BOOTH BACKING YOUTHFUL DONS TO COME OF AGE
LEWIS FERGUSON and Connor McLennan have been able to conquer a fear factor in the best possible way. By being completely oblivious to the existence of one.
Soft touches in Glasgow for long stretches of time, many Aberdeen careers both playing and managerial have been scarred irreparably by heavy defeats away to either side of the Old Firm.
Right now, the state of being entirely unburdened from deflating sequences of failure, along with the undoubted talent within young Pittodrie ranks, has already taken Aberdeen far.
In his eighth domestic game for the club, Ferguson scored a Hampden winner for Aberdeen to knock Rangers out of the Betfred Cup at the semi-final stage.
The 19-year-old midfielder has since helped the Dons to two Ibrox victories, the second of which saw McLennan strike and set up today’s last-four William Hill Scottish Cup tie.
No need to be concerned, either, by facing a Celtic team that they cancelled out in a Ladbrokes Premiership clash only five weeks ago at Parkhead.
Derek McInnes denies any mental block negatively affected his players when confronted by such tests earlier on in his tenure.
As for Ferguson, McLennan and Dean Campbell, who has just turned 18, and could step in for Graeme Shinnie today? It is to Aberdeen’s delight that they are not entirely sure why their manager is being quizzed on such matters at all ahead of another big trip to Glasgow.
Scott Booth is one former Aberdeen favourite who recognises the importance of scoring road victories over Celtic and Rangers at a young age.
He was 18 and boasted only a few minutes of first-team experience when drafted in by Alex Smith in May 1990 for a trip to Glasgow’s east end.
With a Scottish Cup final against Celtic looming 10 days later, Smith rested seven sure starters and trusted in youth.
Two goals from Eoin Jess, with only 10 senior starts behind him, and a third from 19-year-old Graham Watson secured a comeback 3-1 victory. Booth was superb in setting up goals for both.
A fearless approach from a vibrant young Aberdeen team is once again producing results that can be the making of great Pittodrie careers, according to Booth.
‘Getting that win at Celtic did a lot for showing us that was what our job was — to go to Glasgow and win games for Aberdeen,’ said Booth.
‘We played really well that night and I think that really helped for the future. That one was really quite early in our Aberdeen careers for all of us.
‘It became public knowledge our
manager was going to play all these youngsters. Dundee United were on the cusp of beating Celtic to a place in Europe and weren’t happy about it.
‘We lost a goal to Andy Walker and the whole place was going mad. And we were just young. Myself, Eoin Jess, Gregg Watson, Graham Watson, Stephen Wright...
‘It’s much easier when there are four or five of you. Having a group breeds this kind of confidence.
‘You don’t get fazed as much as you would if you were the young one and it’s all about you coming through.
‘Youth gives you energy and I think that’s one thing Derek’s teams work really hard at. You need that kind of energy coming to Glasgow.
‘Because the atmosphere is going to be really difficult. If it fazes you, it can make you feel tired, that you can’t get there.
‘Surround them with experienced, confident players who help pull the whole thing together. Scott McKenna is still only 22 and one of a lot of players who don’t get intimidated or overawed in this Aberdeen team now. That has to be down to the management, who have done a phenomenal job.’
Neither Booth nor Jess played a part in the 9-8 penalty shoot-out success over Celtic in the final later that month, the most recent of Aberdeen’s seven Scottish Cup triumphs.
However, Booth, head coach of Scottish Women’s Premier League champions Glasgow City, believes the current crop from Pittodrie have their futures in the safest of hands.
He is so impressed with the work of McInnes keeping Aberdeen in contention for cup competitions and finishing runners-up four seasons in succession.
‘The balancing act performed has been fantastic,’ noted Booth. ‘Constantly losing players, having to rebuild the same type of team each time. One with energy and strength, one which likes to go forward and score goals. That’s one of the reasons he’s been able to win in Glasgow recently.
‘Something has obviously clicked. It wasn’t just the fact they beat Rangers, it was the way they did it. The manner and confidence of it. It didn’t feel surprising.