John Hughes made mention of Sir Alex Ferguson's famous demands for high standards after Inverness captured their first major trophy with a 2-1 William Hill Scottish Cup final win over Falkirk at Hampden Park.
Caley Thistle striker Marley Watkins's first-half opener was levelled after the break by Bairns defender Peter Grant, only after the Premiership side had been reduced to 10 men when defender Carl Tremarco was shown a straight red card by referee Willie Collum for a 'last man' tackle on Blair Alston.
The Championship side were looking the more likely to go on and win but with four minutes remaining substitute James Vincent, on for Ryan Christie in the 72nd minute, secured the Highland club's first cup in its 21-year history when he notched from close range.
However, the Caley Thistle boss noted Ferguson's blast at his Aberdeen side after their 1-0 cup final win over Rangers in 1983, calling it a "disgrace" of a performance from a team who had days earlier beat Real Madrid 2-1 in the European Cup Winners Cup final in Gothenburg, to claim the first European trophy in the club's history.
"In the second half - I don't want to sound like Sir Alex Ferguson away back in the Aberdeen days - but we never showed." he said.
"It wasn't good enough and that put Falkirk on the front foot and they were the better team the whole of the second half.
"I was frustrated. We never played in the second-half, we never got on the ball, we never passed it and it wasn't acceptable.
"Maybe that was down to Falkirk's shape but the way we play and we pass it, that's all we needed to do, keep the ball and we kept giving it away and that is not a standard that we set.
"They got their goal and I was ducking and diving and changing shape, just to try to get a foothold in the game.
"I don't know how James Vincent got up there, he was playing right-back but I was absolutely delighted that we got the goal.
"If it went to extra-time I don't know if we would have had enough in the tank to see it out.
"All credit to Falkirk, they got that extra little bit of luck, in terms of Carl being sent off and that put them on the front foot.
"But we had to stand up and deal with it. I think the spirit to dig it out was absolutely exceptional."
Hughes, whose side had already qualified for Europe through their third-place finish in the league, was "really pleased" for Tremarco despite the defender, only playing because David Raven was injured, putting his side under pressure with his dismissal after he had made a mess of trying to control the ball 10 yards inside his own half.
The former Falkirk manager said: "Carl has found himself playing second fiddle to Graeme Shinnie, who has been absolutely outstanding.
"He has had to be very patient.
"David Raven picked up the injury so we shuffled it about and he was having a stormer until he made that wee mistake but that's what we are all about.
"We bail each other out and I am absolutely delighted that we bailed him out."
Falkirk manager Peter Houston revealed captain David McCracken and MacDonald were in tears in the dressing room after the game.
The Bairns skipper slipped to allow Watkins to break on goal and MacDonald had failed to deal properly with the forward's shot.
Houston said: "I would like congratulate Inverness first and foremost on a magnificent season and winning the cup.
"We believed in ourselves in the second-half and I thought we were dominant, we put them under pressure, their players went down with cramp and when we got the equaliser I thought there was only one team going on to win it.
"But Jamie is in tears and so is David McCracken
"David has slipped and Jamie is disappointed with his effort at the second goal but these guys have been superb, they should be proud of themselves.
"Human nature is that you make mistake sometimes.
"I thought McCracken was brilliant today, MacDonald has been brilliant for us this season.
"I am gutted for the players and supporters. We are unhappy disappointed but they can look at themselves in the mirror."
Source: PA
