Derek McInnes Post Match Press Quotes |

“I’m absolutely delighted with the win after being put through the wringer today like every Aberdeen supporter!

“It wasn’t an easy team selection because Graeme Shinnie had a fitness test yesterday morning. He felt his hamstring, so we did not want to take a gamble on two players, Shinnie and McGinn. Niall decided he was good to go, but we were concerned he did not have more than an hour in him. We had to decide, do we start with him and Graeme who was also a doubt? We didn’t want to be losing two players and having to make two substitutions if they didn’t come through it.

“We were worried about Shinnie in the second half. The medical team thought he was labouring for a little period, but he found a spark again, he found his edge and drove us on, him and Ryan Jack. I thought in the last 20 minutes those two players were exceptional.

“We made a fantastic start. To go 1-0 up after 12 seconds was fantastic for us. It was a huge adrenalin rush and that showed in the performance. For the next half hour, Hibs had a wobble as you would expect after losing an early goal like that in a cup semi-final. Whilst they were playing with anxiety, I thought we were playing with purpose and there was a real flow to the game.

“We deservedly got our second goal with a fantastic piece of play by young Ryan. The game was pretty straightforward at that moment but we knew Hibs would have to do something, they were looking towards their bench to change it. Neil brought on Holt as we expected and they went a bit more direct to try and get back into it.

“The team they had on the pitch then was the one we had anticipated and it took away our pressing. The game became a bit quicker and our defenders, instead of getting the protection in front of them, they needed to be quicker with their work.

“We had to be more alert when they made the tactical change. When teams by-pass your pressing, you have to deal with that first ball. It was something that was aimed at us last season, we were not strong enough in those types of games.

“And we didn’t deal with it their ball in from wide and Holt got them back in the game pretty much straight after he came on. The flow of the game then changed and went towards Hibs. The goal before the interval gave them belief and something to work towards in the second half.

“It was good to get the players in at half-time and I thought we actually started the second half well and had good control of the game. We tried to make little adjustments to try and make the second half a bit uneventful. We wanted to be more of a counterattacking team, as long as we won our first headers. For the majority of it, we did, but the second goal was far too easy for them. It’s a goal we gave away. They picked the ball up, we were too open and loose and we backed off.

“The question were being asked of us then as they had of Hibs in the first half an hour, and there is no doubt we were having our wobble and you could see the press had their headlines ready. The momentum was with Hibs. We had to respond. The players deserve a lot of credit when at 2-2 because the momentum was with Hibs and everyone was thinking this game was only going one way. We had enough experience to make sure the game went the other way for us.

“I thought at centre-half, we started to win more headers again in that period and the game became a bit stretched. With McGinn on the pitch and with Hayes starting to have a better influence on proceedings, when the game does get a bit stretched, we always feel those boys can do something.

“We might have lost that type of game a couple of years ago. Of the five semi-finals in my time here, the two we lost, I thought we had control of them – St Johnstone at Ibrox and Dundee United at Hampden. We did not get what we deserved those days to be honest, and I think the experience the team have from those setbacks helped us to get the job done.

“I thought towards the end of the 90 minutes, we were needing a bit of a break and we were needing a bit of inspiration. In the end, we got a lucky break with the goal, there is no doubt about that. If you are on the Hibs end of it, it is such a cruel way to lose a semi-final but we will take it. We have earned that, our players have worked so hard, they gave everything and I want my players to be rewarded. I thought we then dealt with the game well at 3-2 and got the job done.

“Hopefully the experiences we have had now of the different cup finals, certainly the one we had last time, will help us in the build up to this final. The League Cup final was the most sobering experience, there is nothing worse when you don’t turn up and play anywhere near the way you can. We spoke about it in the dressing room immediately after the game and said the only way we will start to feel better about that result is by getting straight back to a final.

“And it’s only by revisiting finals, only by familiarising yourself with finals, that you get used to them. That gives you a better chance of winning them. I am hoping the experiences we have gained over the last little while and from the last cup final will help us going into the game on the 27th, regardless of who we play.

“Semi-finals are only about one thing – winning. If we had said before the game, regardless of how it went, that we would win 3-2, we would have taken that.

“I am delighted for so many people. I felt that after the last cup final we had some making up to do to people to be honest. I think we have done it with our league form – the form we have been in since the turn of the year has been fantastic. But to reach our second cup final, for a club that could hardly get to a cup final for many years, and to put ourselves into a position where we have to deal with the same situation again, I am really pleased. I just hope the players get the reward for everything they give”.