FORMER Rangers midfielder Kyle Hutton doesn’t need reminded of one of his darkest days in football, but Dumbarton teammate Dougie Hill likes to bring it up on a regular basis in any case.

Hutton was part of the Rangers side who lost in the final of the Petrofac Cup – as it was then – to John Baird’s extra-time goal for Raith Rovers in 2014.

It is a day he would rather forget, but with former Rovers man Hill around, that isn’t likely to happen any time soon.

On the plus side for Hutton is that he has the chance to banish his Challenge Cup demons in today’s final against Inverness, and he is determined to be lifting the Irn-Bru Cup – as it is now known – after the final whistle.

“Dougie Hill keeps reminding me about the Raith Rovers final in this competition at Easter Road,” Hutton said. “In fact, he keeps telling me he was man of the match.

“We were going into the final as strong favourites, but it wasn’t our day. We had chances to score but didn’t take them. The thing is you have to take your chances, especially in finals and that’s what Raith did.

“John Baird popped up with the extra time winner near the end and we didn’t have time to equalise. I was taken off on about the hour mark for Nicky Clark as we went two up front. I was sitting on the bench with all sorts of things going through my head. It was so tight and I just thought to myself ‘please don’t let us get beat here’.

“When the goal went in I had my head in my hands because I couldn’t believe it. I stayed out to watch Raith Rovers lifting the cup and I was thinking we had blown a huge chance to lift another trophy. It was a horrible place to be. It is probably the biggest disappointment of my career. I want to put that right against Inverness.”

Luckily for Hutton, he is no stranger to lifting silverware in other competitions, and his career highlight to date is unquestionably lifting the League Cup as part of the Rangers side who pipped Celtic in 2011 final.

He came on as a substitute that day eight minutes from the end of normal time, but after playing a central role in getting Dumbarton to McDiarmid Park, he feels he will have truly earned the right to hoist the trophy above his head should the Sons triumph.

“[The League Cup final] was an unbelievable occasion to be honest,” he said. “For a manager of the calibre of Walter Smith to trust me and throw me in to a game of that magnitude was incredible.

“I got on and playing against Celtic was crazy, and most of it is just a blur. I remember when Nikica Jelavic scored the winner I ran towards the Celtic fans going crazy and the linesman sprinted over and told me to ‘get tae’ in no uncertain terms.

“Lifting a trophy for Rangers, especially after beating Celtic, was of course a special moment for me in my career, but this time I feel a big part of the team and it feels I have earned in because I have helped the team get this far by being on the whole journey.”