Ferguson reckons derby debut made him stronger
LEWIS FERGUSON won’t forget his senior debut in a hurry.
But the Lanarkshire derby between Hamilton Accies and Motherwell, a Scottish Cup tie at Fir Park in January this year, was as exhilarating as it was inhospitable for the kid from the Accies youth academy.
He and his team-mates lost 2-0, though it was clear even then that this was a youngster with potential.
The 19-year-old, now a mainstay of Derek McInnes’s Aberdeen side, will relish a return to Well today where he expects the Dons to continue to build on their run of three successive Premiership wins.
“I remember my debut well,” he said. “It was one of the toughest games that I’ve played in so far.
“It was last January and I got flung straight into the starting XI when I hadn’t had any experience at that level before.
“I got a wee taste of it and what Scottish football could be like as they were dead physical and there wasn’t much football played that day.
“I played OK but we played them again in the league at Hamilton and won 2-0 that time.
“So, I have won one and lost one against them.
“I got a lot of stick from the Motherwell fans at Fir Park when I was with Accies but that is part and parcel of the game.””
The tide has turned for the Dons in recent weeks after a slow start to the campaign and the Betfred League Cup semi-final victory over Rangers, not to say the Scotland call-ups for Scott Mckenna, Graeme Shinnie and Gary Mackay-Steven, as well as the continuing part Niall McGinn plays in the Northern Ireland set-up, has given the Pittodrie outfit an extra injection.
Ferguson, too, has been recognised at international level, featuring for Scotland’s youngsters.
“The past few weeks have been brilliant,” he said. “We’ve just found that form that we were looking for at the start of the season.
“I think we got that against Hibs and that took us into the international break full of confidence and we just need to be consistent now and keep that up.
“The likes of Gaz, Shinnie, Scotty and Niall are all experienced at a high level.
“I’ve played in the under21s and I was away with the under-20s to Spain. So, the full squad is a target but I’m still young and I’m just wanting to work as hard as I can and improve every day.”
Centre-back Mikey Devlin, another Hamilton product, will miss out on today’s game because of an ankle injury.
McInnes, meanwhile, sees no need to motivate his players ahead of the big day at Hampden.
“You can’t be at your best if you aren’t thinking of the next game and the next game is Motherwell,” he said. “There is no point protecting themselves.
“I understand people are talking about the cup final but they should see it as an opportunity to get in the team and promote themselves for the final.
“The first thing is it is an opportunity to get three points. We have always tried to play cup football through our league campaign and try to win every game.”
‘‘ I got a wee taste of what Scottish football could be. Dead physical