To reach the clubs first cup final in 14 years the team have had to progress through four rounds facing Alloa, Falkirk, Motherwell and St Johnstone. Each and every one of these games have been a cracking game each for their own reasons, which has given Dons supporters a roller coaster ride to the final. Derek McInnes' side is yet to concede a goal in the competition as Jamie Langfield has achieved four shut outs along the way which has been just as important as the bundle of goals which the men in red have netted too.
Round Two - Dons v Wasps:
Paul Hartley's Alloa were Aberdeen's first opponents in the competition and the night did not look promising for McInnes' side as it progressed. Aberdeen dominated but simply could not find away past the sturdy first division side and memories of shock cup results against Aberdeen began to creep into the mind of supporters around the country. The game was a stalemate after normal time and extra time proving to be the only goalless draw of the whole competition. So it went to penalties, something Aberdeen are renowned for being rubbish at. Both teams scored all five penalties and then the crucial sudden death penalty was missed by Doyle. Reynolds stepped up, all he had to do was score, and he did to send Aberdeen through into the next round and avoid a cup scare.
Round Three - Bairns v Dons:
A trip to face Falkirk promised to be a stern test for Aberdeen on their quest for cup success. But as the Dons took to the field that promise was broken. The men in red were running riot much to the delight of the Red Army. Shaughnessy opened the scoring on the 25 minute mark and from there on it was a cruise to victory. Cammy Smith doubled Aberdeen's lead before half time, slamming home from close range. Then it was the super sub Scott Vernon's turn to shine. In the second half the big man netted three times (one an emphatic penalty) to take home the match ball and power Aberdeen into the quarter finals. The travelling support were sent home a very happy bunch.
Quarter Finals - Steelmen v Dons:
As Aberdeen drew Motherwell again in a cup competition the players and fans knew this was going to be a very different match compared to the last round. Down the road with them the Red Army took just shy of 3,000 fans a brilliant turn out for a Wednesday evening. The opening ten minutes could not have gone worse for Aberdeen as Shaughnessy was dismissed for a lunge on Francis-Angol. Much to the delight of the Motherwell fans the sending off backfired as Aberdeen sat back and defended magnificently as a single unit for the whole half limiting Motherwell to long range shots only. Motherwell were not at their best at all and the whole looked there for the taking on the break as they committed more and more men forward as the game progressed to look for that opening goal. This was exactly how Aberdeen got in front. A break led to a corner which led to Andrew Considine thundering into the net. An eruption of noise took place in the two tier stand behind the goal as Dons fans went crazy. Then the nail biting commenced as Aberdeen looked to hang on. Attack after attack was halted by the Dons defence and star man Russell Anderson was putting in the performance of his life. Another break from Aberdeen found Hayes in acres of space who then drove in at goal smashing home into the top corner to take Aberdeen into another semi-final!
Semi-Finals - Dons v Saints:
The stage was set. Tynecastle. 14,000 Aberdeen faithful supporters descended upon Edinburgh to turn it into for that weekend, Redinburgh. St Johnstone were the opponents and although they had not even scored against Aberdeen this season they were not to be undermined. The teams emerged from the tunnel to a humongous wall of red which seemed to spur on the Dons players. Right from the off the players pressed St Johnstone and got their rewards on three minutes. Rooney powered up the wing and cut back to Hayes in the middle to tap in from 2 yards. Tynecastle exploded as the Red Army shook the foundations. A period of sustained Saints pessure had Aberdeen under the cosh but Pawlett doubled the Dons' lead by bursting through the defence and slotting under Banks on the half hour mark. At half time things were looking up for Aberdeen to reach a final. That feel good factor spilled into the second half as new signing Adam Rooney made it 3-0 sending Banks the wrong way as he bore down on goal. The rout was finally complete when Hayes curled in an effort from the edge of the box to double his tally for the match. The Dons had done and reached their first final in 14 years. The Red Army were left singing in the rain in Redinburgh.
Now destiny day approaches (16th March 2014) where Aberdeen take on Inverness CT in the League Cup final, can the team of the 2013/14 season go that one step further and lift silverware? Well we all bloody hope so!
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