Dons pay the penalty as Killie earn a replay
ABERDEEN 1
Shinnie (9)
KILMARNOCK 1
Boyd (pen, 68)
Kilmarnock beat The Beast From The East to get to Aberdeen.
Now Steve Clarke’s best will face the Dons in the west.
Graeme Shinnie’s early strike put Aberdeen ahead at Pittodrie, but it didn’t put them in control.
Killie claimed a deserved replay when Kris Boyd slammed home his 17th goal of the season from the penalty spot.
With a place in the Scottish Cup semi-finals still on the line, the sides will tangle again a week on Tuesday at Rugby Park.
And if ever Killie are going to break their Dons hoodoo, now is as good a time as any.
Despite a horrendous fiveyear run without a win over the Dandies, they have picked up more Premiership points (31 to Aberdeen’s 29) in fewer games (18 to 19) since Steve Clarke took charge.
Their upturn in form has captured Ayrshire imaginations, and with a big travelling support behind them, they started brightly.
Then they fell behind.
Aberdeen have felt captain Graeme Shinnie’s absence through suspension keenly over the last two games.
He emphasised his importance to Derek Mcinnes’ side straight away on his return, collecting from Ryan Christie on the left of Killie’s box before swinging a left-footed strike across the face of goal.
Inexplicably, Jamie Macdonald appeared to hold back, only to see it sneak inside the far post and, no doubt, into his nightmares.
The game became scrappy in the aftermath, not aided by the poor condition of the surface.
Kenny Mclean tried his luck from 35 yards with an awkward, bouncing effort, which Macdonald did well to hold with Adam Rooney and Stevie May rushing in.
Then Killie woke up – and there was instant drama.
Eamonn Brophy sparked it, darting into the Aberdeen box on the outside of Christie.
The Dons star, left trailing, appeared to tug at his adversary, who promptly hit the deck to howls from the Killie fans.
Referee Steven Maclean wasn’t interested, however, and promptly booked Brophy for his protests.
The visitors weren’t done. Before half-time, Dons keeper Freddie Woodman preserved his side’s lead with a stunning fingertip save to deny Kris Boyd from a header.
Boyd then blew his chance to claim revenge from the resulting corner, volleying practically into the top tier of the Dick Donald Stand from only eight yards.
Kari Arnason almost made up for his part in the oversight nine minutes into the second half when he met a Niall Mcginn free kick with his head, however Macdonald pulled out a superb diving save.
The Dons, with a lead to defend, seemed happy to manage the game, while Killie simply weren’t at their best.
With a trip to Hampden on the line, they needed to dig deep.
Then Aberdeen threw them a lifeline. A defensive mix-up between Arnason and Shay Logan gave Jordan Jones a sniff of the ball on the corner of Aberdeen’s box.
The Killie star nipped in before plummeting to the turf, with Logan fingered for bringing him down.
After watching the incident back, Derek Mcinnes accused Jones of going down without being touched.
Kris Boyd, so often a target for Aberdeen fans, smashed home from the spot before gesturing to his belly.
In the end, the final chances fell to Aberdeen goal machine Adam Rooney, but he couldn’t direct his volley from Logan’s header inside the post, or his header from Shinnie’s cross beyond Macdonald’s grasp.