Aberdeen midfielder Graeme Shinnie believes the Dons proved they can handle the big occasions by defeating Hibernian in a dramatic Scottish Cup semi-final.
The Hampden encounter looked to be swinging in favour of Neil Lennon’s side when goals from Grant Holt and Dylan McGeouch got the Easter Road men back on level terms after Adam Rooney and Ryan Christie had given the Dons the early advantage on Saturday.
Aberdeen teams of the past would have crumbled but Shinnie and his team-mates survived the Hibs pressure and netted a fortuitous winning goal in the closing stages when a long-range effort from Jonny Hayes took a hefty deflection off Darren McGregor and finished in the net.
While the Dons were far from their best, Shinnie was proud of the Reds’ victory as they earned a place in the club’s first Scottish Cup final for 17 years.
It’s Celtic next at Hampden on May 27 and Shinnie said: “We’ve done our job, getting through to the cup final was the main point.
“We’ve shown great character and belief after losing a two-goal lead and still coming out on top.
“It’s good and shows the character of the players but this is only the semi-final and there is another big game to come in the final.
“I don’t think we played to our maximum potential. For the first half hour we were really good but took our foot off the gas and allowed Hibs back into the game, which was disappointing.
“But these cup games are just about getting through and we’re not bothered how well we play, just as long as we are in the next round and that’s us in the final.
“A lot of people would have probably questioned the character, supporters and everyone else, so it’s a credit to the players. We dug in and always knew we could get a goal and we were delighted when Jonny did, albeit with a deflection. We’ll take any goal to get through to the final.”
The Dons can look forward to a second cup final of the season and will hope for an improved display from the 3-0 d Celtic in the League Cup at Hampden in November.
But with the Dons closing in on second spot in the league, Shinnie, who got the better of his brother, Hibs midfielder Andrew, believes the Dons can be proud of their efforts this season.
But the 25-year-old, who won the Scottish Cup with Caley Thistle two years ago, is desperate to end a memorable campaign with a winners’ medal.
Shinnie added: “This is the important part of the season now, all our hard work builds up to this.
“We’ve got five games remaining to secure second and then the cup final at the end of it, which is where we want to be.
“There’s a lot of hard work still do to but we’ve put ourselves in a great position.”