ABERDEEN manager Jimmy Calderwood is confident his new-look side is showing signs of improvement after coming through a tricky Co-operative Cup tie against Ayr United last night.
The Dons boss faced the prospect of rebuilding a large chunk of his squad over the summer following the departure of several players and suffered a defeat on the opening day of the season against Inverness. Since then, decent results against Motherwe
ll and Rangers have seen Aberdeen back on track and Calderwood was pleased to come through another potentially- hazardous match in a round of games which claimed some high-profile SPL casualties.
Skipper Scott Severin and Zander Diamond were both injured and Lee Miller missed out through suspension but a Chris Maguire goal proved to be the difference at Somerset Park. Calderwood said: "We've got virtually a new team and they want to do so well they are playing 100 miles per hour.
"They've got to settle down and play the ball about and they did that towards the end. It was a bit hectic but we created a few chances, especially in the second half.
"We've not really got a settled side at the moment but we are battling away and we are getting better all the time. We can play better than that. It's about digging results out at the moment and we are certainly doing that after the disappointment on the first day."
Ayr may be out of the competition but boss Brian Reid insists the Irn-Bru Second Division leaders can take plenty of positives from the second-round tie. He said: "
I was pleased with the performance but unfortunately we are out."
The full article contains 285 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
