'Hampden scenes and homecoming parade make Scottish Cup glory worth the wait'
From Albyn Place, down Union Street to the townhouse, thousands of Aberdeen fans erupted in joy as the Scottish Cup glistened in the late spring sunshine in the Granite City. The streets were a sea of red and white.The Dons' squad, led by manager Jimmy Thelin and captain Graeme Shinnie shrugged off their late night to parade the silverware which had been won less than 24 hours before.And what a triumph it had been, against all the odds imaginable.There had been whispers during the week that Thelin was going to switch his tactics after suffering at the hands of Celtic in recent clashes with the champions. He needed something different and it paid spectacular dividends.The vanquishing of more than three decades of pain in the Scottish Cup was over. Stenhousemuir, Queen of the South, Darvel. The Dons' fans had their fair share of horror stories to tell along the way which probably made this victory all the sweeter.The fact chairman Dave Cormack compared it to the feeling of winning the Cup-Winners' Cup in 1983, on the club's greatest day, tells you all you need to know about how important it was.Defensively they looked assured with Alfie Dorrington, Mats Knoester and the impressive academy graduate Jack Milne standing up to everything Celtic threw at them.The headline-maker was Dimitar Mitov, the Bulgarian replicating the great Theo Snelders all those years and decades ago, first saving when one-on-one with Daizen Maeda before keeping Callum McGregor and Alastair Johnston out in the shoot-out.Thelin's subs also made the sort of impact they were making in the early part of the season, particularly Shayden Morris, Pape Gueye and Dante Polvara.The ultimate prize is of course the fact the Scottish Cup has returned to Pittodrie, which was its second home during the 1980s, but it also saw Aberdeen gazump Hibernian for the European spoils of guaranteed continental competition until December with a stab at the Europa League to come first. The bank balance will get a big boost as a result of that.Aberdeen fans have had their fair share of disappointments down the years, but the scenes at Hampden and then back home the day after will have made it worth the wait.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
3 hours ago
- Daily Mail
The man with the most important job in Scottish rugby right now is essentially phoning it in from Bondi Beach, writes Calum Crowe
Franco Smith is not a man known for wild displays of emotion. Generally speaking, the Glasgow Warriors head coach usually wears a facial expression that would turn Medusa to stone. But there was a raw sense of candour in Smith's voice when he spoke to journalists in the aftermath of Glasgow's defeat to Leinster in the URC semi-finals last weekend.
BBC News
6 hours ago
- BBC News
Too early to tell if I will remain Scotland boss
Gregor Townsend says it is too early to say if he will remain as Scotland head coach beyond the end of his current contract, which expires next the immediate aftermath of the Six Nations, in which Scotland finished fourth, Townsend said he had no plans to step down and that the job – which he has held since 2017 – "gives me a big purpose in my life".Townsend says no discussions have taken place with Scottish Rugby over any new deal."If you get more into the year, those discussions would have to happen, whether they're initiated by my bosses or by myself," Townsend told the BBC's Scotland Rugby Podcast."I think there's obviously a lot of discussions around the Six Nations, the reviews of that, where we believe we need to improve, but also the longer-term future, what are the challenges coming up for Scotland and that ties in with the pathway and the longer-term strategy."But I feel there's a lot to be optimistic about with the current group we have, the players that are coming through and the experiences the players had this year."Yes, we're disappointed we didn't win more games, but I know the performances that the players are delivering are putting us in positions to beat the best teams in the world and that's a good foundation to have. "The next step is making sure we win those games we put that effort into winning."Townsend also expects to retain the services of his assistant, Steve Tandy, who has been linked with the vacant Wales job."He's a brilliant coach, he's very connected with our players, he's excited about this summer tour," he added."He's buzzing about working with the players again and there's nothing but speculation about him and other people that have been linked to the job outside of Scotland."We're very lucky to have Steve, we know that, and the players love working with him."
BBC News
6 hours ago
- BBC News
Goodwin backs 'fearless' Iovu to flourish in Scotland
Dundee United manager Jim Goodwin has expressed his "unwavering confidence" that Iurie Iovu will strengthen his defence - even though the centre-half ended last season in the fourth tier of the Spanish 22-year-old, who has been capped four times by Moldova, has signed a two-year contract, with a club-held option of an additional 12 months, after leaving Croatian top-flight outfit Istra believes "committed and fearless" Iovu will be ideal for the physicality of the Scottish Premiership and that he will prove "a fantastic asset" financially in the long United boss pointed to his "dominant displays across three different European countries".Iovu came through the youth ranks with his local club, eight-time Moldovan champions Zimbru Chisinau, but moved to Cagliari's academy in Italy at the age of to make a first-team appearance for his club, he was nevertheless handed his international debut aged 19 in a World Cup qualifier against Austria in following summer, he switched to Venezia but was loaned out to Istra before making the move permanent in season, he made 16 appearances for the side who eventually finished eighth in the 10-team Croatian top flight but was sent on loan to Alaves' B side in January, starting 12 games as they finished eighth in the 18-team United point out that Iovu "ranked in the top two for aerial duel success rate and shots blocked per 90 minutes in the division for players aged under 23" in that first half of the Croatian add that he helped Alaves B win eight of their last 13 matches while on loan.
