Being thrown in at the deep end was no issue for Vincent in Scottish Cup triumph five years ago
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Starting on the bench in the 2015 Scottish Cup final, James Vincent had to wait to make his mark.
Niggling injuries had meant he was in and out of the starting 11 in the months building up to the showcase at Hampden Park against Falkirk five years ago today.
Then-manager John Hughes had assured Vincent he would have a role to play, but patience was the order of the hour as he was not quite ready to play the full game.
It took until the 72nd minute, but eventually the midfielder was called upon with Caley Thistle holding a 1–0 advantage.
Within just a couple of minute of coming on though, Vincent was faced with a very different scenario.
Falkirk were already pushing hard for an equaliser, but when Carl Tremarco was shown a red card it gave them an extra impetus to find the net.
Vincent – who had come on in place of Ryan Christie as a more defensive option behind the striker – was suddenly moved to fill the gap at right back, but he was not fazed by the drastic change of circumstance.
"I played at right back a couple of times for the manager, he knew I could do different jobs and he put me there," Vincent recalled.
"It was probably the position I had played least under him, I had only done it a couple of times, but you know your role – look after your winger, get forward if you can and go from there. I was comfortable with that.
"The game pretty much flipped on its head after the red card, and our backs were against it then.
"For me personally, I wasn't nervous. When you come back from injury, you feel good, so there was no thought about holding because of that. You've got no other option but to get on with it, so that's what I did – I just tried to get on with it and do the best I could."
Even in a more defensive role, Vincent's fresh legs proved valuable after Falkirk equalised and the game opened up.
In the 86th minute, Marley Watkins broke forward in search of his second goal of the afternoon to win the Scottish Cup, with a couple of defenders for company.
Watkins got a shot away which Jamie MacDonald could not quite parry to safety, leaving Vincent to storm into the frame to slot home and write his name into Caley Thistle history.
That it was those two men who got on the scoresheet was particularly apt as the pair were roommates for the trip.
"We were talking about it as well, as probably all the boys did in the hotel," Vincent said.
"I said 'we're going to score tomorrow', and Marley said the same.
"We both look back on it now and say it's one of those things that will probably never happen again. We were roommates, we're good friends, and it was a fantastic day for everyone at the club to be involved in. We were able to make history for the club.
"It doesn't really get much better, there's not really a lot more you can do in football. You can win games week by week, but when a game means something it's fantastic.
"Boys have fantastic careers and never win anything in their lives, so to be fortunate enough to win something and look back on it as a memory and not just anything – something that is so big and have so much history – it's incredible. It has definitely been the highlight of my career."
The bond between Watkins and Vincent was clear to see from the dancing celebration for Vincent's winning goal.
It was not limited to those two though, as the camaraderie throughout the squad was a key reason behind ICT's success in the 2014/15 season in Vincent's mind.
"Me and Marley were close, we used to mess about a bit," he laughed.
"We did some crazy dance with our arms all over, I couldn't even tell you. The whole squad were comfortable with each other and we had a laugh. It brings you closer together little things like that, it's good for morale.
"We had such a good dressing room, and we were able to dig deep when we were up against it at times and pull each other through. I think that was a big factor in winning the cup that year.
"Inverness were looked on as the underdogs. It didn't matter who we were playing – we were sitting comfortably in the top half of the league all year, and playing teams five or six places below us, and people thought we were destined to lose.
"We pulled together, we had that underdog mentality where nothing could beat us.
"We were mates on and off the field which helped, but we had enough to push each other the right way as well. It was fantastic, and I do think it was a big reason why we were successful that year."
