
'Don't think Aberdeen could've had a harder first three'
We asked for your views on Aberdeen's Scottish Premiership fixtures and how they will be faring after 10 games.Here's what some of you said:Anthony: A tough opening couple of weeks, hopefully we do well enough that we don't take a psychological hit, but the fixtures in September look much more winnable. The huge factor that makes it difficult is the European league phase. Doesn't matter which competition we end up in, teams of our size always struggle adapting to midweek European matches. The fans will have to be patient, I reckon, which has never been the Red Army's strong suit.Jimibub: As much as I wish Derek [McInnes] well, I hope we give him a rude awakening in his first league fixture at Hearts. It's a tough start to the season, especially considering the European challenge, but bring it on. If we want European football money, we need to be able to balance the requirements. Beat Hearts, draw with Celtic, beat Dundee United and I think we have a good domestic start on our hands.Kev: Some tricky away games, and some even trickier home matches in the opening 10. However, ever the optimist, I'm expecting a lightning start to the season again this year and for the Dandies to be in the top two - hopefully!Eric: I don't think we could have had a harder first games to start, and certainly can't afford to lose all three. The next three are better, but we have to end up no worse than fourth overall, otherwise that is a disaster. With the first two places inevitable, our battle must be third/fourth with a target of 60 points.Andy: Well that's a good question and, given last year's shenanigans, completely unanswerable. However, I'll have a go at 17 points after 10 games: five wins, two draws and three defeats.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Reuters
24 minutes ago
- Reuters
France XV fight back to secure 26-24 win over England XV
LONDON, June 21 (Reuters) - A try after the hooter by Romain Taofifenua gave France XV a 26-24 victory over their English counterparts in a non-cap match at Twickenham on Saturday, as winger Immanuel Feyi-Waboso made a disappointing return from injury. Taofifenua burrowed over the try-line after England had led 24-12 with five minutes remaining but could not keep the visitors at bay in a game featuring four tries and a red card for each side. The match served as a warm-up for England's tour of Argentina and the United States, while France are preparing for three tests in New Zealand next month. France scored two early tries as hooker Gaetan Barlot crossed in the corner after breaking away from a driving maul, and lock Hugo Auradou burst into the England 22 after the visitors turned the ball over at the breakdown. England grew into the game, however, and after incessant pressure in the French 22, number eight Tom Willis scored in the corner before lock Alex Coles took a pop-pass from centre Seb Atkinson to cross the line. Feyi-Waboso, playing his first game since December after recovering from an injury, made two simple handling errors before receiving a 30-minute red card just past the half-hour mark. He was penalised for a high tackle as his arm struck the head of French flyhalf Antoine Hastoy. Initially a yellow card, it was upgraded to red on bunker review. Despite their numerical disadvantage, England led 19-12 at halftime when another strong carry from Atkinson broke the French defensive line and his pass to Joe Carpenter set up another try. Following a red card for French forward Cameron Woki, upgraded from yellow on bunker review, England added a fourth try when replacement loose-forward Alex Dombrandt went over in the corner. France had the advantage in the forwards, however, and powered over for two more tries with Taofifenua's effort converted by Hastoy to secure victory for the French.


The Sun
24 minutes ago
- The Sun
Man Utd transfer news LIVE: Rashford sends Barcelona PLEA, Onana to REJECT move to French giants, Mbeumo makes ‘U-TURN'
MANCHESTER UNITED are in for a crucial summer of transfers at Old Trafford. Marcus Rashford has sent a plea to Barcelona ahead of an impending departure from the Red Devils. Andre Onana is set to reject interest from Monaco and is keen to establish himself as the No1 at Old Trafford. Meanwhile, Red Devils target Bryan Mbeumo has reportedly made a U-TURN on his future plans, with the Brentford man favouring a switch to Spurs over Utd this summer. Elsewhere, Juventus and Napoli are said to be interested in a move for Jadon Sancho.


