HIS last visit there provided an experience unparalleled in its intensity and he believes, most sincerely, that his grand return will offer an opportunity to reconnect with some kind of residual energy created by that moment of a lifetime.

For Stevie May, going back to Ibrox is about more than just having the chance to make his Scotland debut, as exciting as that may be. That old stadium in the south side of Glasgow changed everything. Its lush turf provided a platform for a half-hour of football that the ever-improving 21-year-old may never be able to replicate. It takes some doing, but it is unlikely any venue that the striker may grace from now until retirement will make his hair stand on end the way Ibrox does.

April 13, 2014, was the day this love affair was set in stone. His St Johnstone side, the side he supported as a child, were 1-0 down to Aberdeen at half-time in the semi-final of the Scottish Cup. May had missed their best chance in a poor first half display, poking the ball at Jamie Langfield from a just a few yards out.

With the hour mark having just passed, though, the magic finally happened. May anticipated a knock-on from James Dunne, took a touch with his right foot and hooked his left around the ball before delivering a low, diagonal shot which flew into the far corner of the net.

Six minutes from time, the story was complete. May played a one-two with Steven MacLean and forced his way through the Aberdeen defence to send an effort under Langfield's body and into the net.

All bets were off. His top was off seconds later. The emotion of it all was palpable. It was the result that paved the way for the Perth club to win the first major trophy of their 130-year history in the final against Dundee United a little over a month later and all those memories are sure to come rushing back when it is the Scotland team coach which rolls up Edmiston Drive ahead of Saturday's European Championship qualifier with Georgia.

"I have great memories from playing at Ibrox," said May, now plying his trade at Sheffield Wednesday after moving south in August. "Thinking back to the semi-final, I didn't have a great first half, but it turned out to be unbelievable.

"That second half goes down as my best 45 minutes ever. Getting your club into a cup final from being 1-0 down was amazing. The feeling I had when I scored that second goal was as good as anything I've ever experienced.

"Will I be thinking about that on Saturday? Definitely. Some people probably wouldn't like to admit that, insisting going back to a certain ground doesn't help. However, I think there are places where you have fond memories and it probably helps you even if you don't realise it.

"For me, there's nowhere better than Ibrox. I hope I get the chance to make an impression [on Saturday]."

May's rise to prominence was not exactly built on such stellar displays in such high-profile venues, though. He learned his trade trawling around the outposts of the third division while on loan as at Alloa Athletic and scoring 19 goals to help the part-time win the title.

Even then, he had not done enough to prove he deserved a long-term future in Perth. May did sign a new one-year contract, but was quickly farmed out to Hamilton Academical where he became the first player to score 25 goals in a 36-game first division season since the leagues were reconstructed in 1994.

Tommy Wright, having taken over the manager's job from Steve Lomas at McDiarmid Park, had no intention of letting him go elsewhere when he returned to his parent club at the start of last season. Wright still talks about going to Kirkcaldy to watch May in action for Hamilton and being impressed by the way this little lad with yellow boots and hair in a ponytail revelled in the abuse he was taking from the stands.

When he gave him his chance in the St Johnstone first team, the manager's admiration would quickly be spirited to new levels. "Playing in the lower divisions improved me a lot," said May. "Does that make me appreciate things now? I don't know. Possibly.

"I never looked at those moves as steps down, though. I looked at them as a chance to go and play football week in, week out. Paul Hartley was the manager at Alloa and he couldn't have been better for me.

"I trained with St Johnstone every day and then trained with Alloa two nights a week because they were part-time, but, on matchdays, I'd go to places like Elgin and Annan. Those were great experiences.

"I honestly loved every minute of it and it was the same at Hamilton when I went there. Those loan moves make me feel older than 21, but I wouldn't have changed them for the world. For all that, there's no doubt the rise [to the Scotland squad] has happened more quickly than I could have expected."

May has been made to feel extremely welcome within the bosom of the Scotland camp, of course, with Gordon Strachan sitting down with the young striker shortly after he checked in at Mar Hall Hotel on Sunday evening.

"It was one of the first things I did, which was great," said May. "We had a chat before dinner. I'm sharing a room with Ryan Gauld, too, and that's good as we're both in the squad for the first time."

May, of course, has a degree of experience in international football from his time with the Scotland Under-21 squad. Indeed, he is unlikely to face such a baptism of fire again. "When I got my chance with the Under-21s, I was thrilled about it," he recalled. "It was against England in a game we lost 6-0, but it was still a big thing. I went on at 6-0 too, so it wasn't the best introduction to international football. But it felt great to pull on a Scotland shirt."

May and the rest of the Scotland squad were treated to a special concert at the team headquarters yesterday by Wishaw band Vigo Thieves. They have recorded a song titled 'Believe' that will be played before all home matches in Group D. "I am a big music fan and it is quite a rousing song, so I imagine the fans and players will be inspired by it," said May.