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Daily Record
Daily Record
National
Lochlin Highet

Hurlford United boss Darren Henderson reflects on proud day as he watched his son play at Hampden

Darren Henderson is beaming from ear to ear after one of his proudest days as a dad.

His son, Jay, starred for Inverness at Hampden on Saturday as they defeated Falkirk 3-0 to set up a Scottish Cup final with Celtic.

From watching him mess around on the Blair Park pitch to play at Hampden, it was a proud moment for the Kilmarnock family.

Hurlford United boss Darren had to make a tough call and miss most of his side’s derby with Darvel – but he made it back for a portion of the second half.

He told the Kilmarnock Standard: “I had a very difficult decision to make. I’ve been a coach for a long, long time and I’ve never missed a Saturday game.

“But my son got to the Scottish Cup semi-final meaning I had an opportunity to see him play at Hampden.

“The club was great with me, they were telling me I couldn’t miss it and had to go watch him.

“It’s something I had to do as a dad, he might never have had that opportunity again.

“It was a great day for the full family, everyone was there, it’s one of my proudest days as a dad for sure.

“He used to mess about the park at half-times of Hurlford games. He’s always been a big part of this club as well since I joined 10 years ago.

“As soon as we got in the dressing room after the Darvel game the first thing the boys did was ask how Jay got on. He knows more about the players than I do!”

He added: “It was great, it made it even better that they won 3-0 and now he has a big day on June 3 to look forward to.

“They played really well, it was a good occasion.

“I am so proud, he’s played at a better level than I did – which I hate admitting to him!

“Now he’s got a cup final at the national stadium, that was a dream for me.

“It’s reality for him now, he just needs to stay fit for the next six weeks.”

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