HAMILTON .......... 0 ABERDEEN .......... 1
THERE was a time when early-round exits from cup competitions were Aberdeen’s stock in trade. Last night, though, the current generation of Dons players again demonstrated that they are made of far sterner stuff than many of their predecessors.
This was a contest high on energy and commitment but sadly lacking in quality. It was, in short, the kind of game many a team from the Granite City would have lost down the years.
A test of character was passed thanks to the striking prowess of Kenny McLean, the midfielder again illustrating the folly of allowing him a clear sight of goal.
Latching on to a loose ball two minutes from the break, he instinctively rammed it beyond Gary Woods to settle the contest.
Hamilton huffed and puffed thereafter but lacked craft and creativity. For all their possession, Joe Lewis in the visiting goal had a relatively quiet night.
By the end, the home fans had identified Nick Walsh, the referee, as the main outlet for their frustrations but, save a miserly two minutes of added on time, it was hard to fathom where that was coming from.
Their side simply came up against one that’s growing adept at negotiating these difficult early hurdles. The fact is that the better side progressed.
Resplendent in their blue away kit, Aberdeen embarked upon a game that was as much a chance to exorcise demons as a cup tie.
Twice last season they had come to Hamilton seeking to keep the heat on Celtic at the top of the Premiership. Twice they lost.
Accies may have left Pittodrie well beaten on Sunday but there was a belief about Martin Canning’s side from the off.
They refused to let the Dons get into their rhythm, their incessant pressing denying Ryan Christie and Scott Wright time to settle.
When an opening did arrive, a plumb free-kick after Darian MacKinnon’s handball, Ryan Christie fired it into the wall.
Accies carved out the first decent opening as Steven Boyd fed Ali Crawford on the flank and his cross favoured Joe Lewis, but the Hamilton striker was entitled to compete for it. The keeper brushed off the knock he took and the required treatment as an occupational hazard.
A contest that began calmly got a bit feisty. Derek McInnes and Canning, who exchanged a difference of opinion at the weekend, were not of a mind to kiss and make up on the sidelines. Errors began to creep into Hamilton’s play. Georgios Sarris’ indecision on the edge of the box almost proved costly. McLean picked his pocket and looked set to work Woods until Scott McMann’s intervention.
Moments later McLean’s inchperfect cross found Christie. The winger spun on a sixpence and got his shot away but it was a yard wide of the target.
Woods’ kick-out then fell straight at the feet of Nicky Maynard. The striker selflessly played in Christie but the keeper redeemed himself in the nick of time.
For all Aberdeen’s growing grip on the game, Hamilton ought to have drawn first blood.
Dougie Imrie surged up the left on the counter-attack, his cross falling perfectly for Boyd.
Remarkably, the striker’s shot into an unguarded net was blocked on the goal-line by none other than his team-mate Crawford. Offside was the call.
Accies defender Xavier Tomas joined MacKinnon in referee Walsh’s book for a block on Christie which left both players rubbing their heads.
It was far from pretty. Graeme Shinnie did provide one lovely chip over the top which allowed Andrew Considine to steer a header towards goal but it drifted wide.
Two minutes from the break, though, the Dons got the goal they just about deserved. It stemmed from Wright showing Grant Gillespie a clean pair of heels as he darted in from the left.
He teed the ball up for Shinnie, whose shot was blocked by Tomas but rolled to the unmarked McLean. He gave Woods no chance with a fine strike from 12 yards.
Accies almost levelled before the break. Greg Docherty let fly from the edge of the box through a forest of legs but the unsighted Lewis pulled off a smart stop.
It gave the home side something to cling on to. When Boyd released Rakish Bingham, the striker looked certain to test Lewis. Somehow Considine made up the ground and a block was made. The resultant corner saw Tomas waste a free header.
Docherty shouted loudly for a penalty after he felt Anthony O’Connor had tugged his shirt as he prepared to shoot but it seemed optimistic.
Accies were not without chances to level the scores via a set-piece but it seemed no one had told them Lewis is adept coming from his line.
Sub Louis Longridge managed to sneak in behind enemy lines but his cross from a prime position lacked direction and purpose and Considine cleared.
Gillespie did well to fend off Gary Mackay-Steven only for his shot to curl the wrong side of the far post.
At the other end, Greg Stewart spurned a gilt-edged chance to kill the game after neat work by fellow replacement Miles Storey, but it mattered little in the end.
Aberdeen have the scent of Hampden in their nostrils again.