Aberdeen ease past Bonnyrigg Rose to reach Scottish Cup quarter-finals

Posted Sunday, February 11, 2024 by PA

Aberdeen eased their way into the Scottish Cup quarter-finals with a 2-0 victory over Bonnyrigg Rose as interim manager Neil Warnock made his Pittodrie bow.

Bojan Miovski took his tally to 22 for the season with two smart first-half goals from close range, the first through the goalkeeper’s legs and the second a stunning finish from just outside the six-yard box.

Warnock’s arrival has been met with intrigue, and the home support put on a pre-match display to welcome the 75-year-old for his first home match, with Bonnyrigg perhaps providing less glamorous opposition but also a potential banana skin.

Winning this competition is a stated aim of the Yorkshireman, and he made five changes to the side that had lost to Rangers in midweek, handing a debut to goalkeeper Ross Doohan in place of Kelle Roos, who came in for criticism for his part in the Ibrox defeat.

Doohan was in action early on, having to be alert to claim a deflected Smart Osadolor effort as the visitors tried to make an impression in front of their 859 travelling fans.

Aberdeen quickly settled into their rhythm and took the lead after 17 minutes. Leighton Clarkson stepped onto a loose ball and played in Shayden Morris, who in turn slipped in Miovski to nutmeg goalkeeper Paddy Martin.

The visitors responded and, after Jack Mackenzie coughed up possession on the edge of the area, Osadolor should have levelled, only for Nicky Devlin to get across and clear off the line.

The Dons wasted no time settling their nerves thereafter, with Clarkson whipping a superb cross to Dante Polvara at the back post. He headed down and Miovski struck a sweet half-volley into the top-right corner from eight yards.

The visitors tightened up to avoid the score becoming an embarrassment and they would have been relieved to see Miovski withdrawn at the hour mark, although not before he had forced a smart save from Martin.

There were a number of substitutions as Warnock got a look at as many of his squad as possible, but they still had to be wary of their League Two visitors, who forced a save from Doohan through Ross Gray after 65 minutes.

For the most part, though, Aberdeen were comfortable against a stoic Rose outfit as they moved into the next round.