The readership of the Evening Express and Press and Journal has spoken – and we can today reveal your Dons of the Decade team.
Through a series of online polls, we asked you to select your Aberdeen 11 from the last 10 years and the level of response did not disappoint.
There was a snag after fans of another Premiership outfit made a concerted effort to force two players who have also featured for their club into the team.
We didn’t think the outcome of the centre-midfield poll was fair, or accurately reflected the views of the Red Army. Nor did we think it right to decide the pairing on our own.
So, as you’ll see, we’ve asked three of our trusted pundits to each pick their own engine room pairing.
The Dons of the Decade team is lined up in a 4-2-3-1 and, without further ado, here is the side picked by you and our experts:
JOE LEWIS: The current Aberdeen captain is widely considered the most reliable goalie at Pittodrie since Jim Leighton and amassed more than 75% of the vote.
SHAY LOGAN: A mainstay of Derek McInnes’ team since arriving, initially on loan from Brentford, in 2014.
With more than 250 club appearances, he won the right-back poll easily.
RUSSELL ANDERSON: At last count, former skipper and 2014 League Cup winner Anderson, who returned to Pittodrie for a second spell in the 2010s, was more than 1,000 votes up in the right-sided centre-half poll.
SCOTT McKENNA: Next to Anderson is the 23-year-old Scotland international, who amassed around 60% of the vote to Mark Reynolds’ 40%.
McKenna has been the subject of several multi-million-pound bids since breaking through.
ANDY CONSIDINE: Another legend of the club, with more than 500 appearances, left-back Considine was never under threat when the readers cast their votes, with his name selected hundreds of times more than nearest rival Max Lowe.
CENTRAL-MIDFIELD TWO: Our pundits, Dons icons Joe Harper and Willie Miller, and Scotland women’s captain Rachel Corsie, only selected three names between them; however, by majority, the pairing of now-club coach Barry Robson and former skipper Graeme Shinnie was preferred to the Ryan Jack-Shinnie pairing.
NIALL McGINN: Right winger McGinn has had two spells at the Dons this decade, with a brief stint in South Korea in between.
Another League Cup winner, he continues to be a difference-maker in McInnes’ team and had more than 85% in the poll.
KENNY McLEAN: Now at English Premier League outfit Norwich City, McLean could have easily been in at centre-midfield too.
At number 10, the creative McLean was able to cut through stubborn defences and link midfield to attack with his passing ability.
JONNY HAYES: Another one of the eight League Cup winners named by the readers or our pundits, Hayes was quick, technically gifted and energetic on the left-flank. His poll win was bigger than McGinn’s.
The Irishman played in three domestic cup finals in red, winning one, and also had a habit of grabbing big goals.
ADAM ROONEY: Centre-forward Rooney was Aberdeen’s most reliable season-after-season scorer since Harper. He netted more than 20 goals in three straight terms. His shoot-out penalty sealed the League Cup.