Aberdeen manager believes his team can end 30 years of hurt and win the Scottish Cup – now he needs them to prove it.
The Dons head to Rugby Park tonight bidding to secure their place in the quarter-final of this year’s competition.
It is three years since the Dons last played in the cup final and 30 years since the club lifted the trophy.
McInnes believes his current squad is capable of ending the long wait.
He said: “We don’t want our season to come down to fighting for third place. We have a chance to get through to the quarter-final and we’re trying to take it.
“The cup games are always important as you have no comeback. Nobody needs to tell me as an Aberdeen manager, player or club how important the cup is.
“There was an era where we won the Scottish Cup a lot as a club but there was also a time where we never got near it as well. We can only take responsibility for our part in the last seven years.
“I feel we are a team capable of winning the Scottish Cup and there is no point me sitting here saying that if I don’t believe we can. This team has the chance to make a name for itself but first things first, we have to take care of this tie.”
Killie frustrated Aberdeen with a cautious approach at Pittodrie and were rewarded by holding the Dons to a goalless draw and with it home advantage for tonight’s replay.
The game was the Dons’ fifth in a row without scoring, but since then McInnes has watched his side score four times in the last two matches and he wants to see the trend continue at Rugby Park.
He said: “The Kilmarnock team of recent seasons has a blueprint of how they want to play and are a tough nut to crack as always but it’s cup football and you either in our out so we have to go there with no fear and try to get through the tie.
“There were a lot of plaudits for our performance against Celtic on Sunday but we ended up with nothing and I would happily take a poor performance and getting through to the next round of the cup as that is all that matters.
“We’re really pleased with a lot of the first game against Kilmarnock other than the punch to get the goal. The performance was good against Hamilton and against Celtic and the determination of the team and the fact we are putting ourselves in the right position to score a goal is what I am looking for.
“I feel the team is in a good place at the minute but this is all about getting through the game. We know the benefits of staying in the cup both from a financial view and a feelgood factor.”
Funso Ojo, Greg Leigh and Scott Wright are absent for the Dons but Mikey Devlin is added to the squad after missing Sunday’s 2-1 defeat by Celtic.
