Player Feature
During a typically hectic season of football, it’s never easy to take a step back and analyse things properly, especially during one which will see the Dons play their 41st game of the campaign tonight. Sometimes though it’s worth reflecting on just how far the Dons have come in the past couple of years and on the job Derek McInnes has done.
With over 330 appearances and more than a century of clean sheets packed into a near ten year stay at Pittodrie, goalkeeper Jamie Langfield understands better than most just what has happened since the manager walked through the door. Jamie pinpoints one specific underlying reason that stands out above the rest when looking at the success we’ve enjoyed.
“This is the best dressing room I have seen in my time in football. Even the youth players are a really good group of boys. They get involved without over stepping the mark. They are all very polite and well behaved.
“The team spirit has not just happened by accident. It is something the management team work on. The manager has said when he signs a player it is not just about their ability. He looks at what personally they can bring to the changing room. There is not one bad person he has brought in. They have all been great lads”.
“When I first walked into this club there was an expectancy. People don’t realise on the outside what a massive club this is. I have been very grateful and honoured to have played for the club for so long. A lot of the players who come in here don’t realise what a privilege it is and it does sometimes take them a while to get used to that.
“I feel we are continuing to get better. People might say we have had a couple of slips here and there, but for me, this is the most consistent we have been since I have been at the club. That is something we can build on. If we want to be up there changing for honours each season, we have to keep that consistency going based on what we have been doing lately.
“We are in this position now based on hard work from the players, hard work from everyone at the club and hard work from the manager and coaching staff. They put in endless hours, do so much video analysis, look at all the sports science data, so that they give us every chance. Finding that little extra percentage can make all the difference in a game.
“I really enjoyed playing for the U20s. People say that when you get taken out of the first team, your head goes, but the first thing I wanted to do was to get back playing again and I am grateful to Paul Sheerin for giving me that chance. You come out of one team and go into another but the boys are still your teammates. I thoroughly enjoyed it. They are doing so well and they are a great team to play with. They are top of the league on merit.
Young Dons
Young Sam Robertson is a name Aberdeen fans have been getting used to this season. The fullback joined the Dons last summer and has since forced his way into Paul Sheerin’s U20 side, playing his part in what has been a memorable season.
But if Sam is new to Aberdeen, Inverness fans will need no introduction to his dad, who will forever be part of Inverness football folklore. Wilson Robertson scored the last ever goal for Inverness Caley before the merger that created Inverness Caley Thistle. Then, in Caley Thistle’s first competitive game, a 2-0 Coca-Cola Cup victory away to East Stirlingshire on 9 August 1994, Wilson scored the new club’s first ever goal. He played 27 games in that historic 1994/95 season and scored six goals in total. Prior to that, ‘Wilsie’ as he was known, was a huge favourite in the Highland League with the Caley fans.
“He always tells me he was a star up in Inverness! I did not really believe him but when I played up there this season, one of the photographers stopped me before the game and started talking about him which shows he must have been famous! Seriously though, I know he is still something of a hero up there. I know when he goes up to games there, he gets a lot of the older fans coming up and speaking to him about his playing days. Everyone seems to know him.
“Having a dad who used to play is a big advantage because he knows what it is like. I know from reading Andrew Considine’s interview last week that he would agree with that. He is very positive and always tells me to keep my head up. He keeps telling me my chance will come. He also helps my little brother who is at Aberdeen. Lloyd plays for the U14s.”
RedMatchday Issue 22 is available from the programme sellers in and around the ground. It will be on sale from the AFC Club Shop and you can also buy a copy online by clicking here
RedMatchday Issue 22 is available from the programme sellers in and around the ground. It will be on sale from the AFC Club Shop and you can also buy a copy online by clicking here
