in the Scottish Cup

Aberdeen v Celtic

Celtic had been one of Aberdeen’s most vociferous backers as Aberdeen attempted to gain admission to the Scottish League in 1903. The Parkhead club had offered their full support in the Dons application. That good feeling did not last long as when the sides clashed for the first time in 1908 it was a game that was marred by rough tactics on the field and unsporting behaviour off it. There was no doubt that the Dons first cup semi final was a massive occasion for the club and in the build up to the game there were unprecedented scenes in the area. Semi finals were not played on neutral grounds back then and Pittodrie was filled with a record 20,000 attendance for the game. Aberdeen had progressed through to the last four for the first time after wins over Albion Rovers, Dundee and Queens Park. While it was celebrated as a great occasion by an Aberdeen club that had yet to scale the heights in Scotland, it was Celtic that imposed themselves on the game in a manner that provoked no little bad feeling. The visitor’s physical approach and robust tackles left a more fluent Aberdeen struggling to find any rhythm. Despite several warnings from the referee Celtic proceeded to stamp their authority on the game in more ways than one and eventually scarped through in a 1-0 win. While the result was disappointing for Aberdeen it was the manner of the defeat which prompted ugly scenes at full time. All of the Celtic players and the referee had to be escorted from the pitch as they were showered in stones thrown from the crowd. The SFA were quick to act and they closed Pittodrie for two weeks although the punishment never materialised with Aberdeen being away from home and another postponement due to weather.

Two years later Aberdeen went down 2-1 at Parkhead in another close encounter. That trend continued in 1911 when the sides clashed again in the semi final, on this occasion at Parkhead. For the first time since Aberdeen entered the First Division in 1905, the Black & Gold’s had been challenging in the league and cup that season. Once again Aberdeen were unlucky to go down 1-0 as a first cup win over Celtic eluded them. A year later the sides met again and a classic cup-tie at Pittodrie ended in a 2-2 draw. Once again the Pittodrie attendance record was broken with 22,000 turning up. Aberdeen’s best chance was gone and they were defeated 2-0 in the replay. In 1926 Aberdeen met Celtic for the third time at the semi final stage and the Dons hoodoo continued as Celtic won 2-1 in a tense game at Tynecastle.

Aberdeen had to wait until 1935 before they celebrated a first Scottish Cup win over Celtic. It came on 9^th March before a crowd in excess of 40,000 at Pittodrie. Reports before the quarter final tie suggested that this was the day that Aberdeen would end the Celtic record in the cup. Aberdeen had been riding high in the league and were seen as favourites to progress to the semi final. On a memorable day at Pittodrie it was a magical display from a slick Aberdeen who were on top throughout. The Aberdeen spearhead of Willie Mills and Matt Armstrong did the damage in a 3-1 win that was one of the most passionate games witnessed at the old ground. Two years later Aberdeen were once again fancied to defeat Celtic in what was the first final that Aberdeen had reached in their history. An all-time British record attendance of 146,433 filled the national stadium. In a game of Aberdeen’s passing against Celtic power it was Aberdeen that just did not perform on the day and they went down 2-1 before the huge crowd. Matt Armstrong scored the Aberdeen equaliser that day and he recalled some years after the game?”It was a fantastic occasion. There never seemed to be a second to take stock. It all seemed to go too fast. The noise was deafening; we could not shout at each other during the game. There was no way we could hear each other, the noise was incredible. When I scored it was a great experience; I just reacted on instinct. The result was a big disappointment for the team. Before the game we were confident that we would win, we were the team in form and we felt we were the better team. On the day it just did not happen for us.”

In February 1950 the Dons recorded their first Scottish Cup win at Parkhead in a 1-0 win. Aberdeen were up against it before a huge 65,000 crowd and Celtic had their own legends on display with the likes of McGrory, McPhail and Tully in their starting line up. The Dons rode their luck when McPhail scored but was ruled offside. After Collins corner hit the Aberdeen bar, the Dons broke clear and Chris Anderson scored the winner. A year later Celtic got revenge in a quarter final meeting again at Parkhead. On that occasion the Dons season was effectively ended in a 3-0 win before a massive 75,000 attendance. The next time the sides met in the cup was in the 1954 final when Celtic eased past Aberdeen in a 2-1 win. The Dons had been searching for an Old Firm double after they had hammered Rangers 6-0 in the semi final.

