Some skills can’t be taught. And, impervious to form or fortune, sometimes instinct can draw them out when least expected.
Three of Aberdeen’s starters on Saturday enjoyed such an experience, as periods of personal struggle were cast aside in a single flash of extraordinary natural ability.
First Kevin Nisbet, recently reanimated from winter hibernation, surged into double figures with an outlandish flick few would have conceived and fewer still could have executed.
Though perhaps not as immediately spectacular as some, the angle from which the finish was applied makes this one of the most technically impressive goals seen at Pittodrie in many a day.
Later, with the tie in the bag and party mode engaged, Leighton Clarkson looked into the distance and uncorked a stunning 60-yard fireball, lighting the fuse of Shayden Morris’ bootlace. Though Clarkson has become something of the forgotten man of the Dons’ midfield lately, elbowed out in favour of the higher-percentage attributes of Sivert Heltne Nilsen and Ante Palaversa, this was a reminder of the moonshot talent he possesses.
That said though, Clarkson’s rainbow ball would not have been so potent had it not landed in the pot of gold which Morris’ right foot can be. The winger’s primary difficulty this season has been that his impact as a sub is so explosive that it seems wasteful to start him, and while that is a much better problem to have than those he has encountered before, he will have relished playing so well in an extended shift.
All three were undoubtedly helped by the admirable openness with which their Championship foes approached the task: wilier opponents may not cede the scene for such Hollywood moments. But as others could testify, this need not have been as easy a fixture as the artful Reds made it appear.
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