Much of the focus was on him and his illness, but that did not stop the chairman hailing the work of his team boss.

“When Craig Levein was interviewed for the job in 2006, all we asked him to do was make sure we didn’t get relegated,” he said.

“Well, I think you can say he has done more than just that and you can see now we why call him ‘director of football’.

“He’s done so much for this club and, even now when we’ve reached a final, he is speaking to me about things we must do for the future.

“And I can’t say enough about the players. Not one of them let us down against Aberdeen, they were fantastic.”

A United fan for 40 years, as well as being owner for just over five, Thompson admitted it was a special night for him.

“With my situation, I am obviously a bit emotional and there have been tears. As a fan, I saw us win the league at Dens and lift League Cups and then the Scottish Cup, but the personal involvement I have now makes reaching a final extra special for me.

“Since I took over, there have been some difficult times at United, but I think, with the arrival of Craig, there has been a real turnaround and the team has a great future.”

Thompson’s battle with cancer made last night’s stunning 4-1 win over Aberdeen an emotional affair for all connected with United.

“When the gaffer was talking to us before the game, he did his usual stuff and then he also mentioned the chairman,” said Wilkie.

“We all know about his problems and we all know how much United means to him. We saw him after the game and to see him so happy was great.”

The big defender also believes it is important this win is only viewed as another step on the road to glory.

“It’s magic to reach a final and a great achievement for the club as a whole,” he added.

“It will be a great day out for us, but we don’t want it to be just that, we want it to be a day where we come out with a trophy.

“This season, we have shown we can compete with any team when we are at our best and we have to make sure that when we go to Hampden we are.”

For Wilkie himself, career-threatening injury meant looking forward to a final was something that he thought he might not be able to savour.

He did help Dundee to the Scottish Cup Final back in 2003, but missed that through suspension.

In the wake of last night, though, he was in no mood to think about setbacks and preferred instead to savour the moment.

“I suppose if I sit down for five minutes I might think of how different things could have been, but I really just want to enjoy this.

“I’m not one who tends to dwell on things too long — it’s better to make sure you enjoy what’s going on now and we plan to enjoy this.”

From boss Craig Levein there was delight at putting a smile on his gaffer’s face and also plenty of praise for his players.

“I am so pleased for the chairman because I know the pain he has suffered, but he always puts a brave face on it,” he said.

“The past couple of nights have been sleepless for me because I was so anxious that the team gave him a show he could be proud of. Now I think I can say that, even if they had not won, they more than did that.

“And one thing I want the fans to know is how pleased the players are. They really want this and they gave everything to get it.

“There were four or five of them who were nothing like match fit and I cannot say enough about them for going out and playing like this.”

On a less happy note, both goalkeepers last night were hit by missiles thrown from the crowd.

During the second half, match referee Ian Brines handed over several objects that were thrown from the United end of the ground at Aberdeen keeper Jamie Langfield.

United goalkeeper Lukasz Zaluska was also struck by what appeared to be a coin and he was also spoken to after the match for his reaction to Dons fans after some of United’s goals.

However, Motherwell were reluctant to give up home advantage and the idea was rejected by the SFA. The Lanarkshire outfit will now attempt to carry out a quick fix on their pitch in a bid to get Saturday’s SPL clash with Kilmarnock and also Monday’s cup-tie played.

“I was at the inspection and have to say Motherwell’s staff did all they could to get the game on,” said Dundee chief executive Dave MacKinnon.

“But, unfortunately, a combination of a faulty drain and more rain made it unplayable.

“Now Motherwell are going to have to dig up the affected area, repair the drain and then re-lay the turf all before Saturday. And, with continuing rain forecast for the next three to four days, you wonder what the chances are of the pitch being OK for Monday.

“That’s why we asked the SFA and Motherwell to move the game to Dens.

“We were not seeking to gain an advantage — and I think Motherwell appreciated that — but to alleviate the problem.

“Our supporters have twice made plans to head through there only to have to cancel them and second time around that will have involved people taking half-days off work.

“We felt the fans required to be considered and that what we were proposing was a common sense solution.”

The youngster is likely to be in the squad for Saturday’s game at QOS.

Steven Anderson is suspended and, with Kevin Rutkiewicz also banned, Saints look like fielding a central defensive pairing of Kevin James and Allan McManus against Gordon Chisholm’s in-form side.