Michael Beale was determined to savour national stadium success after suffering enough Hampden hard luck stories to last him a lifetime.
The Rangers boss has sat in agony in the Mount Florida dugouts, wondered how the heck his side hadn’t come out on top. This time he watched his men dominate on the pitch and get the result they deserved. Beale was part elated and part relieved at the end of 120 frantic, dramatic minutes on the south side of Glasgow that eventually resulted in the Ibrox side securing their return to the venue next month for the Viaplay Cup Final.
No wonder the Gers gaffer had been put through the emotional wringer. It’s a feeling he’s used to in these parts. Beale was alongside Steven Gerrard when the Light Blues bossed a League Cup last four clash with Aberdeen only to be sunk by a Lewis Ferguson winner in 2018.
A year later he was in the same movie as the Light Blues banging on the door in the Final against Celtic, only to be denied by Fraser Forster and a debatable goal from Christopher Jullien. Beale might have feared more Hampden woe during yesterday’s battle with the Dons only for this time to come up with a happy ending.
The Gers gaffer said: “Steven has sat here when I was assistant to him and we dominated a semi-final and got beat and I’ve had a final here as an assistant when we got beat and we were the better team.
“So I thought we were the stronger team today and I am delighted to be through. Where the club has come from to where it is today in the four or five years I’ve been around the club, it is completely different.
“In terms of the type of players, the style of play, the fact we can win. We need to win trophies every season, that’s what the demand is.
“Where we are at the moment, we need to demand that from each other. Today was a good step in that direction as we get to come back and compete here again in a final against our biggest rivals in what will be a fantastic day out for everybody.”
Beale admitted his men made a hash of Aberdeen’s opener when Gers were caught dozing as Bojan Miovski drifted from an offside position and back into play to pounce. It was a lesson learned though with tough challenges ahead – including Celtic in the final.
Beale said: “I thought we were the stronger team throughout, albeit I thought Aberdeen played really well in the game and were a threat on the counter. They scored a very good goal.
“We have to not stop, we have to play to the whistle or play to when we know it is definitely offside. We can’t stop. We’ve spoken about that.
“The ball goes in the direction of the centre forward and he was offside but we saw it yesterday in the Manchester derby as well. You have to play to the whistle.
“That is a bit of a grey area. VAR kept breaking down today. So I think it is for my players to not stop.”
Beale is becoming accustomed to watching his team do it the hard way. It might not be pretty at times but there’s no questioning the character of the side as they once more came from behind to salvage victory. He said: “In terms of the recovery it shouldn’t be a surprise now because we have done it quite a lot in the last five or six games.
“I would prefer to be in front but I thought our response again in the second half was fantastic in terms of mentality and character and more importantly in belief in the way that we play, to not rush it or force it and to keep playing to create chances. And we did. We should probably have gone on to score one more.”
Ryan Jack got Gers back on level terms in the second half and both sides had chances to seal it. But Aberdeen captain Anthony Stewart’s rush of blood in stoppage time helped swing the pendulum again and Beale’s impact subs did the rest.
Kemar Roofe provided the vital finish but it was a stunning turn and burst of pace from former Don and Scott Wright that did the damage – and earned the Scottish Cup Final hero a major pat on the back from his gaffer.
Beale said: “I’ve been speaking to Scott Wright about being more direct because when he is direct I think he is a much better player. I want him to take on more 1 v 1s and be a little bit more selfish.
“He is a lovely boy. He’s a lovely boy and he’s got so much more talent in him because I see it every day and he shows it on the big stage.
“In saying that he seems to enjoy Hampden because in the summer I remember cheering him on when he scored a fantastic goal in the final (against Hearts). This time he had a big defining moment in a semi-final against his old club so well-played Scott Wright.”
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