Former Dumbarton favourite Paul McGinn has been looking back on his time at the club with fondness as he prepares for the Scottish Cup final this weekend.
The Hibs defender will grace Hampden Park on Saturday to take on St. Johnstone eight years after turning out for the Sons.
McGinn, brother of Scotland international and Aston Villa star John, was signed on loan from St Mirren by Ian Murray in January 2013 and went on to make 14 appearances as the club battled back from what looked like certain relegation to beat the drop.
He then turned down a contract offer at the Paisley side and returned to The Rock for the 2013-14 campaign, making 42 appearances in all competitions as the club came so close to making history and claiming a play-off spot in the Championship.
Dumbarton also reached the quarter-finals of the Scottish Cup that season when they were narrowly beaten by Aberdeen at Pittodrie.
When McGinn initially joined the club, Sons had started to improve, and were off the bottom of the table and found themselves in eighth position – but they still had a job on their hands to beat the drop.
Paul McGinn signed for Dumbarton on loan in early 2013, and penned a one-year contract with the club for the following season
Murray’s side had picked up a reputation for an attacking approach, which often led to high scoring and entertaining games – and which McGinn admits helped him improve as a defender.
Speaking exclusively to the Reporter, he said: “I had signed for St Mirren outwith the window from Queens Park, but I couldn’t go professional outwith a window, so I went back on loan there as they were an amateur side.
“That finished at some point in January – on a Saturday – and then on the Sunday, St Mirren beat Celtic to get into the League Cup final, so I was thinking I wasn’t going to get much game time there.
“A few days later I got the phone call from Jack Ross, and within a few days that was me in on loan.
“My dad was initially from Dumbarton, so I knew the club, and was quite happy to go, even though it was a relegation battle.
“You knew every game was going to be busy but it was really enjoyable to play in, especially the first three or four months; it was carnage.
Dumbarton narrowly missed out on the Championship play-offs seven seasons ago
“How open we were as a team certainly helped my development, there was a lot of one-on-one defending and getting forward as fast as you can. It was brilliant for my development.
“I had come right through the leagues and it helped bridge the gap between League Two and the Premiership.
“The players all spoke about the professionalism around the place, and how it had improved when Ian Murray and Jack Ross came in and treated it like a serious club. It was a brilliant place to be.”
The Sons team was full of characters, such as Jim Lister and Garry Fleming, which McGinn admits made for an entertaining dressing room.
He added: “I didn’t know much about him when I came in but Jim was really surprising – he didn't look anything like a footballer, but he was really good.
“Scott Agnew I had known and played against down the leagues, and I knew how good his left was – and still is.
Ian Murray's attacking philosophy won Dumbarton many admirers in the 2013-14 campaign
“Garry Fleming was another one who probably could have played higher up the leagues if he really wanted to.
"When I came in they had got him a nutritionist but I don’t think he was quite listening to anything she was saying – he would come into training and tell us he had been to the burger van for lunch.”
It was a welcome surprise to Sons fans that McGinn opted to return to the club for the 2013-14 season; many supporters expected him to have been a shoo-in for a run in the Saints team after an impressive showing in the Championship.
But he opted to return for guaranteed first-team football and feels as if his decision paid off.
He said: “I knew I was going to be offered a new deal at St Mirren, but they had said I was going to be third in the pecking order. I wasn’t really a young boy any more, and I knew I had to play.
“Ian Murray and Jack Ross were really good and had said who they were trying to get and told me about the ambition of the club.
Sons' memorable 2013-14 campaign included a run to the last eight of the Scottish Cup where they lost 1-0 to Aberdeen
"I just had a feeling that Dumbarton was a better place to be than anywhere else and hindsight proved me right.
“It was brilliant playing every week and it gave me so much confidence and belief. I felt loved at Dumbarton.
“It feels so long ago now, but it was a really special time to be at Dumbarton, for all the fans and everyone around the club.
"It was just a shame that we never quite made the play-offs. It was some achievement when you think about it – part-time teams do really well to stay in the Championship now, but no one quite gets up near the top.
“I had a chance [in the Scottish Cup tie] at Pittodrie that still nags at me but there was a lot more highs than there were lows.”
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