The way semi-finals have treated Livingston manager John McGlynn, he could be forgiven for approaching this afternoon's Petrofac Training Cup contest against Stranraer with a mixture of trepidation and fatalism.

The 52-year-old lost promotion play-offs at the penultimate stage with Raith Rovers in 2007 and 2008 before eventually dragging the Fife club into the First Division 12 months later. In 2010, the Stark's Park outfit lost out to Dundee United in trying to reach the Scottish Cup final.

However, it is McGlynn's last encounter with a semi-final that elicited some black humour as he assessed his chances of reaching a cup final this time around. On that occasion, he managed to steer Hearts into the 2013 League Cup final courtesy of a nail-biting penalty-kicks triumph over Inverness Caley Thistle. But celebrations on a personal level were cut short, when Hearts dispensed with McGlynn's services before he had the chance to lead the Tynecastle team out at Hampden.

Livingston have, at times, given Hearts a run for their money in the rate of their dugout turnover, but their current incumbent is hopeful he can finally get to taste the excitement of a cup final come April.

"It would be great, personally speaking, to get to a cup final, of course it would be fantastic," he said. "I managed to get to the League Cup final with Hearts but never actually got to the final. So I need to try to get to the final myself if we get there.

"But I've actually got longer to survive. I only had six weeks the last time and I had a bad month and that was me. Thinking about April, it's a long way away.

"Obviously [what happened with Hearts] was a disappointment for me, but that's in the past now and we're moving on. There's a cup final at stake and it would be great to get there. I know what it feels like to lose in semi-finals and you don't get remembered for being beaten in semi-finals.

"We will not get a better opportunity. That's not being disrespectful to Stranraer as they've done exceptionally well. But, at the end of the day, we would have taken this situation at the start of the season."

Full-back Jason Talbot says photos that adorn the walls at Almondvale of the club's League Cup success a decade ago will act as a spur this afternoon.

"There's a room in the stadium where there's a big collage on the wall of the team winning the CIS Cup in 2004," said the 29-year-old. "There's also the first game in Europe and pictures of fans celebrating. It gives a bit of inspiration to the boys. When we go in there to do our exercises I just look at it as a piece of history.

"We can't repeat it because it's not the League Cup, but we can go out and maybe create our own piece of history in the Petrofac Training Cup."

Iain Collin