CALLUM DAVIDSON has revealed that his namesake Murray is in contention to return for St Johnstone against Motherwell on Saturday.
The veteran midfielder has been an injury doubt for the upcoming Betfred Cup final against Livingston after limping off against Rangers at the start of this month with a calf problem.
But Perth manager Davidson now hopes to have the 32-year-old available for selection at Hampden following a miraculous return from the treatment room.
“He’s progressing well, doing better than probably expected. He’s been out running today, which is great to see,” Davidson told Herald and Times Sport.
“I think he’s been doing really well and I think he’s possibly got a chance for Saturday. It’s a difficult one in how hard do you push him? Any setback for him at the moment will be detrimental for him.
“He’s feeling really good and we’re trying to work on him as hard as we can to get him back into training before the final. It definitely is better than 50-50 at the moment.
“I’ve been injured many a time myself and it’s just one of those difficult ones where deciding how hard you push. We’ll just try to get it right with Murray.
“Murray’s obviously an experienced player and knows his own body. So we’ll see how he is over the next couple of days. We’ll load him a little bit more and see where we can get to.”
Davidson has made 315 appearances for St Johnstone over a 12-year spell, but he sadly missed out on the Perth club’s Scottish Cup triumph in 2014 through injury.
His manager would hate for that to happen again this time round, as he is more than aware of the qualities that the former Livingston man brings.
He continued: “I think Murray needs to be training at least for a couple of days beforehand. I think it’s very important that he’s there and available.
“Selected or not, it’s important he’s on the training pitch and showing me that he’s ready to go. That would then give me a decision to make about what I do for the final.
“First and foremost though, we’ve a game Saturday which is upmost in my thoughts. The cup final’s still a bit away.
“It is a bonus he could have a chance. I wouldn’t guarantee he’s going to be fit. But, obviously, on the flip side I also can’t say he’s not going to be fit. So I take it as a positive.
“The physios and medical boys have done really well to get him to this stage and near enough ready.”
Davidson also revealed that Scott Tanser will return to his plans for the weekend after shaking off a hamstring strain.
He added: “Scott is back fit again. He trained this week and he is looking good. Everybody else is good, it is just Murray who is a doubt.”
Away from the training field, Saints have already started planning ahead of their date of destiny at Hampden on February 28.
The McDiarmid Park side will make use of three buses for their trip to Fir Park at the weekend to try and reduce the risk of any late Covid breakouts.
Davidson explained: “We will take three buses to Fir Park, with five in each bus. The lads that live around Motherwell and Hamilton will drive to the game.
“We are taking every single precaution we can with the cup final in mind and making sure players are put in the right seats. The biggest thing is to avoid several players having to isolate if anyone does get it.
“It is a nervous time. It has been hard on the younger players. We have had to send a few of them away just to limit the numbers around the club.
“A lot of kids go back to school next week and that is a bit of a worry too. I’m not sure if I should ban my daughter from going back because she’d probably be quite delighted!
“Like Livingston we can’t afford to have anyone missing because of Covid. So we will continue to take every precaution we can.
“Hopefully no one catches it between now and next Sunday. And it is the same with Livingston. We want to see both clubs having their full squads to pick from for a big game.”
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