Aberdeen V Dumbarton In The Scottish Cup

previous meetings between the clubs

It is almost 50 years since Aberdeen came up against Dumbarton in the Scottish Cup.

The last occasion the sides met was at Boghead in March 1966 in the third round.

The first time the sides clashed resulted in Dumbarton’s only victory over Aberdeen in the cup. Aberdeen were in poor form back then and Second Division Dumbarton caused an upset with a 1-0 win at Boghead in 1913. There was confusion ahead of the tie as the directors were undecided as to the team to face Dumbarton. Neither Hume nor Hannah had been in good form and eventually the side that was picked was;

Aberdeen: King, Colman, Hannah, Davidson, Wilson, McConnell, Soye, Travers, Milne, Main, Scorgie.

Dumbarton lined up; Miller, Keir, Hunter, Potter, Speedie, Lithgow, Ferguson, Blythe, Rowan, Pender, Stalker.

Heavy rain meant that conditions were poor with ‘ankle deep mud’ reported in some parts of the pitch. In a game that Aberdeen certainly dominated in terms of possession they simply could not find their way to goal and squandered numerous chances. The first goal of the game came after three minutes when Ferguson tricked Hannah before setting up Rowan who gave King no chance. That was the only chance that came Dumbarton’s way in the first half. In the second half Milne had the ball in the net but referee Robertson decided that the goal was offside. With 15 minutes left Aberdeen finally got their equaliser through Scorgie after good work by Main. It was then the home side that took the game to Aberdeen with eight corners in several minutes. Eventually Rowan scored a second goal that proved decisive. Aberdeen could not muster another comeback and they went out of the cup with only £75 gate money to show for their efforts.

In 1922 Aberdeen had both Wright and MacLachlan back for the visit of Dumbarton in the Scottish Cup. Sixteen thousand paid £930 gate receipts for the tie in which Aberdeen were seen as fortunate to progress. The crucial goal came four minutes before half time. After a foul on Miller Aberdeen were awarded a free kick. Dog Thomson stepped up to take the kick and his half-hearted effort was deflected by Henderson before it hit King and into the net. Aberdeen continued to press and claims for a penalty when Thomson was brought down were waved aside by Dundee referee Campbell.

The teams that day were;

Aberdeen; Blackwell, Hutton, Forsyth, Wright, Milne, MacLachlan, Middleton, Thomson, Miller, Rankine, Bainbridge.

Dumbarton; King, Colman, Henderson, Chattan, Field, Loney, McEwen, Robertson, Wood, Chalmers, Browning.

Two years later the sides clashed again at Pittodrie and once again Aberdeen prevailed after a struggle. Jimmy Jackson opened the scoring after half an hour but the home side were stunned after the interval when a fierce shot from Stalker hit the roof of the net. Aberdeen defender Forsyth cleared the ball away as many spectators did not realise the ball was in the net. In the closing stages with a replay looking likely Stewart Davidson slipped the ball to Johnny Miller who slammed the ball into the net to the relief of the Aberdeen players and support.

In January 1931 Aberdeen recorded their best win over Dumbarton in the cup with a 6-1 win at Pittodrie in what was the side’s fourth Scottish Cup meeting. The crowd in excess of 10,000 were delighted to see Scotland internationals Andy Love and Benny Yorston score two goals each in the rout of Dumbarton who were in the Second Division at the time. Aberdeen went on to reach the quarter finals that season.

The Aberdeen side that day was; S Smith, Falloon, Jackson, Black, McLaren, Hill, Love, McDermid, Yorston, McLean J Smith.

The last occasion the side met was at Boghead in the quarter final in 1966. Once again Aberdeen were in command in what could have been a tricky tie. Manager Eddie Turnbull had begun to transform his side and they showed enough to suggest that better days were ahead. Despite a nervous start Jimmy Wilson opened the scoring after 29 minutes and it was not until Billy Little added a second after 70 minutes that Aberdeen could relax. This win put Aberdeen through to the semi-finals for the first time since 1959. The teams that day were;

Aberdeen; Clark, Whyte, Shewan, Petersen, McMillan, Smith, Little, Melrose, Winchester, Ravn, Wilson,

Dumbarton; Crayford, Govan, Jardine, Johnstone, Curran, Harris, McCall, Nelson, Lynas, Miller, Muir.

Date

Result

Scorers

Attendance

8.2.1913

Dumbarton 2:1 Aberdeen

Scorgie

8,000

28.1.1922

Aberdeen 1:0 Dumbarton