ALAN Arhicbald has experienced the highs and lows during his 12 years at Partick Thistle – but the Jags skipper admits he never thought he would see his 400th appearance in a red and yellow shirt.
The defender will reach that milestone on Saturday when Falkirk visit Firhill for the penultimate Irn-Bru First Division fixture of the campaign.
The Jags have organised an 'Archie Day' for supporters to mark the occasion and, 16 years after his debut away to East Fife, the veteran – who also played for Dundee United in between his two spells in Firhill – is delighted to reach the historic landmark.
He said: "I certainly didn't think I would be here 400 appearances later. I wasn't even made aware of it until the start of this season. I will be delighted to get to the milestone though."
Since making his Jags bow for boss Murdo McLeod, Archibald has gone on to cement his place in Thistle folklore, serving the Firhill club with distinction over those two spells.
He has been through the most euphoric and disastrous days in the Jags' recent history as the joy of promotion and despair of relegation engulfed the Firhill club.
The defender counts Thistle's return back through the divisions as some of the best days of his life in football but there are other moments that continue to rankle.
He said: "The first relegation was unbelievable, the team went down and then the next day there were people losing their jobs. It was horrible.
"The relegation against Ayr was probably the lowest point of my career. We had Save the Jags that year and it looked as though we were going to stay up. Then it came to the last game and we were relegated to the Second Division."
The Jags skipper added: "We went down and only kept the younger players. It was a real struggle. I didn't really enjoy it and I didn't handle it well to be honest.
"John Lambie came back and we got things going again. To win back-to-back promotions was the best bit of my career."
The defender may be in his 35th year but Archibald is determined not to wind down his Jags career in the coming weeks.
He is out of contract at the end of the campaign but hopes to still be pulling on the red and yellow strip come August for another shot at title glory.
Archibald said: "If the manager offers me a contract I will sign and play on again.
"I have played more than I thought I would to be honest, I have played 30-odd games for the last few seasons now.
"We have had a good defensive record in recent years and we take a lot of pride in that. As long as I am performing, I want to play."