Aberdeen beat Kilmarnock on penalties to reach last four of Premier Sports Cup
The Dons had Daniel Happe sent off in the 57th minutes.
Aberdeen boss Stephen Robinson enjoyed a huge result at Rugby Park as his 10-man side booked their place in the Premier Sports Cup semi-finals with a dramatic penalty shootout victory over fellow William Hill Premiership strugglers Kilmarnock.
After a run of four league games without a goal had brought pressure on the Northern Irishman, it looked like the Dons were set for more misery when Killie substitute Tyreece John-Jules cancelled out Kevin Nisbet’s opener immediately after Daniel Happe was sent off in the 57th minute.
But Aberdeen held firm for the remainder of a tense 90 minutes and then spurned several chances in the second half of extra time before prevailing from the spot as keeper Marius Muller saved penalties from Killie trio John-Jules, Mark O’Hara and Aaron Tshibola, paving the way for Jack Milne to seal a 3-1 shootout triumph.
As dozens of Dons fans spilled on to the pitch to celebrate their side joining Hearts and Hibernian in securing a last-four trip to Hampden, the home support vented their anger as Killie’s failure to get past a team that played more than an hour with 10 men intensified the pressure on boss Neil McCann following a winless start in the league.
McCann selected the same XI that started the 0-0 draw between the sides at Pittodrie a week earlier, while Robinson – who won the tournament last term while in charge of St Mirren – made two changes, adding Mats Knoester and Connor Ronan as he switched from a back four to a three-man central defence.
The visitors fashioned the first chance but Nisbet’s header from Nesta Guinness-Walker’s cross was clawed round the post by Max Stryjek.
Killie went on to enjoy the best of the first-half chances, however. Joe Hugill and Djenairo Daniels both sent efforts wide from close range before Dons keeper Muller was called into action in the 13th minute when he threw himself to his left to push Erik Ring’s low shot from 20 yards out round his left-hand post.
The Dons were offering little as an attacking force although Nisbet volleyed over from another Guinness-Walker cross on the half-hour.
Killie continued to look the likelier side and there was some pinball in the visitors’ box in the 33rd minute, with Tshibola and Tom Lowery both seeing shots blocked by Dons players in quick succession.
Moments later, Lowery saw a ferocious strike from 20 yards out beaten behind by Muller.
The Dons started the second half with renewed intent and they made the breakthrough in the 52nd minute when Ronan crossed from the right and Nisbet looped a header beyond Stryjek from the edge of the six-yard box.
But they relinquished their sense of authority within five minutes as Happe was shown a second yellow card for bringing down Hugill as he scampered into the Dons half. From the resulting free-kick, floated in by Greg Kiltie, John-Jules stooped 10 yards out to flick a header beyond Muller for his first goal since February.
The 10-man Dons dug deep thereafter and were unfortunate not to win the tie in extra time before German keeper Muller emerged as the hero in the shootout.