Some 13 years later the Dons met up again in the final at Hampden. It had been a barren spell for Aberdeen in the cup but under Eddie Turnbull there were positive signs of improvement. The final in 1967 was another huge disappointment for Aberdeen but fate conspired to thwart the Dons chances. Manager Turnbull took ill on the eve of the final and was unable to rise from his sick bed at the team hotel. Without their manager the Dons team bus was delayed by traffic and the players only arrived at Hampden 40 minutes before the kick off. Celtic went on to win 2-0 in a year that they won everything they entered including a first ever European Cup. The Champions trophy was again on the agenda three years later when they met in the 1970 final. That win is detailed elsewhere in this issue but it remains a memorable Aberdeen success. In 1973 Aberdeen held Celtic to a 0-0 draw in Glasgow before going out in controversial fashion in the replay. Billy McNeill headed past Clark with just four minutes left. Referee Davidson failed to spot Jim Hermiston getting fouled in the build up to Harry Hood’s corner which allowed McNeill to score.

In 1979 another replay was needed to separate the teams in a quarter final clash. Joe Harper was on the mark for Aberdeen in a 1-1 draw at Pittodrie. Most observers believed that Aberdeen’s best chance was gone but they defied the odds in the Parkhead replay by winning 2-1. In a bad tempered game, tempers boiled over in the tunnel after the game as two Aberdeen players were assaulted outside of the dressing room.

Aberdeen’s success in the 1982 Scottish Cup paved the way for success in Europe. The road to Hampden that year began with John Hewitt’s record breaking goal at Motherwell and the Aberdeen striker continued that form when Billy McNeill’s Celtic came north in the 4^th round. Hewitt scored a spectacular overhead kick in 19 minutes to put Aberdeen through against their big rivals of the time. After the Dons success in 1982 the following ECWC campaign had captured the imagination. Aberdeen were battling on three fronts and after defeating Waterschei in the semi final of the ECWC, the Dons hectic schedule included a Scottish Cup semi final against Celtic at Hampden. In a bruising encounter it was Aberdeen that prevailed with a Peter Weir header to send Aberdeen through to a final meeting with Rangers.

Aberdeen were on the crest of a wave when they met Celtic at Hampden in the 1984 cup final. The Dons were going for an historic three cup wins in succession and old rivals Celtic stood in their way. Eric Black put Aberdeen ahead and the Dons were also helped after Celtic captain Roy Aitken was sent off in the first half. Aberdeen were stunned when Celtic’s Paul McStay equalised to take the final into extra time. The Dons experience told and it was Mark McGhee who scored the winner that made it three wins in a row for Aberdeen.

Under Ian Porterfield the Dons came up against Celtic in the opening round in 1987. After a 2-2 draw at Pittodrie and a further stalemate at Celtic Park in a 0-0 draw, the tie was settled by a Brian McClair goal in a third tie at neutral Dens Park. The last occasion Aberdeen won the Scottish Cup was in 1990 when the Dons defeated Celtic in an historic penalty shoot out. It was the end of a great era for the Dons who had enjoyed a decade of success during the 80’s that even the Old Firm could not match.

The last occasion the sides met in a final and indeed the last time Aberdeen have won the cup was in 1990. Aberdeen were fancied to win with the pairing of Charlie Nicholas and Hans Gillhaus up front they had one of the most feared front partnerships in British football. However Celtic held out in a dour 0-0 draw as the game went into a first ever penalty shoot out. Aberdeen prevailed 9-8 after which Aberdeen boss Alex Smith said ‘it was like shooting ducks at the fair’. Theo Snelders saved Anton Rogan’s penalty before Brian Irvine scored the winning penalty that took the cup north to Pittodrie for the seventh time in Aberdeen FC history.

In 2002 Celtic comfortably beat Aberdeen at the Quarter Finals stage after Robbie Winters missed a penalty but in 2008 Jimmy Calderwood’s Aberdeen enjoyed a famous win. Celtic had beaten Aberdeen 5-1 in the League at Pittodrie a month earlier and a few weeks later the Dons European adventure finally came to an end when Bayern also beat Aberdeen 5-1 in the second leg. Also in February the Dons had exited the League Cup at the semi final stage after a 4-1 defeat to Dundee United so a very promising season had taken a major downturn. In the Quarter Final against Celtic Jeffrey De Visscher gave the Dons the lead after a superb team goal but Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink saved Celtic’s cup hopes when he netted in the last minute to keep Celtic after Aberdeen had looked set for victory at Pittodrie. Nobody gave the Dons much of chance in the replay in Glasgow but Jimmy Calderwood got his tactics spot on and in the 69^th minute Darren Mackie scored the only goal of the game.

In 2011 the sides met at Hampden in the semi final but when Andrew Considine was controversially sent off Celtic then eased to a 4-0 win.

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