Aberdeen defender Andrew Considine is making a habit of scoring crucial goals.
His powerful header from a Barry Robson corner five minutes into yesterday’s Scottish Cup fourth round match against Partick Thistle at Firhill was enough to earn the Dons a place in the last 16 of the competition.
Earlier this season, Considine scored another vital header as 10-man Aberdeen defeated Motherwell 2-0 in October’s League Cup quarter-final.
The 26-year-old, who broke his leg against Dundee almost a year ago, was delighted to be on the scoresheet once again and said: “After breaking my leg, it’s just nice to be back involved in the squad, but to grab two goals to help the team out delights me.
“It’s satisfying because the team is doing well and I feel as though confidence is high, just through winning games.
“Of course it’s nice to score winning goals. It’s nice to chip in for the team and that is how it should be.
“We cannot rely on the one person to score the goals, like we did with Niall McGinn last season, and it’s great to be back playing football.”
The Dons who already have a League Cup semi-final to look forward to in the new year, will find out this afternoon who they meet in the next round of the competition.
When Aberdeen last won the Scottish Cup in 1990, they defeated Partick Thistle on their way to the final and Considine hopes yesterday’s victory is a good omen.
He added: “It would be great to get to a final, but we’ll take it game by game and we’re just happy to be in the next round.
“Fingers crossed we can make something happen.
“I’ve been here a number of years and there’s been times when we’ve been knocked out of both competitions before Christmas.
“That is never nice so it’s great to be involved in both and be in the top six, too.
“It’s games like this, when you win when it is not pretty, which brings the confidence back to the team.
“The second half was difficult, but we defended solidly and everyone played their part. We built a wall and, for all the possession they had, they created few clear-cut chances.”