SCOTTISH CUP
Dons cut ticket prices and are good value as they secure Hampden return
had the gamechangers who rose to the occasion.
Jonny Hayes started after missing the defeat to Hamilton with a hamstring strain and he was joined by Peter Pawlett and Jayden Stockley in an attack-minded line-up which had Ryan Christie benched and Ryan Jack and Mark Reynolds out through injury.
It was as you were for the Jags who went with the side which triumphed at Dundee last midweek on the back of a stunningly impressive run of eight clean sheets from their last 10 games.
That statistic was about to take another dent. The last time a Partick side had managed to leave Pittodrie with full points was 2003 and in the Jags side that day were the management duo calling the shots from the dugout yesterday.
Alan Archibald and Scott Paterson have seldom travelled to this stadium with a stronger belief of banishing that dismal record.
The cup tie began with a hightempo from both teams and it was helped by the fact Aberdeen had soaked the pitch pre-match.
Thistle threatened first, a Ryan Edwards free-kick was floated to the back post and Niall Keown’s header was well held by Dons keeper Joe Lewis.
The action flowed both ways and Niall McGinn was next to have a go but his rising shot from the edge of the area was a few inches too high. Slowly but surely the Dons managed to get a grip of proceedings and it required a block from Keown to deny Adam Rooney who had found room at the front post from McGinn’s corner in 19 minutes.
Another scare arrived three minutes later for the visitors who had goalie Tomas Cerny to thank for keeping out McGinn’s stinging half-volley with a moment of acrobatic brilliance.
The Maryhill outfit are made of stern stuff these days and with Chris Erskine’s creative talents running from deep causing the Dons problems, Thistle continued to ask questions of their own.
It should have been advantage Aberdeen 10 minutes before the break as another McGinn deadball delivery was placed on the head of Rooney. But he failed to direct his effort on target as it flew over the