2020 will be a year none of us forget.

Thankfully it is about to be consigned to the history books.

In footballing terms, it has certainly been historic. Only once before has a season been curtailed early, and that was at the start of World War II. For Andrew Considine though, he won’t forget the past twelve months for the right reasons. As the year draws to a close, the final word goes to a man who gave us all inspiration and something to smile about.

It’s as well we play in the Granite City, for the way things are going, it won’t be long before we are chiselling out a stone likeness of Andy Considine.

When the Dons drew down at St. Mirren at the start of the month, it was his 537th game for the club, overtaking legendary goalkeeper Jim Leighton and moving into fifth place in the all-time Aberdeen appearance list. With Stewart McKimmie in fourth place on the list on 561 games, good health and a fair wind permitting, by season’s end, Andrew might nip past him, which would put him up on any prospective Aberdonian Mount Rushmore alongside Willie Miller (797), Alex McLeish (693) and Bobby Clark (595).

Bobby’s place is the top three is not looking as secure as it once was now that Andrew has extended his Aberdeen contract through to the summer of 2022, making him one of the longest serving players in the club’s history. Now 33, he is currently playing in his 18th season in the first team, having made his debut back in May 2004, beginning what has become one of the great AFC careers.

And the events of 2020 suggest that career has got a fair bit of gas left in the tank. He was named AFC Player of the Year for the third time in his career in May, whilst in October, he made his international debut for Scotland in a 1–0 victory against Slovakia, going on to win three caps in total before the year was out.

“The Scotland experience was very special and I’d say that now, it has probably now sunk in – it took a while! I’m just so happy and honoured to have been a part of it. As a young boy, I experienced playing for my country from the 16s all the way up to U21s, including the U20 World Cup in Canada. I really enjoyed it, but when you have not been involved in the national set up for 13 years, you have to believe the chance had gone. Yes, there have been a few shouts from some corners in recent years, but it never came.

“I always hoped one day it would happen and it’s hard to describe the feeling when I did get the call. It was very special to say the least and it brought a tear to the eye.

“My aim now is to play well enough and consistently enough at Aberdeen so that I can still be involved in the games in March, and hopefully in the summer too. It is a huge incentive for every player in Scotland. If you look at the U21 squad, with guys like Lewis Ferguson, Connor McLennan and Ross McCrorie, they all have a chance of being involved in the next squad. There are a lot of good players in that squad who will be pushing to be involved. Scott Gemmill has done very well with that group of players.

“I am also sure Steve Clarke would like some fresh faces in, some hungry young lads, but they won’t be any hungrier than I am! It would be something to be at the Euros in the summer, incredible to be involved against England at Wembley especially. If I finish with three caps then so be it, that’s a great honour, but I am very hungry for more. I can only hope I do enough to get in the next couple of squads.

“But just like it’s always been, my first focus is here at Aberdeen. Playing well here is the thing that matters and then everything else flows from that, including the extended contract. I’m delighted to have signed on for another year. It puts the icing on what has been a fantastic year.

“I think I will finish my career at Aberdeen, and I’m feeling as fit as ever. Having that extra year on my contract will take me up to 35, which sounds a bit scary, but there is no reason why I can’t play beyond that, and hopefully I will be doing that here. I’m not ready to hang up the boots for a while yet.

“My love for the game and for this club will never die. I have been very lucky, but through the luck, I’ve also had to put in a lot of hard work to play at the top level for this length of time. It does show that if you apply yourself and look after yourself, you give yourself every opportunity to stay in the game for a long time.

“I have never taken it for granted. I have seen good players come through the door, have injuries and before they know it, their careers are over, or they have had contracts cancelled and they are back out the door and struggling to get a team. Football is tough and it can be a very cruel game. I have seen it a lot over the years. You just keep your head down, be as humble as possible and give everything you have.

“If I had to give one piece of advice to the young players coming through now, boys like Ryan Duncan and Kieran Ngwenya, it is to work as hard as possible. It sounds so simple, but it is so important. Talent will only take you so far, it will only take you to a certain level, but you also need the hunger and desire to go and try be the best you can be if you are going to make the most of that talent.

