IT may not be to everyone's taste, but the tones of Tony Christie will be forever etched on the soul of Lyle Taylor after this season, with yesterday's 4-1 William Hill Scottish Cup win over Forfar Athletic doing little to help.
The two goals he helped conjure – three if you believe he touched Stewart Murdoch's effort over the line – triggered relief among the 1700 home fans, and the unmistakable melody of Is This The Way To Amarillo over the loudspeaker system.
For Taylor, it's a small price to pay as his reputation grows. The 22-year-old was the focal point of everything Steven Pressley's side constructed against the plucky Irn-Bru Second Division side who ultimately ran out of steam.
"I touched it, until the day I die I'll claim I touched it," said the former Hereford forward of the goal awarded to his team-mate. "The two of us will argue about it for a long, long time." On a pitch described by Pressley as a "cow field", and despite the potentially unsettling fact that their manager had appeared a shoo-in to succeed Peter Houston at Dundee United, Falkirk went ahead after 19 minutes as Taylor wrestled his way past centre-half Stephen Tulloch to finish.
But with the "sha la la las" still ringing in the ears of the few inside the stadium, Forfar were afforded a way back into the match when Stephen Kingsley's lunge on Chris Templeman resulted in a penalty, calmly despatched into the bottom-right corner by Iain Campbell.
However, with Forfar coming further into the game in the second period, the home side struck for their second.
Sean Higgins' cross was met by the head of Murdoch, the ball spinning towards goal. Taylor swivelled on the line to leave goalkeeper Darren Hill flapping on 68 minutes. Cue the music.
Seven minutes later Murdoch played in David Weatherston, allowing the substitute to dink the ball beyond the outrushing Hill and in off the post. And with seven minutes left Taylor again found the net, lashing home from point-blank range.
"I think 4-1 was a harsh assessment," said Forfar manager Dick Campbell. "I wanted to take them back to Forfar at the least, and I thought we were going to do that. But maybe I'm the eternal optimist."
Pressley said: "I spoke to them [United] and they made their decision, and they made a terrific decision. I love my work here and I'm happy here. I thought we were outstanding."
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