Cup final snub is motivation for O’Connor

ABERDEEN defender Anthony O’Connor is determined to help his side reach the Europa League group stage after the agony of missing out on last season’s Scottish Cup final. The 24-year-old was surprised to be left out of the team that pushed Celtic all the way at Hampden before Tom Rogic’s late goal secured the Treble for the Scottish champions. But after falling at the third round of the Europa League qualifiers in each of the last three seasons, O’Connor would like to secure group-stage football in Pittodrie for the first time since 2007-08. He said: ‘It was disappointing not to play in the Scottish Cup final. I had played in the three or four games leading up to it and thought I had done well. ‘So, when the gaffer named the team, it was disappointing. But that’s football. ‘The team comes first, although it did take me a few days in the summer to get over it. ‘But then I came back to pre-season ready to show how good I am. ‘Reaching the group stage would be a good way to get over it but it’s all about the team. ‘If I can help this club get into the Europa League, I’ll be more than happy. ‘It’s so important for a club like this to be in the Europa League.’ In the last round, losing an away goal to Siroki Brijeg in a 1-1 draw at Pittodrie set up a fraught trip to Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Dons won 2-0 but O’Connor would like to see his side secure some breathing space before they travel to the Georgios Karapatakis Stadium in Larnaca next Thursday. ‘First and foremost, a clean sheet is important,’ he said. ‘Siroki scored here in the last round and that meant we needed to chase the game over there. Luckily, we scored two over there. ‘But a clean sheet is so important and a couple of goals for us would settle us down ahead of the second leg in Cyprus. ‘I am looking forward to the game. We watched footage of Apollon and they are a capable side with a lot of technical players. ‘We’ve had stuff up on the board showing each player who plays for them and who we are all individually up against. ‘We will not in any way take them lightly. No matter who we play we treat them with respect. ‘But when you play for this club we are expected to win. And we are determined to do whatever we can to take an advantage into the away leg. ‘I think we are expected to go into the game as favourites and hopefully we can win the game. ‘It would be great to kick on in Europe. Last season was the best group of players I’ve been involved with here.’