James Forrest is desperate to win the Scottish Cup for Neil Lennon and boost his chances of being in charge next season. The Scottish Cup final with Motherwell the last chance for Lennon to pick up a prize this season after losing out on both the Scottish Premier League title and the Co-operative Insurance Cup to Rangers. Despite his lack of physical evidence of success so far, Lennon appears to have the backing of the fans, who gave him a rapturous reception at Parkhead on Sunday, and he is keen to stay on despite a troubled campaign off the pitch. Forrest knows a win on Saturday will strengthen the hand of the manager for a new contract.
Forrest said: "You don't like anybody to go through what he's been through but he has dealt with it brilliantly. All the players want to win it for him. The gaffer gave me my debut last season and he has shown faith in me to play me this year. If it wasn't for him, I don't know where I would be now. It's the same with all the boys in the team - everybody is 100% behind him. Everybody wants to see him get the job. Hopefully he stays on, that's what we all want."
Forrest believes finishing the campaign on a high is also vital as a 'thank you' to the fans who have stood by the team. He went on: "The fans were unbelievable on Sunday. You would have thought we'd won the league, the way they were going on. We need to repay the fans on Saturday. To win the cup is a great way to end the season. I didn't play in the last cup final against Rangers so hopefully I can get myself a start on Saturday. You can say we have done well this season but we haven't won anything yet. If we win on Saturday, it would be a step forward. There is no more pressure than there has been all season. When you play for Celtic, you need to win things. Saturday's game is another game we need to win. There is no hiding from that. Losing the league by one point and losing the cup final to Rangers was hard to take. But, if we win on Saturday, it will lift the spirits a bit."
Also lifting Forrest's spirits was a first call-up to the Scotland squad for next week's Carling Nations Cup games against Wales and Republic of Ireland. He said: "I've played more games than I thought I would and I was delighted to get the Scotland call-up as well at the end of the season. Hopefully next season I can better myself again."