Elgin City forward Ryan Sargent is setting his sights on causing a Scottish Cup sensation by knocking out the team he supports – Aberdeen – on Saturday.
The League Two high-flyers, managed by Dons-daft Allan Hale, are relishing the chance to lock horns with Jimmy Thelin’s Premiership visitors in round four of the national trophy.
The Dons have been off form most of the winter after a red-hot start to the campaign, while Elgin have gone from relegation survivors in 2024 to promotion pushers this term.
Sargent – who was snapped up from Highland League side Fraserburgh last summer – has experience of scoring against Aberdeen.
In an Aberdeenshire Shield opening-round tie at Pittodrie in October 2023, the Broch were a great match for a strong Dons side who started first-team regulars Ross Doohan, Angus MacDonald, Rhys Williams, Or Dadia, Vicente Besuijen, Pape Habib Gueye and Ester Sokler.
Sargent’s goal with 10 minutes left gave the Broch a 2-1 advantage, with the top-flight Reds eventually scraping through on penalties.
Sargent’s Pittodrie goal put Broch ahead in tie
Reflecting on his experiences against Aberdeen, Sargent said: “I’ve played against Aberdeen twice. It was at Pittodrie in the Aberdeenshire Shield when they had a lot of their first-team players playing as it was at an international break.
“With the game sitting at 1-1, I scored to make it 2-1 and ran over to celebrate with the Fraserburgh fans.
“But they scored again to make it 2-2 and we were unlucky to lose on penalties.
“I’ve also played against Aberdeen at Bellslea in Ryan Cowie’s testimonial when they played two different starting XIs in each half (in a 2-0 Dons win in July 2023).
“This is the biggest game of my career – especially with it being in the Scottish Cup.
“Fraserburgh did play Rangers (in a 3-0 Scottish Cup home loss in 2018), but I was 16 or 17, so I never got a game that day.
“I was buzzing when we drew Aberdeen.
“I really believe that we can give them a good scare.
“I’m an Aberdeen fan, which makes this tie even better.
“With the game being at Elgin, I’m sure we can try to pull off a shock.
“I think, and I hope, it will be a close game.”
Pressure is all on Aberdeen – Sargent
After coming through a nail-biting 8-7 penalty shoot-out against League Two foes Clyde, Sargent bagged a brace to seal a thrilling 3-2 home cup win over League One visitors Kelty Hearts to line up Elgin’s shot at Aberdeen.
Sargent says the heat, like in previous rounds, will be on their opponents – just on a much bigger scale.
He said: “Even when you look at the Kelty game, there was far more pressure on Kelty than us.
“At that point, we were top of League Two, and they were top of League One.
“With Aberdeen, we know all the pressure will be on them.
“We want to get the crowd right behind us and limit Aberdeen to as few chances as possible – then their fans will get irritated, and we can see how it goes.
“We lost 5-0 against Hibs (in the League Cup group stages) in our very first competitive game of the season.
“But we hadn’t gelled at that point – it was pretty much our first match together as a team.
“We’re now in a position where we have a formation, and we know how to play it.”
‘No bad eggs at Elgin – everyone is humble’
Gaffer Hale, aided by assistant Stefan Laird, arrived at Elgin in December 2023 and guided the team from the real danger of a relegation play-off to seventh spot.
A busy summer transfer window saw Elgin add quality, Sargent included, and the forward said the bosses deserve credit for what they’ve built in Moray – especially with injuries biting deep this term.
He added: “The management have brought the right characters to the club – everyone is here for the same goals.
“There are no bad eggs and everyone is humble.
“It has been a massive turnaround in form over the past year.
“Sometimes when a manager takes in something like 10 signings, it just doesn’t work.
“But we have hit the ground running.
“The key for us really is to take just one game each time.
“The fact we’re where we are in the league, despite the injuries we’ve had, shows how strong our squad is.
“Everyone is wanting to make the starting 11.
“It has been a brilliant start to the season, and we’re determined to build upon that.”
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