Queen of the South dump Aberdeen out of Scottish Cup

Apr 13 2008 By Mark Guidi and Scott Mcdermott

GOAL hero John Stewart came back to haunt Aberdeen as he sealed Queen of the South's place in the Scottish Cup Final.

The striker was DUMPED by Dons boss Jimmy Calderwood two years ago and told he wasn't good enough.

But the 22-year-old had the last laugh yesterday, scoring the clincher in a thrilling 4-3 semi-final win that Calderwood says will plague him for the rest of his life.

Stewart, who was booed by Dons fans when he came on as sub, said: "It was brilliant, a great feeling to score the winner at Hampden. We started well but credit to Aberdeen, they just came back at us every time."

The First Division underdogs took the lead three times through Steve Tosh, Paul Burns and Sean O'Connor.

However, an Andrew Considine double and a Barry Nicholson strike kept the Dons in with a chance.

But Stewart netted on the hour and the underdogs held on to book a place in their first ever Scottish Cup Final.

And if Rangers win the SPL title it means there will definitely be a First Division club representing Scotland in the UEFA Cup next season.

Gers face Partick Thistle in their quarter-final replay today with a semi clash against St Johnstone awaiting the winner.

Falkirk loan star Stewart only got on the field after an injury to top scorer Stephen Dobbie in the first half - but he was glad to get a chance to silence his critics.

Budgie said: "I was disappointed for Dobbs when he got injured but it gave me the chance to play at Hampden.

"I did OK, setting up our second goal for Burnsy then getting the winner.

"I had a big incentive to do well against my old club.

"I'd like to describe the abuse I got from their fans when I was on my warm-up but you couldn't print it.

"I enjoyed my four years there but it was Calderwood's decision to move me on.

"I don't think I ever got a fair chance at Pittodrie so I wanted to prove people up there wrong. Every player will tell you it's special to score against your old club."

Calderwood looked a dejected figure as Dons blew their last hope for UEFA Cup football next season.

He blasted: "This is one of the worst moments of my career. I hope the players feel the same way as I do.

"This is the kind of result that will never leave me.

Whether it's 10 or 20 years from now, I will always feel regret about not winning."

Calderwood will now think about axeing his flops.

He said: "I'll be making some big decisions quickly.

We were sloppy and our defending was awful - to lose four goals is a joke.

"Credit to Queens but they didn't exactly have to work hard to get their goals."

Queens gaffer Gordon Chisholm was delighted to earn the club the first final in their 89-year history.

He beamed: "This is our first year as a full-time club so it's a dream to get to a final. It's a massive achievement.

I'll never beat this - unless we go on to win it!

"Most my players are out of contract on May 15 but I'm sure they won't want to leave.

"But we will have four weeks without a game before the final and I'll need to work out how to deal with that."