By this time, Graham had already levelled the tie in the first half with a back-post header to notch goal number 99.
“It was roasting, it was a long sleeved under armour,” he recalls. “So I put it on and I felt claustrophobic. I was like, ‘I’m too warm’.
“So into the shower and I see the club doctor and I was like, ‘take those scissors, please cut these sleeves off’.
“He’s cutting the sleeves off in the showers and the ref’s banging the door and the boys are shouting, ‘Brian, where are you?’ I was like, ‘give me a minute, I’m in the toilet’.
“They didn’t have a clue what I was doing. I was in the shower area putting this top on, cutting the sleeves off it before I’m back out for the second half. And I was just like, ‘give me one chance to go and get this goal and get us through the next round’.
“And the manner that happened, how late in the game it was, it was special, that’s for sure.”
Depending on how you look at it, Thistle could now go two ways after defeating Ayr 2-1 on aggregate.
A lot is made of the rigours of teams trying to make it to the top flight – and rightly so given the number of intense games they need to play.
Less is said about the bursts of adrenaline that clearly come from those moments never to be forgotten.
“I didn’t get to sleep if I’m being really honest,” Graham admits.
“I think half past four maybe, the time I went to bed. I was just sitting wide awake, actually watched the full game back again to try to pick bits where we can get better for the next game as well and picking little pointers out of it.
“In the manner it happened, for that occasion to score 99 and then 100 for myself personally – I could pinch myself.
“But obviously it’s not about me, it’s about the club and the players that try to get to the semi-final. The way it happened, on that occasion it was obviously a special moment for myself as well, seeing your family there.
“My dad, I probably think he was a wee bit emotional when I went over there and gave him a cuddle at the end. He’s not really an emotional man, so it meant a lot to him as well.”
