Rangers-Aberdeen rivalry has iconic League Cup trilogy at its heart - why this is fixture that quickens pulse

Aberdeen v Rangers is iconic League Cup final clash that has stoked flames between two clubs

Fairytale of New York by The Pogues is riding high in the charts and Aberdeen are about to meet Rangers in a League Cup final. It’s like the late 1980s all over again.

Both sides landing impressive midweek European scalps is a further blast of nostalgia framing tomorrow's showpiece occasion at Hampden Park. The neutrality of the venue might be up for debate but the attractiveness of the fixture is not. It’s one many neutrals might like to attend were it not already a slightly lop-sided sell out, with Rangers controversially allocated several thousand more tickets than their counterparts.

Of course, there was once a time when there was an 'Aberdeen end' at the national stadium, or at least it felt that way such was the frequency of their visits. Sometimes they even met Rangers there.

Referee George Smith with the Rangers and Aberdeen captains, Terry Butcher (left) and Willie Miller before kick-off in the 1988 League Cup final.

Indeed, they did so three League Cup finals in a row between 1987 and 1989. It was a case of third-time lucky for Aberdeen in the last of these memorable encounters thanks to Paul Mason’s extra-time winner. "2-1 to Aberdeen, Jocky Scott on the track!" cried commentator Jock Brown with reference to the Aberdeen co-manager moments after the decisive strike.

The first meeting in this trilogy finished 3-3, with Rangers winning on penalties. The classic was further distinguished by Davie Cooper’s free-kick thunderbolt that inspired the immortal quip from the Rangers winger, after hearing Jim Leighton's claim he had got a touch to the ball: “Aye, on the way back out.”

Rangers won in 1988 too, 3-2 this time, though contemporary reports detailing triumphant player-manager Graeme Souness’ 20 seconds-long post-match press conference suggests something was already up.

The meeting came just weeks after another clash between the sides that is reckoned by many to have established, if not spawned, the animosity between the fans that has been maintained and sometimes stoked over the years. Although not a cup final, the clash at Pittodrie 35 years ago undoubtedly belonged in the high-stakes category. It was termed "Britain's match of the day" in the Green Final, Aberdeen's now sadly defunct Saturday evening sports paper.

Ian Ferguson (right) attempts to get to grips with Aberdeen forward Eoin Jess in the 1992 League Cup final.

In England, Norwich City returning to the top of the old First Division after winning 1-0 at Derby County took top billing, but it’s not a game that lives in the memory, unlike the one at Pittodrie. Sadly, infamy has ensured its enduring renown. A wildly out-of-control challenge by Aberdeen's Neil Simpson after eight minutes left Rangers midfielder Ian Durrant, soon to turn 21, writhing on the ground in agony.

The incident has been recalled by former Rangers chairman David Holmes in a book published earlier this month charting his time in football. As author Stephen Halliday notes in One Voice, the tackle "still invokes a sense of anger for Holmes”, who remembers trying to console the stricken Durrant in the away dressing room. “We both knew it was a big a problem,” says Holmes.

Durrant was out of the game for nearly three years. Simpson, an otherwise unimpeachable competitor, suffered as well. The incident continues to be recalled, not only in the pages of Holmes' revealing new book. Unsavoury songs about Durrant from Aberdeen fans were heard at the most recent league encounter at Pittodrie, which may have left new Ibrox manager Philippe Clement slightly bewildered. He has, though, surely been left in no doubt already about the unique properties of a fixture that genuinely quickens the pulse.

He will recognise that he might not even be in a job if it hadn’t been for Aberdeen’s zeal at Ibrox as they turned Michael Beale’s already shaky position into an untenable one with a 3-1 win at Ibrox in September.

Aberdonian delight was only tempered by the realisation that they were simply helping prove former Rangers striker and Sky Sports pundit Kris Boyd’s well-rehearsed point about them raising their game against his former club.

Horror at the thought of a smirking Boyd perhaps lay behind their late collapse last season, when, in Beale’s first away game as manager at Ibrox, Aberdeen conceded two goals in injury time to lose the game 3-2. They were again well on the way to helping vindicate Boyd last month at Pittodrie before defender Stefan Gartenmann tugged Connor Goldson's jersey to hand Rangers the chance - duly taken - to seal a late point from the spot.

All this drama is well and good but the teams have not gone head-to-head for silverware since 2000’s Scottish Cup final, remarkably. Even Boyd, then making his way at Kilmarnock, would have struggled to present a case for Ebbe Skovdahl’s side being capable of raising their game against Rangers that afternoon, even before they lost goalkeeper Leighton to a sickening face injury two minutes in.

Last-placed Aberdeen had just conceded 83 goals in the league programme with an international-class keeper in place between the sticks. What would happen with a non-goalie? As one writer memorably pointed out, Robbie Winters, ostensibly a striker, was having enough trouble scoring goals that season, let alone saving them. The 4-0 scoreline was a rare demonstration of mercy in these contests.

Some claim the rivalry between the teams first started to turn bitter following another League Cup final, in March 1979. Former Rangers team-mates John Greig and Alex Ferguson were pitched against one another, with the former coming out on top thanks to a last-minute headed winner from defender Colin Jackson.

Rangers’ task was eased by a red card to Doug Rougvie, who became only the second-ever player to be sent off in a major Scottish final when he was adjudged to have elbowed Derek Johnstone. Ferguson said Rougvie swore he never touched Johnstone, with the manager later accusing the Rangers player of diving while making claims of west-coast bias, a complaint that exists – and, indeed, has been reignited – in the run-up to this weekend's final. As with so many things in football, it all comes back to Fergie.

One Voice: David Holmes is available to purchase at www.davidholmesonevoice.co.uk