Aberdeen 2 - 1 St Johnstone

The feeling of the 10,000 spectators who left Pittodrie on Saturday at the close of the Aberdeen "A"-St Johnstone match in the first round of the Robertson Challenge Cup was that they had witnessed an encounter equal in speed and interest to any First Division game. And there was an additional satisfaction in the fact that the young "Dons" accounted for their exalted opponents by the odd goal in three, a win well merited by reason of their fine staying power and forceful second half work.
It looked odds on the visitors when Main, their outside right, opened the scoring in about ten minutes, but the Pittodrie Reserves did not lie down despite the fact that they were without Ritchie, for whom McBoyle deputised. They preserved their goal from further downfall by at times almost miraculous effort, and yet, had their forwards got a goal, it would have been only their due. Two counting shots were luckily charged down by St Johnstone defenders before a penalty goal by Miller put the teams on level terms.
Aberdeen "A" showed a great improvement in form after the interval. McHale steadied up, and kept a close watch on Munro, who had been an ever-present source of danger in the first period. McBoyle also came away in fine style, while his partner was the best back afield. Ably led by McFarlane, the home forwards made many dashing raids, and in one of them Page fumbled a shot from Miller, and McFarlane headed the ball from his hands into the net. But for McLeod's scheming work at inside left, however, the home van would not have been successful. The Kirkintilloch man seems to have struck his best form, and it was largely due to him that Smith played one his finest games this season.
St Johnstone tried desperately for the equaliser, and Blackwell had difficult work to get through. Aberdeen, however, would have gone further ahead on at least two occasions had Smith and Miller only steadied themselves at the critical moment.
It was a great tussle, out of which the whole Aberdeen team emerged with credit, the particular stars being Muir, Ross, McLeod, and Smith. On the visiting side Penman, Kirkwood, Munro, Govan, and Ferguson were outstanding, the last-named, a last year's juvenile, vieing with McLeod for premier honours. The Perth wing halves were the weak link.

Source: Press & Journal, 7th February 1927