The ball trickled towards goalkeeper Fernando Muslera and the world seemed to enter slow motion.
Every turn of the sphere brought the realisation closer that, wow, Chris Kane might actually have a chance of reaching this first.
With sweat dripping off the top of the striker’s newly shaved head in the most intense of Istanbul heats, he opened up his legs and arrived just in time. Just in time to panic the Uruguayan international into a mistake.
The score remained blank in this Europa League third qualifying round opener, the clock had reached 54 minutes and 40 seconds and Kane had just been yanked to the turf inside the box with the goal very much at his mercy.
All eyes in the Basaksehir Fatih Terim Stadium and of those watching on television screens across Scotland swivelled in the direction of Swiss official Sandro Schärer.
St Johnstone penalty against Galatasaray. Goalkeeper sent off.
“I remember jogging up from the back because I saw Kano with the ball in his hands wanting to take it,” laughed Jason Kerr, the club’s skipper who was tasked with finding the back of the net from 12 yards against the Turkish giants.
As the former youth academy graduate placed the ball down on the spot, whistles and boos echoed all around from a support renowned for their hostility.
This was a kick of the football of epic proportions. There had of course been other European glory nights to remember and savour but, in the here and now, this one swing of the right boot felt like the most important in the world.
“I was actually pretty shocked with what had just happened but obviously I was happy that we got the penalty,” smiled Kerr.
“There was then a big wait and all I could hear was the whistling from the fans. The referee then wanted me to move the ball on the spot. I’m still not sure why.
“I knew the second we got the penalty that I was going to take it. I’d spoken to the gaffer the night before to tell him that I was on them.
“Ali McCann had missed one against Ross County on the first day of the season and we were on a run of missing them.
“I enjoy the pressure and having the nerves that something can go well and that I can do something positive. They were all good nerves.”
Kerr had raised his penalty pedigree a few months prior when smashing into the back of the net at Ibrox in the Scottish Cup quarter-final shootout win against Rangers.
It was what you would expect from a centre-half. Grip it and rip it stuff. And he was always going to adopt the approach of power over placement in Istanbul.
Six or seven quick steps forward, connection made and the ball flies low into the bottom corner beyond replacement goalkeeper Berk Balaban.
‘Jason Kerr silences the home crowd’ the commentator blasts. Saints lead.
“I’ve topped the ball,” chuckles Kerr. “I was just wanting to hit it quite hard into the left side of the goal.
“But I’ve topped it, which wasn’t great. At the end of the day it went in the back of the net and that is what is remembered.”
Kerr veered off to his right-hand side in celebration where he was quickly joined by Perth pals in dreamland, some enjoying an overexuberant celebration.
Liam Gordon and Shaun Rooney in particular appeared content with attempting to wind up irate locals. Kerr was up for joining in until he quickly saw sense.
“I was going to shush the Galatasaray fans but then realised I was on a booking,” he explained.
“It would’ve been an embarrassing one if I’d been sent off after scoring the penalty so I kept the celebrations PG.”
Saints, who had weathered a real storm in the opening 20 minutes of the game, were ultimately pegged back within two minutes of seizing the upper hand.
While a full-time scoreline of 1-1 was not to be sniffed at, as the Perth plane departed the next day there did remain a feeling of ‘what could’ve been’.
Kerr said: “With the heat and them being at home, they would expect to beat us comfortably.
“But we had a plan to stop them from implementing their game on us and keeping it at 0-0 for as long as possible. I feel like we did weather a storm in the first 20 minutes but then started to come into the game.
“Of course we were in a really good position when they had the man sent off. Looking back, we probably could’ve pushed on but you still need to give Galatasaray respect.
"If we’d gone gung-ho and lost two or three, we would’ve been kicking ourselves. I feel like it was a fair result over there in the end.”
One year on and Kerr, now of English Championship side Wigan Athletic, continues to occasionally take a trip down memory lane.
“I still watch the video back and it’s mad to think we went 1-0 up against Galatasaray away from home. It’s a massive event in St Johnstone’s history,” he said.
“We always knew it was going to be a hard draw because we were entering at an advanced round.
“Everybody wanted to get Galatasaray, definitely. And when we were pulled out with them: wow.
“It was quite mad when we arrived. We got a police escort to training, the hotel and the game. Driving in Turkey seemed like every man for themselves.
“I remember the heat too. We knew it was going to be really hot and even the night of the game it was so humid.
“We were going to be playing against a world-class club with a lot of history and we were all just buzzing about it.
“They had players you used to play against on FIFA. The likes of Falcao and Babel. I’d watched them play in the Champions League before and you see how passionate their fans are. It was a really exciting tie.”
But Kerr concluded: “We were never going to lie down. We were in that position for a reason. It was fully merited and we gave it our best shot.”
