Last year’s Scottish Cup final might be tinged with disappointment for Aberdeen but, to manager Derek McInnes, it was the day that signified Aberdeen were a big club.
The Dons went toe-to-toe with Celtic and only an injury-time winner from Tom Rogic denied them a further opportunity at success but the aura and swagger around the club on that Saturday at Hampden Park signified something greater for McInnes.
Not getting results in the so-called big games is a stick that critics have used to beat McInnes with. But five visits to Hampden in two seasons, two cup finals and a League Cup in the bag four years ago, shows his teams have the mentality to compete when the prizes are at their most prestigious.
After the disappointment of losing the League Cup 3-0 to Brendan Rodgers’ side earlier in the season, the second final at the national stadium had a very different feel to it and McInnes felt Aberdeen looked like a side that belonged on the biggest stage.
McInnes said: “There was a lot of pride after the game. We were inches away from winning a cup – we were a pass away (when Hayes passed behind McLean). I definitely felt if we had scored we would have won the cup. It was the culmination of a squad that had been built over four years. For me it felt like the final swansong for that squad of players. We were so close to winning. There was pride but disappointment which was the overriding factor.
“What I liked about us that day was there was an attitude on the terraces and on the pitch. We rolled into Hampden feeling at home. It was our fourth time their that season. There was an attitude in the team and individually. They all felt like they were going to win it. Although they didn’t win it, it pleased me no end that I had players that felt they were going to win it. That’s not always been the case.
“We looked like a big club. The display from the fans and the visual banners. Everything before the game, it felt like a proper head to head against probably the most formidable Celtic side in a generation. A team that were rightly applauded. We went head-to-head with them.
“We were rightly applauded but it just makes you realise you are working for a bigger club with these demands. You just want to get back there again. We’ll remind the players of that day this week and what a cup final day entails because we have a lot of new signings. If we can get back to a cup final in the first year with this new squad, then that will be a decent showing for us and hopefully it’s the first of many for them.”
Addressing the issue of the bigger games and the Dons’ record in them, McInnes has a valid point: Aberdeen put themselves in a position to compete in meaningful games season after season. Defeats are scrutinised and victories are not necessarily heralded.
McInnes said: “People dress them up as bigger games – they mean Old Firm games. We’ve beaten Hibs and until Saturday we hadn’t been beaten by Hearts. We’ve won away in crucial games in Europe and at Kilmarnock when everyone thought we’d go out at the team with the best form since the turn of the year.
“People can suit their arguments when it comes to big games. We’ve won enough big games over the years and also lost a few. But it’s because we’ve put ourselves in a position we play more bigger games.
“Aberdeen up until not so long ago weren’t playing bigger games. We want to make sure it goes our way this season and we’ve got five brilliant games to look forward to until after the split. Hopefully two cup games as well can reinforce the competitive side of the club and of the team.”