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QUEEN OF THE SOUTH 4 : 3 ABERDEEN 12th April 2008
MacDonald
Rating: 8.42
S2
McCann
Rating: 8.19
Thomson
Rating: 8.74
Aitken
Rating: 8.21
Harris
Rating: 8.23
1
Burns
Rating: 8.72
Macfarlane
Rating: 8.68
1
Tosh
Rating: 8.95
McQuilken
Rating: 8.23
1
O'Connor
Rating: 9.19
S1
Dobbie
Rating: 8.11
SUBSTITUTES
S1 - 42 1
Stewart
Rating: 8.80
S2 - 90
Paton
O'Neill
Gilmour
Grindlay
SUBMIT YOUR mom RATINGS
Members of the Internet Fan Club can award players marks out of ten for their performance today. The player with the most points awarded in the two days following a match will be the IFC Man of the Match. All of the points will then be added to a running total for each player and the results published in the mom League Table.

Name or IFC No.
MATCH SUMMARY
QUEEN OF THE SOUTH ARE IN THE SCOTTISH CUP FINAL! I might have to say that again in a minute just so I believe it. Maybe when the papers appear tomorrow it'll start to sink in. Not only are we in the Final of one of the oldest and most famous competitions in world football for the first time in our 89 year history, but we did it in one of the best semi-finals anyone can possibly have seen in many a long year. Oh, and we knocked a top division side out of the Scottish Cup for the first time in over 30 years for good measure. It doesn't get any better than this does it?

Well, it might on May 24th but let's not get carried away just yet. It's hard to believe this is the same club I began watching over 20 years ago that trundled along at the bottom end of the bottom division in front of crowds of 400 or so. We've come such a long, long way since Norman Blount picked the club up by its bootstraps and dragged it into the 20th century. Since then Ronnie Bradford and now David Rae have picked up the reins and moved the club along in their own fashion to where we are now, an established, full time, first division club that will now play in a real National Cup Final for the first time ever. They did so in front of over 9,000 Doonhamers who made the trip from Dumfries and elsewhere to Hampden for the greatest day in their lives supporting Queens. Be it their first game, their first in 50 years (as it was for my mother!) or the culmination of the long road from the doldrums walked along with the club all the way they must have never seen better than this. So often in the past our players have been accused of freezing when the big occasion came along. Not today. In front of a live nationwide television audience and the biggest support actually present to watch Queens in many a decade they took on a side that was drawing with Bayern Munich a few weeks ago and outplayed them. It was two fighters landing blow for blow on one another but when the final bell went the one still standing was wearing blue, not red.

There was a massive boost for Queens even before a ball was kicked with news that talisman Sean O'Connor had been passed fit and it would indeed be the current recognised first eleven that would take the field for their date with destiny. No other problems in the camp meant that Jim Lauchlan and Scott Robertson were the unlucky men who didn't get stripped for the day. For Jimmy Calderwood's Aberdeen though there was a similar boost when injured trio McNamara, Lovell and Young were all also passed fit, albeit only McNamara started the game and Lovell didn't even make the bench anyway.

Queens made a very bright start, winning a couple of free kicks in dangerous positions in the first minute or two. Albeit they came to nothing a marker had been laid down and shortly afterward Sean O'Connor almost caused mayhem in the home defence as he tried to latch onto a through ball. He didn't get there but keeper Soutar's clearance cannoned back off the big man and bounced towards the Aberdeen touchline. Unfortunately it went out for a goal kick before Sean could collect the loose ball. It took Aberdeen 7 minutes to trouble Jamie MacDonald into action but his save from a looping Lee Miller header was routine.

Queens' first serious goal attempt came when Dobbie tried to bend the ball into the bottom right corner but it went narrowly wide though in truth Soutar probably had it well covered anyway. A few minutes later, collecting O'Connor's knock-down Dobbie fired off a more dangerous shot that was charged down before it could reach the net. I don't think Soutar would have got near that one. The deadlock was broken though in 22 minutes. Ryan McCann aimed a deep free kick into the penalty area which Soutar came for but didn't gather under pressure from Sean O'Connor. The ball dropped down towards Andy Aitken and time seemed to stand still as the local lad had the presence of mind to realise he wasn't likely to get an unblocked shot off and instead laid the ball off to Stevie Tosh. The former Dons hero who has had so much to do with our turnaround this year had no hesitation in coolly placing the ball into the top right corner causing mayhem in the ranks of the blue and white hordes. Not only were we in a semi-final, we'd had the temerity to take the lead!

Tosh strikes the opener.....

..and the celebrations start as Jamie takes off
Paul Burns had the ball in the net again five minutes later after collecting Dobbie's pass but he'd been offside and it was the right decision to be fair. A minute afterward it was Lee Miller testing MacDonald again with a header. Fortunately the keeper was equal to it. Queens though were still in command of the game at this point and O'Connor forced another last ditch defensive block after latching onto Dobbie's pass. Aberdeen threatened again though when Aluko fired a 20 yard free kick wide following a foul on Miller by Harris. The equaliser duly did arrive two minutes later though. A soft free kick was given for a challenge on Miller by Thomson and, when it was floated in, the initial danger seemed to have passed as Tosh headed away from goal. However, the ball was rescued beyond the back post, nodded back in and there was Andrew Considine rising above Jim Thomson to place a perfect header in the bottom corner beyond MacDonald's reach. As if that wasn't bad enough, things appeared to get worse when top scorer Stephen Dobbie had to leave the field with a knee injury after only 39 minutes. He was replaced by John Stewart, getting on earlier than he must have expected and with a point to prove to his former employers.

