Ferguson: Dons have turned corner

LEWIS FERGUSON believes Aberdeen’s performances are getting back on track despite leaving Parkhead with a familiar feeling of frustration. The midfielder admits, however, that a push for third place could be still reliant on Hibernian suffering further slips. News of Motherwell’s win at Easter Road provided a degree of comfort for the Pittodrie side after a second single-goal defeat to Celtic in the space of 11 days. A much-improved second-half display in Glasgow’s east end couldn’t prevent a seventh game in eight without scoring. Ferguson, though, feels Derek McInnes’ men have stepped up a level in their most recent outings as they look to summon a better finish to the season. ‘We went through a bad spell of not getting results and not performing well,’ he said. ‘We have turned that corner in the past few weeks. ‘We won against Kilmarnock and the performance was decent. It was decent again against Celtic, although it was not good enough to win a game, so we still have to get better. ‘I do think we went through a bad spell where it was bad performances that were losing us games. Today, there was a bit of luck involved. ‘We just have to keep going until the end of the season.’ Aberdeen remain four points behind Hibs, who have a game in hand. Asked about the contest for third place, Ferguson added: ‘It is not really down to us at the minute. ‘Hibs are obviously in control of that, so it is down to them and whether they want to get that spot or not. ‘We are pushing as hard as possible and it is still our aim but it is not in our hands at the minute.’ Aberdeen stepped up the tempo after the break but the hosts kept them at bay. ‘It was a bit like deja-vu to be honest as we did enough to get a point,’ lamented Ferguson.