Telegraph
30 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Lions and Scotland great ‘Mighty Mouse' Ian McLauchlan dies at 83
Ian McLauchlan, the former Scotland captain, British and Irish Lions prop forward, and distinguished rugby administrator, has died. He was 83. Regarded as one of the most fearsome forwards of his generation, McLauchlan was known best by his nickname 'Mighty Mouse,' because of his ability to dominate opposition props despite being relatively small in stature for the front row. He won 43 caps for Scotland and was captain on 19 occasions, a record then overtaken by another world-class loosehead prop, David Sole. It was his heroics for the Lions that etched his place in rugby folklore. McLauchlan would go on to feature in all eight Test matches for the Lions on their victorious tours to New Zealand in 1971 and South Africa in 1974, one of only five players to do so. His final Scotland appearance was against New Zealand at Murrayfield in November 1979 at the age of 37, a decade after making his debut. After retiring from playing, he went on to serve the game as a highly regarded administrator, serving as president of the Scottish Rugby Union between 2010 to 2012. A strong advocate for the women's game, he also served as a member of the Scottish Rugby Union board from 2010-19 and was a director of European Professional Club Rugby. In 2013, he was inducted to Scottish Rugby's Hall of Fame and in December 2017 he was awarded OBE in the New Year's Honours List. He also served as chair of the British and Irish Lions Trust and was a trustee and chair of Scottish rugby's own charity, the Murrayfield Injured Players Foundation. His contribution to rugby union in total spanned six decades, from winning his first cap for Scotland at Twickenham in 1969 to his last SRU board meeting in 2019. Born in Tarbolton, Ayrshire on 14 April 1942, he was the first former pupil of Ayr Academy and first student of Jordanhill College to be capped for Scotland. Writing in his autobiography, Mighty Mouse, he described how he fell in love with the game despite not coming from a rugby-playing background. 'I loved the physicality, the brutality and the camaraderie of it. Before long the game had become the be-all and end-all of my life,' he wrote. He played his club rugby with Jordanhill and West of Scotland, and was first called up for a Scottish trial in 1963, and he made his debut for Glasgow District in the same season. While it was his scrummaging technique that would make him a feared opponent on the world stage, even against much bigger opponents – he was around 5ft 8ins and weighed just over 14st – he was also famed for his broken-field play and try-scoring prowess. When he eventually made his Scotland debut in 1969, at the age of 27 in the Calcutta Cup match, he had already scored 13 tries in the club game. Within a couple of seasons, he became an ever-present figure in the Scotland team, becoming captain in 1973, famously playing against England just three weeks after breaking his leg in the victory over Ireland, in a bid to win the Triple Crown. As Sandy Carmichael, his front-row colleague once remarked: 'His heart is bigger than his body.' Scotland lost but shared the Five Nations title. McLauchlan taught at Broughton High School in Edinburgh and when he retired from playing had a brief spell in rugby journalism before setting up his own marketing company. His latter years were spent on Islay, on where his wife, Eileen was born. She passed away in 2023. Telegraph Sport columnist Sir Ian McGeechan paid tribute to his former team-mate and captain. 'Mouse was instrumental for a group of us who came into the Scotland team in the early 1970s,' said McGeechan. 'After he came back from the 1971 [Lions] tour of New Zealand, where he had been so instrumental in the rugby and approach that was played against the All Blacks, a group of us, including myself and Andy Irvine, felt the impact of his support. 'When he was appointed captain, the difference in the atmosphere and attitude was incredible, as was the support he gave us. He was a clever rugby player; he had good hands and was PE-trained. He just encouraged us to play in a Scotland jersey, and I really appreciated being captained by him. He told us not to be afraid to play. 'He was just a good person to be with. He had a good sense of humour and was committed to making sure Scotland were playing on the front foot and not being afraid of it. We benefited hugely from having the Mouse as captain. It was the same on the 1974 Lions tour of South Africa with those of us who went on tour for the first time. 'When he became an administrator, he was not afraid to speak his mind. Everyone knew just what he thought. In that way, he was not afraid of challenging things. A man who in his own way was very good for Scottish and Lions rugby.'