The first half had been competitive, and Queens had actually shaded it possibly, but the score was fair and there was no indication of the whirlwind that was about to hit at the start of the second period. it took four minutes for the lead to be re-established, and what a goal it was. It began when man of the match Neil MacFarlane broke up yet another Aberdeen attack with a fine defensive interception and played the ball out to Harris. His ball up the left wing was probably aimed towards an offside O'Connor but the big man was aware he was offside, held his arms up and made no effort to go for the ball. Instead John Stewart came haring out of midfield and out-ran the Dons defence before cutting the ball back towards and unmarked Paul Burns at the back post. His first time effort was miscontrolled but fortunately sat up perfectly for the midfielder to cut back onto his left foot and hammer the ball behind Soutar.

Burnsy watches the ball hit the back of the net with Soutar helpless
Aberdeen hit back immediately and MacDonald had to produce a fingertip save to deny Maguire as he cut in from the right side. It was end to end though and when a free kick went into the Aberdeen defence Stewart and O'Connor both had half chances to score before Burns flashed a shot over the bar from eight yards out. Aberdeen though levelled in their next attack. Lee Miller had far too much time to fire a free header at MacDonald and though the keeper did well to keep it out, the rebound fell perfectly for Dumfries lad Barry Nicholson to hammer home.

Incredibly though Queens were back in front in the very next attack. Andrew Considine completely misjudged a long ball forward, got caught under it and Sean O'Connor was away. Zander Diamond came across to try to cover for his colleague but the frontman, whose cup dream seemed over when he was stretchered off against Morton, coolly turned him before sliding the ball beneath Soutar for his 13th goal of the season.

Sean strikes number three.....

..and celebrates with John Stewart and Paul Burns
This was like playground football though. Two minutes later the SPL side were level for the third time as Queens failed to deal with a corner properly. Nicholson lifted the ball back in, Miller's header flashed across the face of goal and there was Andrew Considine to get his second goal of the afternoon with a diving header to surely puncture the dream this time?

Not a bit of it. Incredibly this side Chisholm has brought together lifted themselves off the canvas again and recaptured the lead within a minute. A long throw from McCann on the right was headed back out to him and when he crossed in, Thomson glanced the ball on and somehow John Stewart was all on his own six yards out to fire in the game's seventh goal. Unbelievable stuff!

John slams it past Soutar.....

..and celebrates with Sean
It couldn't go on. The pace of the game had been unrelenting to that point and Queens finally managed to take some stock and hold themselves together for a while. Calderwood introduced Mackie for McNamara as he tried to add some bodies to his front line but it was Queens who came immediately closer to scoring as a defender prevented O'Connor doubling his tally with a fine block. A few minutes later he was forcing another save out of Soutar. The Dons defence really never did answer the question O'Connor asked of them all day.

Naturally though, as the game ticked on, Queens started to defend for their lives and McCann picked up the game's only booking on 71 minutes for pulling back the impressive Aluko after the winger had beaten him. from the resulting free kick Zander Diamond bulleted a header off the crossbar and then volley his own rebound against the post before Harris scrambled the ball away. That's when you know your name might just about be already pencilled in for the final! Severin was next to try his luck from 25 yards but his shot was off target. Then it was Aluko next with one that MacDonald smothered easily. The Dons threw on Derek Young for Maybury before JT's tackle on Aluko in the box brought a massive penalty shout from the 13,000 Dons in the stadium. Kenny Clark wasn't swayed though and waved play on. Seven minutes and counting...........

A cross from the left was headed goalward by Lee Miller and MacDonald saved above his head. Four minutes to go........ The 4th official appears with his electronic board. There are FOUR minutes of injury time to go. Four minutes separating us from a date with destiny. Tosh, Stewart, O'Connor play the ball around in the corner, 100 yards from our goal. There are three minutes of injury time played.... The Dons finally get the ball and break upfield. Barry Nicholson is there, he gets the shot away but MacDonald is equal to it, making a fine diving save and the ball goes out for a corner. Unlike Dundee, Aberdeen are content to leave Derek Soutar at the right end of the pitch. There will be no late goal heroics for Ryan McCann today! Indeed there will be no further work for him as, with 30 seconds to go, Eric Paton comes on to replace him at full back. The ball is cleared, the referee signals for time and that's it. Queens are in the final of the Scottish Cup. For good measure, should Rangers come through the other half of the draw we're also in the UEFA Cup. That really is unbelievable.

For years we've read tales of the cup heroes of 1950. A shame that only Jim Patterson remains alive of that side to see this now. But years and decades from now we'll be talking about this team and what they achieved today. Jamie McDonald. Ryan McCann. Robert Harris. Neil MacFarlane. Andy Aitken. Jim Thomson. Jamie McQuilken. Stevie Tosh. Sean O'Connor. Stephen Dobbie. Paul Burns. And of course the substitute hero John Stewart (and Paton who probably didn't even touch the ball). Take a bow lads, you are immortal now.

Ewan Lithgow

The final score

and the fans celebrate

Captain Jim salutes the fans

and the fans salute the team

Party time

Match highlights - from David Gow on the teracing
With over 1000 photo's taken today it will take some time to sort them all out - so if you'd like to look through them click on this link http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/queenofthesouthfc/ and see if you can spot yourself. Please bear in mind that it's every shot that we took and none have been deleted, tidied up or altered from the camera.


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