Megginson injury worry.

After a poor first half performance from Aberdeen that saw them a goal down the Dons looked as if they were getting back into the match after the break. Substitutes Paton and Megginson were looking lively, but their world then fell apart in the space of a few minutes as they lost a second goal through a defensive blundered then lost substitute Paton with a straight red card for a challenge. Worse was to follow when Megginson was the victim of a poor challenge by Tokely and had to leave the field on a stretcher. Let’s hope the situation is not as bad as it looked at the time. Amidst the turmoil Jarvis made his debut for the Dons.

Aberdeen kicked off and Vernon was immediately on the hunt to add to his tally, but the home defence cleared. Seconds later Aberdeen won the first corner of the match, but they failed to create anything from the set play. Vernon was causing real problems and in the second minute he won a free kick in a dangerous position. Young delivered a great ball and Diamond headed home, but the celebrations were cut short by an offside flag. It will be interesting to see that one again on television. At the other end Howard was forced into a fine save from Rooney after mistakes from McArdle and Ifil.

In the 7th minute Mackie fired in a great cross and Vernon headed wide under pressure. Two minutes later Aberdeen won another free kick and once again Young delivered and Munro was forced to turn the ball behind for a corner. Unfortunately the delivery was disappointing allowing Inverness to break. Ifil made a great challenge to deny Odhiambo then the home side were awarded a soft free kick, but the move ended with another safe stop from Howard.

In the 13th minute good play from Vernon set up Mackie and his shot was well saved by ex-Don Ryan Esson. It had been a good start to the game with both teams going for it. Three minutes later Hayes carved out a chance for himself, but was unable to find the target. The home side had picked up the pace and Diamond had to look sharp in the 18th minute to clear. A minute later Hayes opened the scoring when he beat Considine and appeared to play a cross that ended in the top corner of the net. Hayes had been threatening this for the last five minutes.

Hayes almost carved out a second two minutes later when his cross was headed wide by Odhiambo. Another effort from Hayes went wide in the 25th minute as Aberdeen appeared to be unable to cope with the Inverness player. On the half hour mark Vernon started a move for the Dons as he combined with Jack and Mackie. The move came to nothing, but it was the first sign of the Dons getting forward since the early stages. Three minutes later a long throw from McArdle caused problems, but a free kick award halted the threat.

In the 37th minute Jack was injured by a flying elbow from team mate Diamond and seconds later Folly was cautioned for a foul on Foran. Inverness won their first corner of the match in the 41st minute, but the ball was comfortably cleared. A minute later McArdle became the second Don in the book following a late challenge as the home side looked for a second before the break. The half time whistle couldn’t come soon enough for manager Mark McGhee who will have some words to say at the interval.

Rooney should have doubled the advantage in the 47th minute after he outmuscled Ifil. The Inverness striker was through on goal, but failed to hit the target. At the other end Considine tried from distance, but the effort was well off target. With 51 minutes on the clock Derek Young was replaced by Paton as McGhee looked to change the course of the match. A decent attack involving Vernon and Paton created a half chance in the 56th minute and a minute later Vernon had a half chance after Magennis was taken out of the play by Duff. Two minutes later Megginson replaced Magennis before an Inverness free kick was blocked by the wall.

On the hour mark Jack and Megginson combined well to set up a chance for Mackie. The ball was in the air for a long time and the Dons striker headed wide. A minute later another great chance was created as Esson saved from a Paton header. With Aberdeen looking like they might level another defensive lapse cost them a second goal as a long punt down the park by Esson was not dealt with by Diamond and Rooney had the simple task of netting.

In the 66th minute McArdle and Paton combined well and forced Hayes to slice the ball behind for a corner. Unfortunately nothing came of the corner and seconds later Paton was shown a straight red card for a challenge on Hayes. The Aberdeen bench was clearly unhappy with the decision and Scott Leitch was spoken to by the referee. Tokely was cautioned in the 73rd minute for a poor challenge on Megginson. The youngster then had to leave the field on a stretcher. Both Paton and Megginson had been looking impressive, but now the substitutes were off the park.

Dean Jarvis made his debut for Aberdeen as he replaced the youngster who looked in a bad way. Mackie had a chance to pull one back in the 83rd minute, but he was falling as he tried to chip the ball and it went wide. Jack then won a corner for Aberdeen in the 88th minute, but couldn’t convert. Deep in injury time the home side won their own corner and they also failed to make anything of it. Following six minutes of injury time for the treatment of Megginson the whistle went and Aberdeen were put out of their misery on a day they will want to quickly forget.