THE Saints marched on in Perth yesterday as St Johnstone players showed off the club's first-ever major trophy on an open-top bus parade.
The city centre was engulfed in blue and white as thousands of fans lined the streets to celebrate the club's win in the Scottish Cup final.
After beating Tayside rivals Dundee United 2-0, players and supporters partied late into the night on Saturday before another round of celebrations yesterday afternoon.
The bus worked its way through the Letham, Tulloch, Muirton and Craigie areas of Perth before arriving in the mobbed city centre at around 1.15pm.
It was then piped along the High Street by the Perth Pipe Band before parking at the city's concert hall.
Fans burst into song with Oh When The Saints as the bus weaved its way through the streets - with players Lee Croft and James Dunne conducting the singing from the front of the bus.
Some fans wept as the bus passed by, while others beamed with pride.
Supporter Kenneth McFarlane, 28, said: "It has been massively emotional - I've seen people in tears and I've been close to it myself.
"The game was incredible and it was just such a surreal feeling when the final whistle went.
"It's all brand new to us, it is just amazing."
Claire Smyth, 29, added: "I hope this win cements our place as one of the bigger teams in Scotland - we've never won anything before but we've done it now.
"It means so much to the fans but you could see how much it meant to our players and staff as well."
Players took pictures of the massive crowd - estimated at as many as 15,000 people - while Saints legend Roddy Grant, now an associate director at the club, wept on the bus. Owner Geoff Brown waved to fans and held a scarf aloft as they moved through the throngs of fans.
Manager Tommy Wright, speaking on the bus during the parade, said the victory capped one of the biggest seasons in the club's history.
He added: "There are thousands and thousands here, they're jam-packed in. Credit to them.
"It is just unbelievable. The future is bright for St Johnstone."
After the parade the team were welcomed by Perth and Kinross Council at a civic reception at the city's Royal George Hotel.
The party continued at McDiarmid Park last night as the Saints players and management team gathered with 300 fans for the club's annual player-of-the-year awards dinner.
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