“I’m really pleased for Ryan and Kieran that they’ve got on the pitch in the last few weeks. I tried not to look at the official team sheets in recent weeks, when you see 2000s in the date of birth entry! Ryan was born in January 2004 and I was making my first team debut a few months later.

“I worked with Ryan whilst coaching within the Youth Academy – Kieran came into the system quite late. I helped coach the U16s and Ryan would sometimes step up from the 15s and he would never look out of place. Both Ryan and Kieran have done very well in training and fitted in well into the squad.”

Coaching is something that Andrew is presently investigating ahead of that fateful day when he no longer forms part of the Aberdeen rear guard.

“I am halfway through my A’ licence at the moment. It’s a lot of work! Because of Covid, there has been no on pitch practice at all, it’s all done online. Hopefully by March, they are aiming to get us all onto the pitch again and then we will be assessed in the summer, but like most things at the moment, it is all up in the air a bit. I am still thoroughly enjoying it and it is something I always wanted to have behind me before I retire. Once I finish playing football, that is what I want to do.

“There is no doubt the coaching has helped my career. I remember when I started my B licence down at Clyde, there were at least seven or eight boys there doing the course who were still playing and they all said the same thing. You are standing there watching everything, breaking the game down. You do see the game in a different light.”

Hopefully, coaching is still a way off and we can see Andrew piling up the appearances for a while longer yet, with a place in the top four next on the list.

“If we can get a good cup run and I can play in the majority of games between now and the end of the season, there is a chance I could overtake Stewart McKimmie or be close to him by season’s end. It’s fantastic to be in amongst those players who are all Aberdeen legends and Scotland legends as well. Being on the list means being part of the history here. I have said to my wife a few times that I wish I could have more medals, but if it is just a League Cup medal, if that is all I do win, then that’s fine. But to have my name up there on the appearance list is very special as well. It’s a bit surreal!”

Andrew’s year has been pretty special away from the football field too, with the birth of his third child. Cue the sleepless nights…

“I feel like I have aged these last few weeks! Little Arthur has been fantastic and brought a different dimension to things. He’s a very welcome addition to the family and brought huge smiles to everyone’s faces. He is doing very well. Madeleine is doing the feeds and I am changing the nappies, so we are both up at the same time. I have been through it twice before, so it’s easier third time around. You don’t have too much time to think about it, as the other two are up early and you need to get them ready and do the school run before I come into Cormack Park. Busy times, but all good.”

Back to the football and inevitably at this time of year, there’s a moment for reflection on the previous 12 months, which included some pretty remarkable games.

“I think one of my favourite memories from 2020 will be the cup replay down at Rugby Park when we turned things around. Sadly it did not help us win the cup, that would have made the night even more special. But to be involved in a game like that, when we thought we were down and out and yet we managed to get the win, that is why you play football.

“2020 has been very good in terms of the football, here’s hoping 2021 will be just as good if not better. I talked about winning the League Cup medal, but of course I would love to add to that. We are desperate to do well in the Scottish Cup and hopefully we can have another good crack at it this season.

“We have to try and finish as high up the league as we can, so at the moment we have to look at finishing second. I still believe we can. We have to be ambitious, we have to always look up and not down. We can’t just say we want to finish third. That has to be the aim, the possibility of playing Champions League football, but as always we are just focussing on one game at a time. There are two goals left for us this season.

“I can’t say I am too concerned about the lack of a winter break. I have played the majority of my career without having one, it’s only a more recent development in Scotland. It was something to look forward to, and we were very fortunate that the club took us to Dubai. We were spoilt rotten!

“I enjoy watching all the games down south through New Year, so fans will be able to watch our games as well this year. And it did mean cramming games into December and then January and February, so you would have a lot of football to play either side of the break. That is when you pick up injuries, so I would probably rather keep playing. If we can have a good finish to the end of the year, then start the new year well, we will be in good stead going into the Rangers game, then we’ll take it from there.”