Darvel 1-0 Aberdeen: Analysis

Aberdeen fans will wake up on Tuesday morning and for a few beautiful, carefree moments all will be well. But serenity will be fleeting. The Horror at Recreation Park will begin to play in their minds as they recall their team being knocked out of the Scottish Cup fourth round by a team 56 places below them in Scottish football’s pyramid.

Yes, Aberdeen may have scored an equaliser had an attack not wrongly been called offside, and if Darvel had fielded another goalkeeper or on another night the Dons might have scored three second-half goals from around the six-yard box.

But Chris Truesdale was immense in goal for the West of Scotland Premier Division champions and the Dons could find no way past him.

There are so many questions for manager Jim Goodwin to face now. This was the team’s seventh defeat in nine matches. They shipped five goals in the game leading into this one, The Hammering at Tynecastle.

Why did Goodwin not play his captain Graeme Shinnie? Why keep his top scorer Bojan Miovski on the bench in the first half? Why could his top-tier players not put away a lesser outfit like Darvel on a good surface in a cup tie played in perfect conditions?

The shockwaves of the Scottish Cup exit will reverberate for a long time.