Aberdeen will recognise four players who have played a significant role in the club’s history when they are inducted into the club’s Hall of Fame tonight.
Hans Gillhaus, Charlie Nicholas and Brian Irvine are joined by posthumous inductee Matt Armstrong in being recognised at the event, which was originally due to take place last November.
From Gothenburg Greats to cup heroes of years gone by, the list of entrants into the club’s Hall of Fame has been growing steadily over the years.
The inductees will continue in the years to come and there are certainly several strong contenders to receive the accolade in the near future.
After all, it’s not as if the Dons are short of success in their history.
But, having taken a look through the Hall of Fame entrants so far, one notable name seems inevitable – Stewart McKimmie.
Is there a more notable absentee than McKimmie?
McKimmie stands apart from every candidate yet to join the illustrious company with nine trophies to his name from his Dons career which spanned 13 seasons between 1983 and 1997.
The Aberdonian was a £90,000 signing from Dundee in 1983 and his CV speaks for itself.
One Super Cup, two League titles, three Scottish Cups and three League Cups, the last of which he lifted as club captain in 1995 after succeeding Gothenburg Great Alex McLeish as skipper.
You can add in 40 caps for Scotland too, all of them earned while playing in the red of his club in a career which spanned 562 matches.
McKimmie’s time will come because he meets all the criteria by which any Hall of Fame candidate is measured: achievements, length of service, a notable feat, international recognition.
Dons are not short of Hall of Fame contenders
There are many other contenders who tick some of those boxes. Andy Considine has the long service and a League Cup winners’ medal to show for his efforts. That hat-trick at Dundee will live long in the memory too.
The forward trio of Niall McGinn, Jonny Hayes and Adam Rooney combined to make a significant contribution during their time at Pittodrie too.
There are other medal winners worthy of consideration as well such as Robert Connor, Brian Grant and Paul Mason, scorer of both goals in the 1989 League Cup final win against Rangers.
Going further back you could make a really strong case for Steve Archibald too. After all, how many Dons can say they played for Barcelona? Plus, former Dons boss Ferguson joked Archibald’s sale to Spurs helped fund the South Stand.
When you are being linked with actual brick and mortar, you know you’ve done something right.
Potential posthumous candidates
Aberdeen’s history is so much more than the halcyon days of the 1980s and there are some significant posthumous contenders who also look certain to join the fold in the years ahead.
There is the goal machine that was Benny Yorston, who rattled in an incredible 124 goals in 156 appearances for the Dons between 1924 and 1932, including an outrageous 46 goals in 42 appearances in the 1929-30 season.
Then there’s ‘The Hare’, better known as Jack Hather. A winger who scored 105 goals in 351 games between 1948 and 1960.
Hather was also a member of the Dons team which won the league championship in 1955 and the League Cup in 1956.
And what of Derek ‘cup-tie McKay? His Dons career may have been brief with just 19 appearances, but McKay played a major role in the club’s Scottish Cup win of 1970.
McKay scored the only goals in both the quarter-final against Falkirk but also the semi-final victory over Kilmarnock before netting twice in the final as the Dons stunned Celtic 3-1 to lift the cup.
We could go on with other deserving Dons to have done their bit for the cause but there are enough names listed here to ensure the club will not be short of options for future entrants.
But McKimmie has to be at the top of the list.
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