Hamilton Accies 'utility man' Reghan Tumilty happy to be the hero for a change after firing home cup winner to sink Raith Rovers

Matchwinner Reghan Tumilty was thrilled to be Hamilton's unlikely hero and their utility man after firing 10-man Accies to glory in the SPFL Trust Trophy final.

The defender/midfielder popped up on the half hour mark to rifle home the winner against his old side Raith Rovers, netting from 10 yards when a Reegan Mimnaugh corner broke kindly for him at the back post.

Accies came under the cosh when Dan O'Reilly saw red after 55 minutes, but their resolute rearguard action and a man of the match display from inspired goalkeeper Ryan Fulton saw the club cling on for a 1-0 win and their first cup triumph for 30 years.

Not only did Accies have to defend for their lives after O'Reilly's dismissal, they were forced into two early changes when Benny Ashley-Seal and Marley Redfern hobbled off injured in the opening 20 minutes, before Matty Shiels came off at half-time crocked.

That led to Tumilty shifting into three different positions during the game and he said: "We battled through adversity. That’s something with this team, it doesn’t reflect where we are in the league, there’s a great team bond.

“We had to make early subs, people played out of position and then there’s the sending off. We battled through and to come out with the win is brilliant.

“The gaffer called me the utility man today, and that’s what I was.

"If it gets us the win, I don’t mind. It was a great result, a battling performance and the fans, you could hear them the whole game but in the last 15-20 minutes, especially.

“I saw the gaffer giving it the windmill.

"It was brilliant.”

After grabbing his first Accies goal, Tumilty has now triumphed in consecutive finals having lifted the trophy with Raith last season.

But 2023 trumps 2022 for the 26-year-old after