Banks o’ Dee defeated holders Brora Rangers on penalties to reach the GPH Builders Merchants Highland League Cup quarter-final after a thrilling afternoon at Dudgeon Park.
At the end of a pulsating 90 minutes it finished 3-3 with the visitors prevailed 4-3 in the shoot-out.
The Cattachs had established a two-goal lead in the first 10 minutes via Gregor MacDonald and Ally MacDonald.
But Mark Gilmour’s penalty reduced the deficit and the hosts then had Mark Nicolson sent off midway through the first period.
Lachie MacLeod levelled for Dee before the interval but Dale Gillespie re-established Brora’s lead after the break only for MacLeod to score again in stoppage time for force penalties.
Victory on spot-kicks keeps alive Banks o’ Dee’s hopes of winning something this season, despite sitting bottom of the Breedon Highland League following their points deduction.
Early excitement
It took Brora just three minutes to break the deadlock.
Tony Dingwall collected a second ball on the left flank and drove inside before finding Gregor MacDonald on the right side of the penalty area.
After taking a neat touch MacDonald composed himself before firing a low left-footed shot across goalkeeper Andy Shearer into the bottom left corner.
Seconds after falling behind the visitors threatened a leveller with Ally MacDonald’s perfectly-timed challenge thwarting Matthew Wallace as he went to pull the trigger.
But the Cattachs doubled their lead after seven minutes. Gregor MacDonald’s switch of play from right to left found Ally MacDonald and his powerful strike from the edge of the area as deflected beyond Shearer.
In the 12th minute Dee were appealing for a penalty when Wallace knocked the ball beyond Colin Williamson and went down, but referee Billy Baxter was unmoved.
Brora looked a threat every time they came forward and Shearer made an excellent block to deny Jordan MacRae at close range from Gregor MacDonald’s cross.
However, in the 20th minute Banks o’ Dee pulled a goal back from the penalty spot.
Ally Stark’s diagonal from right to left released fellow wing-back Dean Lawrie, who knocked the ball beyond Tom Kelly before being clipped.
After some deliberation with assistant Stephen Tait about whether the foul was inside the area Baxter awarded the penalty and Gilmour found the top right corner despite the best efforts of goalkeeper Ruardhri Nicol.
Three minutes later things got worse for the home side as they were reduced to 10 men.
Mark Nicolson caught Kane Winton with his studs in a midfield challenge and was initially shown a yellow card.
But after discussing it with assistant Alexander Macdonald ref Baxter reversed his decision and flashed a red card in Nicolson’s direction.
The sending off meant Cattachs boss Craig Campbell sent on defender Josh Meekings in place of Andrew Macrae.
The dynamic of the contest had changed dramatically and shortly after the half hour mark Dee were a whisker away from equalising when Hamish MacLeod’s strike from the edge of area glanced the outside of the right post on its way wide.
Soon after Nicol made two excellent saves. First to claw to away Winton’s header from a Gilmour corner.
Then from Gilmour’s next delivery Winton’s flick on was met by Wallace, but Nicol blocked at point-blank range.
But Nicol was beaten in the 37th minute as Banks o’ Dee equalised. Dean Lawrie’s cross from the left was met by Lachie MacLeod at the front post and he prodded into the net.
Tie in the balance
Three minutes into the second period the Aberdeen outfit almost took the lead in slightly bizarre circumstances.
Everyone stopped when Stark took aim from 20 yards with his daisy-cutter appearing to be drifting wide, but it trundled against the left post before Nicol gathered the rebound.
Dee continued to be in the ascendancy with Colin Williamson heading away Gilmour’s dangerous delivery before half-time sub Magnus Watson fired into the side-netting.
In the 55th minute Winton slipped Lawrie into space on the left side of the area but Williamson was again perfectly positioned to clear from inside the six-yard box.
But two minutes later it was Brora who regained the lead. Winton fouled Gregor MacDonald on the right with the visitors feeling the award was soft.
But from MacDonald’s delivery Gillespie ghosted in at the back post to head home.
Immediately after conceding Banks o’ Dee almost drew level again. Hamish MacLeod prevented Nicol from gathering a loose ball and when it broke back to Lachie MacLeod he lifted a shot just over.
Brora had battled superbly having played with 10 men for so long and after falling behind Dee’s rhythm was disrupted and they struggled to carve out chances.
With 10 minutes remaining, however, Nicol bailed out Brora. Winton skipped clear on the right side of the area and teed up Lachie MacLeod, but his strike from six yards was blocked by the goalkeeper.
In the last minute of normal time another Dee penalty appeal was turned away by Baxter when Neil Gauld went down in a challenge with Gillespie at a corner.
But in the first minute of injury time the visitors did equalise. Winton drove down the left flank and into the box before laying the ball off for Lachie MacLeod who lashed into the bottom left corner from 15 yards.
Penalties were required although referee Baxter initially seemed to think extra-time was required.
But when the spot-kicks were taken Ali Sutherland hit the crossbar with Brora’s first before Lachie MacLeod did the same with Dee’s third.
Jordan MacRae, Gillespie and Gregor MacDonald scored for the hosts with Gilmour, Gauld and Rob Armstrong doing the same for the visitors.
Then Meekings fired Brora’s fifth over the bar but Watson was denied by Nicol when he had the chance to win it.
But Colin Williamson hit the crossbar with the Cattachs’ sixth penalty and Kacper Lewecki made no mistake to win it for Banks o’ Dee.
