STAVRUM KEEN TO SEE DONS RELIVE OLD STORYLINE

FOR a man whose repertoire encompasses both noir thrillers and children’s fiction in his native Norway, Arild Stavrum is well acquainted with conjuring up new stories. This weekend, he hopes to see an old one reprised. Seventeen years have passed since the striker-turned-novelist scored against Hibs to help Aberdeen reach their second final of the season. Just as with the class of 2017, they had already lost the first one to Celtic. The glaring difference is that Ebbe Skovdahl’s side finished rock bottom in the top flight. Only the failure of Falkirk’s old Brockville Park to meet SPL regulations spared them a relegation play-off. Monitoring Aberdeen’s progress from across the North Sea, he is full of admiration for the way Derek McInnes has now delivered league consistency alongside cup progress. ‘The season I played in two finals was a bit surreal,’ he admitted. ‘It was a team in total transition with a lot of players coming and going, but it was a great experience. ‘I can still remember the joy when we beat Hibs and the excitement of preparing for the final. Hopefully, it will be a similar result this weekend. ‘Our results in the league were obviously a lot tougher, but things have been much better in the last three or four years. ‘Aberdeen should be contending for trophies every season. I loved the tradition of the club. You felt the expectation from people in the city. ‘Some players don’t respond to pressure. It’s important you have players with the right character, not just satisfied with being mid-table. ‘It looks like Aberdeen have had a lot more of them in the last few years. ‘They’ve also had the situation of keeping those players. And the manager has been given time to develop what he really wants to do.’ That consistency of selection will be under threat regardless of the outcome of their Scottish Cup mission. Captain Ryan Jack, Niall McGinn and Ash Taylor are all out of contract at the end of the season. Stavrum appreciates financial realities, but warns that he missed Pittodrie after leaving. ‘There was a lot to give up when I left (in 2001). I felt I had to try moving to Turkey and playing for a team like Besiktas,’ he said. ‘But I have many times regretted moving from Aberdeen because I had a fantastic time there. ‘I should have stayed, but you never know these things at the time.’