Safety in sight for Dons as legend Harper takes acclaim

[BBC]

Stephen Robinson wasn't the only one breathing a sigh of relief on Saturday as he notched his first win as Aberdeen manager amid a barrage of criticism and pressure.

The Dons were excellent throughout their win over 10-man Hibernian and should have won by more than the final 2-0 scoreline.

Kevin Nisbet finished last season strongly and his brace against his old club could be crucial to Aberdeen's hopes of staving off 11th place with Kilmarnock, who currently occupy that position, at Pittodrie in the first post-split match next Saturday.

The fact is, a second win on the bounce would leave a gap of eight points between the two plus a vastly superior goal difference meaning the Dons could start planning for next season's Premiership campaign should that come to pass.

But as Robinson pointed out after the game, there is still much to do.

Pre-match, Dons legend Joe Harper took the acclaim of the full house with the Aberdeen support unveiling a sensational tifo to celebrate their greatest goalscorer.

Harper etched his name into Pittodrie folklore in a goal-laden career, mainly in the 1970s and across two spells.

He is a Greenock native, but he is an Aberdeen man who also enjoyed a stint at Hibs. It was a pity he wasn't five years younger given he only caught the start of Sir Alex Ferguson's glory years. Harper's 199 goals deserved more silverware than they were ultimately rewarded with.

When Billy McNeill signed Steve Archibald during his short time in charge of the Dons, they went on to form a partnership and Archibald himself credits those times up front with Harper as a big reason why he went on to enjoy a wonderful career at Tottenham and Barcelona.

Harper is a regular at Pittodrie and has watched this season's side go from one slump to another, so it was fitting Nisbet led the team to a first win in 10 games on a day their all-time top scorer was acclaimed.