Sam Cosgrove and Andrew Considine at the double as Aberdeen crush Dundee

Posted Wednesday, December 19, 2018 by PA

Sam Cosgrove and Andrew Considine both hit braces as Aberdeen demolished Dundee 5-1 to move within a point of Rangers at the top of the Ladbrokes Premiership.

Cosgrove netted twice in the first half, and Considine grabbed a double after the break, with Connor McLennan also finding the net in the second period.

Calvin Miller had netted a superb consolation for Dundee midway through the second half, but the scoreline accurately reflected what was a one-sided affair.

Aberdeen striker Stevie May saw his shot cleared off the line by Kenny Miller after just three minutes.

Lewis Ferguson then forced a save from visiting goalkeeper Jack Hamilton, his 25-yard free-kick held by the goalkeeper following a foul on captain Graeme Shinnie.

But the deadlock was broken after 16 minutes, and it was Cosgrove who found the net.

Play went on while Dundee defender Genseric Kusunga was down injured in the Aberdeen box, but that mattered little to the Dons as they broke down the right, and it was McLennan’s superb cross that allowed Cosgrove to throw himself at the ball and head home from close range.

McLennan was involved again as he prodded a ball into the path of Shinnie after 36 minutes, the midfielder turning stylishly in the area before seeing Hamilton turn away his left-footed shot.

When the second goal came, a minute from the interval, it was again Cosgrove who found the net.

He won an aerial ball in midfield and was played in by Ferguson. May was screaming for the pass, but Cosgrove went himself and slotted the ball through the legs of the goalkeeper.

It took just five minutes after the interval for Aberdeen to bag their third, and the goal was simplicity itself. Niall McGinn took a corner on the right and Considine rose unchallenged to head home from eight yards.

And they were soon 4-0 up. McGinn and May combined on the left, with the former swinging a deep cross to the back post where the impressive youngster McLennan took the ball on the half-volley and found the net.

Dundee pulled a goal back from distance as the on-loan Celtic man Miller found the bottom-right corner from 20 yards, but it was a mere blip for the home side who restored their four-goal advantage through Considine.

Hamilton made a fantastic save from Considine’s initial effort following a Shinnie corner, but when the ball came back across, the one-club man made no mistake in directing his header into the net from six yards.