1988–89 Aberdeen F.C. season

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Aberdeen F.C.
1988–89 season
ChairmanDick Donald
ManagerAlex Smith
Jocky Scott
Scottish Premier Division2nd
Scottish CupFourth round
Scottish League CupRunner-up
UEFA CupFirst round
Top goalscorerLeague: Charlie Nicholas (16)
All: Charlie Nicholas (18)
Highest home attendance23,000 vs. Dundee United, 18 February 1989
Lowest home attendance6,500 vs. Motherwell, 6 May 1989
Average home league attendance14,130

Aberdeen F.C. competed in the Scottish Premier Division, Scottish League Cup, Scottish Cup and UEFA Cup in season 1988–89.

Overview[edit]

Aberdeen began the season under new management. Alex Smith and Jocky Scott were appointed as co-managers after the resignation of Ian Porterfield during the summer. New signings included Paul Mason and Theo Snelders from FC Groningen and FC Twente respectively.

Aberdeen finished second in the League behind Rangers, and reached the final of the League Cup, which they lost to Rangers after extra time. In the Scottish Cup, they lost in the fourth round to Dundee United, and in Europe, they lost to East German club Dynamo Dresden in the first round of the UEFA Cup.

Results[edit]

Scottish Premier Division[edit]

Match Day Date Opponent H/A Score Aberdeen Scorer(s) Attendance
1 13 August Dundee A 1–1 Dodds 12,222
2 20 August St Mirren H 1–1 Connor 12,046
3 27 August Dundee United A 2–2 Bett, Hewitt 14,735
4 3 September Hibernian H 0–0 14,000
5 17 September Celtic A 3–1 Grant, Bett, Dodds 37,769
6 24 September Heart of Midlothian H 1–0 Nicholas 14,000
7 27 September Hamilton Academical A 1–0 Connor 3,634
8 1 October Motherwell A 1–1 Miller 4,225
9 8 October Rangers H 2–1 Nicholas, Bett 22,370
10 12 October St Mirren A 1–1 Dodds 4,287
11 29 October Heart of Midlothian A 1–1 Whittaker (own goal) 12,644
12 2 November Celtic H 2–2 Nicholas, Dodds 22,000
13 5 November Hibernian A 2–1 Nicholas (2) 11,500
14 12 November Dundee United H 1–1 Mason 15,184
15 16 November Dundee H 1–0 Wright 11,181
16 19 November Motherwell H 2–1 Nicholas, Hewitt 10,028
17 26 November Rangers A 0–1 42,239
18 3 December Hamilton Academical H 1–1 Nicholas 8,324
19 10 December Celtic A 0–0 42,437
20 17 December St Mirren H 3–1 Irvine, C. Robertson, Hewitt 8,500
21 31 December Dundee A 0–2 9,828
22 3 January Dundee United A 1–1 Nicholas 17,952
23 7 January Hibernian H 2–0 Nicholas (2) 13,500
24 14 January Rangers H 1–2 Nicholas 22,000
25 21 January Motherwell A 2–0 Connor, van der Ark 5,906
26 14 February Hamilton Academical A 2–0 Wright, Nicholas 2,016
27 25 February Heart of Midlothian H 3–0 Wright (2), Irvine 15,000
28 11 March Dundee H 2–0 Nicholas, Wright 11,800
29 25 March St Mirren A 3–1 Nicholas, Wright, Mason 7,541
30 1 April Dundee United H 1–0 Nicholas 16,700
31 8 April Hibernian A 2–1 Bett, Mason 11,000
32 15 April Hamilton Academical H 3–0 Nicholas (2), Mason 9,712
33 22 April Heart of Midlothian A 0–1 13,367
34 29 April Celtic H 0–0 21,500
35 6 May Motherwell H 0–0 6,500
36 13 May Rangers A 3–0 van der Ark, Wright, Bett 42,480

Final standings[edit]

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Rangers (C) 36 26 4 6 62 26 +36 56 Qualification for the European Cup first round
2 Aberdeen 36 18 14 4 51 25 +26 50 Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round
3 Celtic 36 21 4 11 66 44 +22 46 Qualification for the Cup Winners' Cup first round
4 Dundee United 36 16 12 8 44 26 +18 44 Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round
5 Hibernian 36 13 9 14 37 36 +1 35
Source: Statto
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions

Scottish League Cup[edit]

Round Date Opponent H/A Score Aberdeen Scorer(s) Attendance
R2 17 August Arbroath H 4–0 Miller (2), Bett, Hewitt 9,139
R3 23 August Morton A 2–1 Bett (2) 3,131
QF 31 August Hibernian A 2–1 Nicholas, Grant 13,500
SF 20 September Dundee United N 2–0 Dodds, Hewitt 18,491
F 23 October Rangers N 2–3 Dodds (2) 72,122

Scottish Cup[edit]

Round Date Opponent H/A Score Aberdeen Scorer(s) Attendance
R3 28 January Dunfermline Athletic A 0–0 16,656
R3 R 1 February Dunfermline Athletic H 3–1 Wright (2), Nicholas 21,500
R4 18 February Dundee United H 1–1 Connor 23,000
R4 R 22 February Dundee United A 1–1 Grant 18,756
R4 R2 27 February Dundee United A 0–1 21,095

UEFA Cup[edit]

Round Date Opponent H/A Score Aberdeen Scorer(s) Attendance
R1 L1 7 September East Germany Dynamo Dresden H 0–0 14,500
R1 L2 5 October East Germany Dynamo Dresden A 0–2 36,000

Squad[edit]

Appearances & Goals[edit]

No. Pos Nat Player Total Premier Division Scottish Cup League Cup Europe
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
MF Scotland SCO Jim Bett 43 8 31 5 5 0 5 3 2 0
MF Scotland SCO Bobby Connor 48 5 36 4 5 1 5 0 2 0
FW Scotland SCO Davie Dodds 34 7 23 4 4 0 5 3 2 0
MF Scotland SCO Brian Grant 33 3 27 1 3 1 2 1 1 0
MF Scotland SCO Stevie Gray 5 0 4 0 0 0 1 0 0 0
FW Scotland SCO John Hewitt 35 5 27 3 2 0 5 2 1 0
DF Scotland SCO Brian Irvine 35 2 27 2 5 0 3 0 0 0
FW Scotland SCO Eoin Jess 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
MF Scotland SCO Andy MacLeod 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
MF England ENG Paul Mason 33 4 28 4 1 0 2 0 2 0
DF Scotland SCO Stewart McKimmie 47 0 35 0 5 0 5 0 2 0
DF Scotland SCO Alex McLeish 46 0 34 0 5 0 5 0 2 0
DF Scotland SCO Willie Miller (c) 29 3 22 1 0 0 5 2 2 0
FW Scotland SCO Charlie Nicholas 37 18 28 16 5 1 3 1 1 0
MF Scotland SCO Craig Robertson 5 1 4 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
DF Scotland SCO David Robertson 30 0 23 0 0 0 5 0 2 0
DF Scotland SCO Ian Robertson 12 0 7 0 5 0 0 0 0 0
MF Scotland SCO Neil Simpson 28 0 16 0 5 0 5 0 2 0
GK Netherlands NED Theo Snelders 48 0 36 0 5 0 5 0 2 0
FW Netherlands NED Willem van der Ark 9 2 8 2 1 0 0 0 0 0
DF Scotland SCO Gregg Watson 4 0 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
FW Scotland SCO Paul Wright 28 8 22 6 4 2 1 0 1 0

References[edit]

  • Kevin Stirling. Aberdeen A Centenary History 1903-2003. Desert Island Books 2002. ISBN 1-874287-49-X.