McInnes urges team to grasp opportunity

ABERDEEN might be favourites to end Hibernian’s interest in the Scottish Cup on Saturday, but Derek McInnes has not forgotten to factor in that his Easter Road counterpart knows a thing or two about winning.

It has been nearly three decades since the Dons lifted the trophy, a statistic their current manager finds difficult to take in. But he and his team have never been so confident of marching into the final and achieving their pre-season aim, to win a trophy.

“Life’s all about taking opportunities,” he said, “and we have a great one to get to a final but Hibs will see it exactly the same way. We may be favourites based on where we are in the league but I think we are up against a team with a manager who is used to winning things.

“They are an experienced team that are going to win their own division and they are the cup holders. You could argue that this Hibs team are better than the one that beat Rangers in the final last season.

“They are a Premiership team in waiting so it is going to be tough, but it is an opportunity for us and it’s important we take it.

“We stressed at the start of the season that we wanted not just to reach more cup finals but to actually win them. The final is the last game of the season and it always has that showpiece feel to it so we want to be there at Hampden with the chance of winning the trophy.”

McInnes is well aware of the edginess often seen in semi-finals which can bring sub-standard performances.

“You don’t normally get good semi-finals,” he said, “because there is always so much on them and sometimes you get teams more frightened not to lose it than going to win it. You must do all you can and not have any regrets at the end. You have to be brave and confident and go and grab it to drive yourself into a final. That’s what we all want.”