Dons see red after McDonald’s dismissal for getting shirty

McGhee’s men do well to grab a point but once again the referee is in the spotlight

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HIGHS AND LOWS: A delighted Gary McDonald lifts his shirt over his head after equalising for Aberdeen before, below, he is sent off for his celebration. Kevin Emslie

Another week, another referee in the spotlight in an Aberdeen game.

It was official Crawford Allan’s turn to grab the headlines with one of the most remarkable red cards of the season as Aberdeen had a player sent off for the third time in as many games.

The 10-man Dons, however, refused to capitulate in manager Mark McGhee’s return to Fir Park and he will be delighted with the efforts of his players to come from a goal behind to grab a point against Jim Gannon’s Motherwell.

Gary McDonald’s second yellow card following his goal which cancelled out Lukas Jutkiewicz’s opener spoiled what was a terrific second-half showing from the Dons and McGhee has every right to feel dismayed at losing the services of his player for this weekend’s visit of Rangers to Pittodrie.

The Dons had started brightly and only an excellent piece of goalkeeping by Well’s John Ruddy prevented the visitors from opening the scoring. A fine passing move involving Charlie Mulgrew, Lee Miller and Richard Foster ended with Foster’s cross being met by Miller’s low header, but Ruddy did well to parry his effort.

The chance seemed to stir Well from their slumber as they broke upfield to take the lead in the 14th minute. There appeared little danger as Kevin Jutkiewicz ran towards the Aberdeen goal but he cut inside Foster before driving the ball under Jamie Langfield.

The Well forward’s shot seemed to catch out the Dons goalkeeper, who really should have done better at his near post.

It was almost 2-0 within a couple of minutes as another long ball was not dealt with by the visiting defence and Jamie Murphy lifted the ball over the advancing Langfield, but his effort was cleared off the line by Andy Considine as the Dons struggled to weather the storm.

It was all too easy for the home side with McGhee’s players seemingly losing their resolve after the loss of the goal, with the defence, in particular, unable to deal with routine long balls. Another lapse let in Giles Coke but he shot over the bar.

Well went on to dominate possession for the remainder of the first half although Michael Paton did offer some resistance, chesting down a Maurice Ross cross into the box, only for Ruddy to deny him with a terrific save to turn his 10-yard shot past the post.

It was a brief respite in what was a poor opening 45 minutes from the Dons, who had stood off Well and allowed them to dictate the pace, yet had also created the better chances.

Whatever McGhee had to say to his players during the interval had the desired effect as the Aberdeen players rediscovered their purpose and urgency as they set about the task of getting back on level terms with renewed vigour in the second half.

There was a flurry of activity towards the Well goal but the aerial bombardment failed to come to fruition with a combination of Ruddy and some desperate defending from the home side ensuring they survived unscathed. Despite the pressure from the visitors it was Langfield who kept his side in the game as he blocked John Sutton’s low drive.

The Dons were not to be denied their equaliser, however, although it came at a cost.

The Well defence was caught out at the back post as McDonald was left unmarked and he had the simple task of heading Mulgrew’s corner past Ruddy. The Dons midfielder, who had been booked early in the second half, lifted his shirt over his face and padded his stomach, a gesture made due to the fact his wife is pregnant, before turning to see referee Crawford Allan brandishing a second yellow card in his direction to leave the Dons facing the final 20 minutes with 10 men.

The decision did seem harsh in the extreme on the Aberdeen midfielder who did little more than celebrate in front of his own supporters and, it should be noted, did not remove his top.

Home supporters would have expected their side to push forward with the extra man advantage but the Dons gave as good as they got in the closing exchanges and substitute Darren Mackie narrowly failed to get anything on Considine’s low driven cross in the final minute when any touch surely would have resulted in the winner.