The Dons started the match the better side, they were hungrier, they were always first to the ball, and Stevie Tosh was running the show in the middle of the park, leaving the unfit Stuart Lovell running about like a headless chicken once again. Lee Makel tried his best to win back the midfield, but Burton O’Brien was also struggling to keep up with the pace, and Aberdeen ran the show for most of the first half.
It was Aberdeen who carved out the first chance of the match, and Stevie Tosh was the man who nearly punished some slack Livi defending. The former Lion (who was 14-1 to score the first goal) was put through on Roddy McKenzie in the Livi goal, but Tosh saw his low-driven shot saved by the outstretched left hand of McKenzie, Lee Hinds got a hold of the ball, and fired a shot goal bound, only to see Dorado on the line, and Manu cleared the ball to safety much to the relief of the Livi supporters.
Livingston responded quickly, and Stuart Lovell nearly opened the scoring for Livi, possibly against the run of play. The Australian beat a couple of Aberdeen defenders, and saw Aberdeen goalkeeper David Preece off his line, but Lovell’s shot was hit with too much power, and the ball sailed just over the Aberdeen crossbar. Unlucky, but if Lovell would have shown more composure, Livi would have been one up.
The Aberdeen supporters were enjoying themselves at this point, and Scott Booth was about to send them wild in the 22nd minute. Scott Muirhead found Scott Booth in the Livi box, and the former Dortmund man curled the ball past Marvin Andrews and past the unsighted McKenzie in the Livi goal. A great goal from Aberdeen’s point of view, but Marvin should have got closer to Booth.
The Aberdeen supporters very vocal at this point, and the Dons nearly snatched a second in the dying minutes of the first half. Lee Hinds got the ball on the right hand side, he fired the ball across the Livi box, and Scott Booth was just inches away from doubling the Dons lead.
Derek Lilley had a chance to put Livi on level terms minutes into the second half, David McNamee got a great cross in for the former Dundee United player but he saw his effort just go wide of the post.
In the 52nd minute, Stuart Lovell clipped a shot inches wide of the far post after David McNamee had broken with menace down the right. Livingston were starting to put more pressure on the Dons defence, and Davie Hay changed things about when he brought on Camacho for Rubio and Quino and the tired Lovell, much to the pleasure of the Livi faithful.
But it was Aberdeen who should have put the game beyond Livingston in the 65th minute. Stevie Tosh got hold of ball after an Aberdeen corner, he volleyed the ball towards goal, but Roddy McKenzie brilliantly got down to his left hand corner, and parried the ball away from danger. Tosh should have done better, but McKenzie done well to see the ball trough a packed Livi penalty box.
The Lions looked to have drawn level with 20 minutes to go after some great work by Fernando Pasquinelli. The Aberdeen defence was opened up by a brilliant pass by Lee Makel, a defensive mix up saw the ball land at the feet of Pasquinelli, who saw David Preece off his line, but the Livi man saw his brilliantly executed chip go agonisingly wide of the target. At this point it looked as if it just wasn’t going to be Livingston’s day.
Chris Clark should have put the game beyond doubt in the 89th minute when Booth set him up. Unfortunately for the Dons he screwed the ball wide of the Livi goal.
Just when it looked as if Aberdeen were heading up north with all three points, Livingston somehow managed to sneak a goal in two minutes of injury time. Livi won a free kick just beside the Livi dugout. The ball was crossed in to the box towards Marvin Andrews, but the ball sailed over him and found the unmarked Pasquinelli at the back post, he saw his powerful header saved by the hand of Preece, but the Aberdeen goalie could only palm the ball into the path of Burton O’Brien who smashed the ball into the back of the net and sent the Livi supporters into heaven. It was a long time in coming, but Livingston did deserve to get something from the match.
Livi supporters were happy with the result, and Spike had this to say about the match -
What did I think? Not the greatest game ever, but it kept my interest in the 2nd half and the result was fair-ish, although based on the 2nd half, Livi could have sneaked it.
McKenzie, Marvin, Rubio and Dorado (for the most part) looked reasonably solid, Makel put in a shift in the middle. Lilley was his usual self.
For me our best players were the wing backs and Fernando (his name ISN'T Joe FFS) the wing backs were pacy and adventurous (usually a good thing in macnamees case as he cant defend) and both got a number of good crosses in.
Pasq. mixed it up, old-school style with the defenders and was unlucky not to score, but he certainly created the late goal for the otherwise mediocre B.O.B.
People say I've got it in for B.O.B, but if you look at our midfield he provides no options for anyone as he is usually pretty static. That said he was allright today.
I think the substitution helped change things. Quino provided a bit better passing in the middle than the out-of-sorts Lovell, and Camacho's quick thinking and incisive passing on the left added a new dimension to Livi.
Nice to see Rubio lob his toys out the pram, and BK and AP's Q-esque "what are we going to do now?" to Hay in the stands. I assume his reaction would have been "I dont know and dont care, its 6-bloody nil at Parkhead," as he and his boss crouched over a tranny. hehe, tranny.
Livingston: McKenzie, Rubio (Camacho 63), Andrews, Dorado, McNamee, Makel, O'Brien, Lovell (Quino 63), McAllister, Pasquinelli, Lilley.
Subs Not Used: Main, Scott McLaughlin, Harding.
Aberdeen: Preece, Heikkinen, Anderson (McGuire 72), Rutkiewicz, Morrison, Tosh, Tiernan, Clark, Muirhead (Foster 90), Hinds (Zdrilic 78), Booth.
Subs Not Used: Esson, Sheerin.
Attendance: 7,115
Ref: K Clark