over nothing.

James is usually in his bed at about 10pm like a good wee boy but when I got back to my room late on he was up watching All In A Game.

I watched the last half hour of Channel Four's football drama and it was as close to reality as you could possibly get. Aye right!

And I thought Footballers' Wives was over the top.

Earlier we had a game of poker and yet again "Snake Eyes O'Neil" won - although I had to half the pot with "All In" Townsley. The bounty was three tenners so Del took two and said he'd give me a fiver back later.

I'm still waiting for it. And they say Scots are tight.

Needless to say Steve "First Out" Tosh lived up to his name and the others who played were Kenny "Stone Face" Deuchar and Ryan "Fold Every Time" McGuffie.

FRIDAY: WE trained at lesser Hampden in the morning and Jamie McQuilken was up to his old tricks.

For the last three days he has waited for me to come out the shower then poured shampoo all over my head.

He finds it really funny but I'm convinced he does it so he can tell his other half Natalie he's actually using it himself. Jamie's follicly challenged and is worried his missus will find out the bald truth.

A few of the boys had been winding the English lads up by saying that Flower Of Scotland would be played at Hampden and everyone would have to sing it.

We all belted it out on the bus back to the hotel but Townsley tried to hit back with a poor rendition of Good Save The Queen.

The words "lead" and "balloon" spring to mind.

A team meeting in the evening confirmed I would start the final. I thought I would get the nod but you can never be sure.

I remember the pain of being dropped as a 19-year-old with Dundee United. I'd played in all the previous games only to be left out for the 1991 Final with Motherwell as Jim McLean went for experience.

That taught me never to take my place for granted - especially in games like this.

SATURDAY: THE big day finally arrived and I tried my best to stay as relaxed as possible.

I didn't feel that nervous as I'd been over the course before and knew we were underdogs.

It might sound strange but I felt more pressure going into the semi-final against Dundee.

We gave it our best shot and to lose out on penalties makes it all the more frustrating.

After the game it was off to the Radisson Hotel in Glasgow for a bash which was taking place win or lose. We tried our best to enjoy ourselves even though everyone was gutted at missing out on the cup.

Yesterday was an achievement for the club regardless of the result.

So we had no reason to feel too downbeat. And it has been one hell of a season.

Everyone had a good night and it's now time to look forward to the summer after a hard campaign.

I'm going to Tenerife on Friday, a holiday that was originally booked for May 12 but had to be changed for obvious reasons.

This cup run has cost me a few quid thanks to changes at the travel agent AND the 50 Euro fine caused by that chancer Grady.

And to think the wee man never even squared me up. Still, it was worth every penny.

Taken from the Sunday Mail